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This study represents a few basic steps of municipal solid waste management practiced in the six major cities of Bangladesh, namely, Dhaka, Chittagong, Khulna, Rajshahi, Barisal, and Sylhet. A six-month field study was conducted to identify the solid wastes management steps such as storage at source, separation, on-site storage, collection, transportation, treatment, reuse, recycling, and ultimate disposal. This study addresses the role of the city authority to meet the demand of the city dwellers in solving this emerging socioenvironmental issue and the initiatives taken by some nongovernmental organizations and community based organizations. The problems and constraints of the solid wastes management system are also identified to find a sustainable management concept for the urban areas of Bangladesh.

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To evaluate the possibilities for biofuel and bioenergy production Acacia Holosericea, which is an invasive plant available in Brunei Darussalam, was investigated. Proximate analysis of Acacia Holosericea shows that the moisture content, volatile matters, fixed carbon, and ash contents were 9.56%, 65.12%, 21.21%, and 3.91%, respectively. Ultimate analysis shows carbon, hydrogen, and nitrogen as 44.03%, 5.67%, and 0.25%, respectively. The thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) results have shown that maximum weight loss occurred for this biomass at 357 °C for pyrolysis and 287 °C for combustion conditions. Low moisture content (<10%), high hydrogen content, and higher heating value (about 18.13 MJ/kg) makes this species a potential biomass. The production of bio-char, bio-oil, and biogas from Acacia Holosericea was found 34.45%, 32.56%, 33.09% for 500 °C with a heating rate 5 °C/min and 25.81%, 37.61%, 36.58% with a heating rate 10 °C/min, respectively, in this research. From Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy it was shown that a strong C–H, C–O, and C=C bond exists in the bio-char of the sample.

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Several definitions and criteria of the first-flush are being used to assess and control the nonpoint source (diffuse) pollution. The common consensus is that the first-flush is generally noticed in the small catchments (e.g. < 10 ha) of regular shapes. It is also considered that 80% of the pollution load can be captured by capturing 30% of the runoff volume, which is assumed to be due to first-flush of the storm event. However, such phenomenon is uncertain in the considerably large catchments, principally due to the dilution and delay in transport of the pollutant. This paper critically examines the 'first-flush' phenomenon in controlling diffuse pollution based on various studies conducted by the researchers. Based on the review, it can be inferred that the first-flush may be an effective criterion for sizing on-site treatment facilities for small catchments (with similar dimensions of length and width), from where the runoff is expected to reach the treatment facility (roughly) at the same time. However, for the large and elongated catchments with an area covering more than 10 ha, a huge volume of storm runoff needs to be captured that would make the treatment system large or less effective. As such, for the community and regional facilities; the presence of the first-flush needs to be confirmed based on the sampling and analysis of data collected from several storm events of different durations and intensities. Therefore, the use of the first-flush phenomenon should not be applied for the design of storm runoff treatment facility in large drainage system (say > 10 ha) without on-site monitoring being conducted. However, it is also recommended to come up with a simplistic approach of designing the best management practices (BMPs) to capture and treat certain depth of the initial storm runoff (e.g. first 20 mm), which will help reduce the effect of nonpoint source (NPS) pollution.

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