Bangladesh and Environment
By Harun ur Rashid*
My presentation is divided into following five parts:
(a) Bangladesh’s geographical position
(b) Bangladesh’s environmental woes
(c) Current trends
(d) Bangladesh’s efforts protecting environment
(e) Where do we go from here?
Every nation is aware that environment gradation has created a havoc for the future of whole human kind which is in danger for their careless and unwarranted activities to keep their so-called “prosperity and progress” through unbridled economic growth by reckless exploitation of natural resources..
A report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, a U.N. network of more than 2,000 scientists and economists said an increase in temperature of 3.6 degrees Celsius could subject up to 2 billion people to water shortages by 2050, and threat extinction for 20 percent to 30 percent of the world’s species.
Against this background, how does global warming affect my country, Bangladesh?
Geographical position:
To put first in perspective about Bangladesh’s geographical position, the country shares borders with India on three sides-north, east and west and Myanmar (Burma) in south-east.. The geographical position makes Bangladesh a bridge between South Asia and South East Asia.
Nepal is 13 kilometres across Indian territory from Bangladesh. China is 100 kilometres across the Himalayas from the country and it is sandwiched between two Asian giants—China and India.
Bangladesh, the size of Tasmania, has a population of 150 million and according to the UN estimate, by 2050 the population will be about 251 million.
It is a country of low lands, the capital city is only 9 feet above sea level, with a coastal belt of 740 kilometres facing the Bay of Bengal. The country is often compared in physical features to those of The Netherlands.
Bangladesh is a land of rivers that flow from Nepal and India. About 56 large rivers originating in Nepal and India, including the mighty the Ganges, Brahmaputra and Meghna meander through Bangladesh like a big maze, meet the Bay of Bengal. During the monsoon season 2.4 billion tons of silt runs through the river system to the Bay of Bengal.
Bangladesh Environmental Woes:
Given the physical characteristics of Bangladesh, it is extremely vulnerable to global climate change and the total environment of soil, air and water have now degraded so much that the country is in danger of being a text book example of what global climate change could bring adverse impact on a country.
On bad days, airborne pollution lies like a thick veil over Bangladesh’s cities and blocks out the sunlight. It is estimated that only 1 per cent of the country’s 40 million city dwellers breathe air that would be considered safe. In addition, large areas of coastline are so polluted that they no longer sustain marine life..
The people of Bangladesh find themselves forced to confront the following environmental challenges:
• Melting of Glaciers in the Himalayas
• Massive deforestation in India and Nepal
• Diversion of water from rivers by upper riparian countries
• Dying Rivers ( about 100 died)
• Intrusion of Salinity into rivers and farming lands
• Arsenic contaminated underground water in more than 50 districts out of 64
• Reduction of agriculture, livestock & fishery
It is noted with great concern snow has been melting in an unprecedented manner. It is reported that the “ Khumbu glacier” of the Mount Everest has retreated by 5 kilometres down the slope of the Everest because of global warming. Our Bangladesh’s rivers are snow and rain-fed and if there is no snow in the Himalayas, our major 56 rivers will die during winter months. It is a dreadful scenario.
Besides these, population growth and poverty added to the degradation of the environment
Population pressure and poverty lead to degradation of environment. In simple terms the more people there are, the more land is cleared and the more soil is eroded. Poverty leads to recourse of activities that pollute the environment, for example domestic fuel in the countryside comes from forests. Unhygienic living conditions in slums of cities and of countryside people lead to pollution of air soil and water.
Bangladesh has suffering mainly due to many activities beyond its borders over which Bangladesh has no control.
For example, many of the causes of occurrence of floods in the country are due to by high degree of soil erosion because of deforestation in the upper catchments of rivers in Nepal and India. As a result with less vegetation to absorb rains, erosion of soil has increased and rivers in the country become highly silted and when floods come, rivers cannot contain the volume of water and people suffer from extensive floods almost every year.
The Asian Brown Cloud which has been found overing over South Asia, South East Asia and part of China since 2002 consists of a toxic cocktail of ash, acids, aerosols and other toxic particles and it is a grave threat to the millions of people in Asia including Bangladesh.
But how was the brown cloud formed? The industrialised countries are responsible for this toxic cloud. For example, the US alone is believed to be contributing 36% per cent of the carbon emission, while Europe is 24% per cent. Each of the industrialised countries reportedly on average dumps 5 tons of carbon in the air. The carbon emission per person in Bangladesh is 0.25 while in the US it is 20.4.
If the sea level rises to 1 metre, much of the coastal areas in Bangladesh will disappear and about 33 million of people will be homeless and destitute. Where will they go ? There will be another influx of “boat people” moving to other countries including Australia for shelter. So far there is no plan by the internal community if millions of people are displaced because of sea rise of water.
Current trends:
It seems that countries have not taken seriously in generating energy from renewable resources. It is reported that 80% per cent in Asia-Pacific will be met by fossil fuels, such as oil and coal, creating carbon, sulphur, and nitrous emissions and only 9% per cent will be produced from renewable resources, most of that is from hydroelectric power.
In addition, oil-export countries have always opposed the reduction of use of fossil fuels because these countries depend on oil-money for their people. The alternative source of their income needs to be explored so that these countries become on board for an international agreement for cutting emissions.
Asia which supports more than half of the world’s population, has only 36% of the world’s water resources. The population in Asia will increase by 2 billion and most of this growth is estimated to occur in the next three decades.
Against the background, the prospect of sustainable development seems to be bleak. Sustainable development is defined as development that “meets the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”
Sustainable development has also become a source of increasing tension between industrialised countries and developing nations. Many leaders in emerging-market countries in Asia feel that sustainable development is a convenient argument used by an increasingly anxious Western world as it tries to maintain its economic pre-eminence by setting limits on the resurgent tiger economies in Asia.
Australian author Tim Flannery in the October issue of Quarterly Essay (issue 31 2008) writes that “humanity is now suspended between a tipping point and a point of no return and only the strenuous efforts on our part are capable of returning us to safe guard.”
Bangladesh’s efforts:
Finally, Bangladesh people are not siting idle on degradation of environment. The people, civil society, NGOs and the government have taken steps to reduce the effects of global warming.
Biofuels and solar energy are being introduced in the countryside. Polythene bags are banned since 2002 and two stroke engine-run three wheelers in the cities have been withdrawn and CNG are being used for motorised transport.
Seminars and workshops are being regularly organised to make people aware of the dangers of environmental degradation by Bangladesh Environment Movement (Bangladesh Paribesh Andolon) and Bangladesh Forum of Journalists.
Bangladesh Environment Lawyers Association have lodged many petitions to the High Court of Bangladesh on behalf of public to protect and preserve the environment and won many cases against many industries in the country.
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Overseas Bangladesh Environment Network (BEN) has been set up to launch, among others, an awareness campaign abroad on the adverse effects of global warming on the country.
Bangladesh Environment Movement has specifically directed its attention to the pollution of river waters including unauthorised encroachments on the rivers and many a time they have lodged complaints before the Environment Court for redress…
The Government has enacted Environment Conservation Act in 1995, Wetlands Act 2000, and established Environment Tribunal. Any project must have the assessment from impact on environment before it is approved.
Bangladesh people will have to confront the dilemma: how to reduce poverty without degradation of environment. They fervently hope that their efforts will be assisted by international community to help adapt the adverse effects of global warming in concrete terms.
Bangladesh Environment Movement has specifically directed its attention to the pollution of river waters including unauthorised encroachments on the rivers and many a time they have lodged complaints before the Environment Court for redress…
The Government has enacted Environment Conservation Act in 1995, Wetlands Act 2000, and established Environment Tribunal. Any project must have the assessment from impact on environment before it is approved.
Bangladesh people will have to confront the dilemma: how to reduce poverty without degradation of environment. They fervently hope that their efforts will be assisted by international community to help adapt the adverse effects of global warming in concrete terms.
Where do we go from here?
It is evident that current way of living and using fossil fuel cannot go on . It has to be stopped.
Negotiations for the next climate accord should conclude in 2009 to allow time to implement it by 2012, when the first phase of the Kyoto Protocol expires.
It is noted that economic growth is not an end itself but means to ultimate ends. One cannot avoid considering the ultimate purpose of economic growth and human existence. Is it desirable to continue maximising current consumption per head and economic growth?
It is argued that individuals derive satisfaction not only from man-made or transformed goods but also directly from natural environment, such as, parks, clean beaches, undisturbed forests, and animals in the wild.
The question is how to break the link between economic growth and resource-exploitation. In other words, what we need is to blend economic growth with environmental sustainability. In simple words economic growth that does not cost the Earth is the challenge for international community.
Renewable resources must be the engines of growth. For that research has to be undertaken. Billions of dollars are being spent on space exploration,(NASA alone has spent about $100 billion) but a meagre amount of funds are being provided for research for renewable resources.
It appears that there is no alternative other than deep cuts of greenhouse gas emissions. While industrialised countries should consider biding reduction of gas emissions, developing countries such as China and India should consider moves to control the growth of their emissions.
However this July meeting in Japan , G-8 countries have committed to cut emissions of heat trapping gas in half by 2050. Developing nations are disappointed that they did not pledge to cut the emission in half by 2020 (Australia was invited to attend the G-8 meeting along with other 13 Asian-African countries).
Richer countries should work to transfer climate-friendly technology to poorer nations. Urgent steps to help poorer nations adapt to the effects of global warming such as building seawalls to guard against rising oceans.
As regards deforestation, it is reported that if the present levels of deforestation continue, the South East Asian region will lose nearly 75% per cent of its original forest cover and up to 42% per cent of its biodiversity by the next century. Accordingly positive incentives are to be considered for reducing deforestation in developing countries, many of which are seeking international compensation for preserving their carbon dioxide-absorbing forests.
It is reported that the standing stock of greenhouse gas in the atmosphere is around 200 gigatonnes (a gigatonne being a billion tonnes) since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution and the industrialised countries have been the beneficiaries of that revolution.
Yet the pollution produced has adversely affected poorer nations. Some argue that affluent countries may repay that “historic debt” to poorer nations in a way that benefits them.
To reverse the process of global warming, much depends on everyone having a single vision of that future and working toward it together. At the moment I am afraid, there is no common consensus among rich and poor countries and until that exists progress will be slow and painful.
Thank you.
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*Harun ur Rashid, a Barrister from London’s Lincoln’s Inn, is a former Bangladesh High Commissioner in Australia (1982-84) and Ambassador to the UN, Geneva (1987-91).
His published books include Bangladesh Foreign Policy (2005), Peace and Conflict Studies (2004) and Indo-Bangladesh Relations (2002). He currently is a columnist for the leading English daily, The Daily Star, in Bangladesh, on foreign and regional affairs.
He had been a guest speaker at the ANU (2005), Monash University (2005) and South Asian Centre of Sydney University, (2007)
