Ripples of Bihar Bridge Collapse Will Spell Trouble For River Biodiversity, Increase Flooding Risk: Expert

"Such a big chunk of concrete structure falling into the Ganga will have a big environmental effect for a long time. It will deeply hurt the water biodiversity of the river in this region. The water-borne animals will be adversely affected by it," Ashok Ghosh, the professor of Mahavir Cancer Institute and former chairman of Bihar state pollution control board told IANS.

"Unlike silt, the concrete structures used to make bridges are non-biodegradable. Hence, there is no question of the concrete structures dissolving in water. The iron rods may turn into rust after coming in contact with water, but it is a slow process which takes years. The ongoing projects of cleaning the river will also suffer a big jolt due to the bridge collapse," Ghosh said.

"The concrete structures of such a massive amount change the river's flow as well. It makes the river more shallow in the region, which leads to flooding. Khagaria, in particular, is affected by floods in the monsoon season. The fresh structural disaster would create more trouble for people living in the region," added Ghosh.

The biggest challenge of the state government is the silt carried by these rivers and its accumulation in the low-lying areas of North Bihar and the Ganga River. It makes the rivers more shallow by disturbing the natural drains. It turned worse after the drainage system of various districts was developed haphazardly. The water comes from the Himalayan range but does not return or exit to other sides due to poor drainage systems.

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The above article has been published from a wire source with minimal modifications to the headline and text.