[🇧🇩] Save the Rivers/Forests/Hills-----Save the Environment

[Saif]

‘Climate change to affect aquaculture’

Climate change will affect aquaculture production in Asia, which accounts for almost 90 percent of global aquaculture production.

www.thedailystar.net

'Climate change to affect aquaculture'

Climate change will affect aquaculture production in Asia, which accounts for almost 90 percent of global aquaculture production.

Consequently, aquaculture in Bangladesh, one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change, is also expected to suffer, said Cherdsak Virapat, director general of the Centre on Integrated Rural Development for Asia and the Pacific (Cirdap).

"Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Nepal, the Philippines and Vietnam have been identified as the most vulnerable countries worldwide," he said.

The Cirdap and the Bangladesh Shrimp and Fish Foundation (BSFF) organised the seminar, styled 'Promoting Climate Resilient Aquaculture and Fisheries for Integrated Rural Development in Bangladesh', at the Cirdap Auditorium in the capital yesterday.

During his presentation, Virapat said: "The impacts of climate change are serious and must be addressed now because the longer we fail to take action, the bigger the cost to remediate the impacts."

Preemptive mitigation of climate change should be a key consideration for the sustainable development of the aquaculture sector, he added.

Speaking about overcoming these challenges, Virapat said four strategic actions need to be established.

The first is increasing climate resilience of farmers, farming systems, and breeds available for farming.

The second is to increase the capacity to manage short- and long-term climate risks and reduce losses from weather-related disasters.

The third action should be improving sustainability of genetic diversity in brood stocks as a resource for long-term and continuous adaptation to climate change.

And finally, the third initiative should be finding potential and developing the capacity of aquaculture in mitigating the impact of and/or sequestrating the release of greenhouse gas emissions.

He also pointed out a way forward, seeking to define adaptation strategies for the main environmental, disease and genetic threats caused by climate change in order to inform and guide aquaculture community.

Virapat also underlined the need for improved water storage capacity and effective water utilisation for agriculture, industry and households and reduced fishing pressure along coastal areas.​

 

[Saif]

No environmental surcharge for firms for owning more than one car

The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has exempted companies and firms from paying the environmental surcharge for owning more than one car.

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No environmental surcharge for firms for owning more than one car

The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has exempted companies and firms from paying the environmental surcharge for owning more than one car.

Only individual taxpayers will be required to pay the surcharge for having second, third, or more cars, particularly sedans, jeeps and microbuses, the NBR said in a circular issued this week.

The tax administration imposed the environmental surcharge on additional vehicles for the first time in fiscal year 2023-24 to discourage their ownership and enable Bangladesh to contain air pollution and meet its commitment to reducing carbon emissions.

In the first year, the NBR imposed a surcharge on all taxpayers, including companies and firms, on ownership of more than one car. The tax authority said the surcharge would be applicable for ownership of each car in excess of one.

If the engine capacity of the second vehicle was up to 1,500cc or 75 kilowatts, the NBR collected Tk 25,000 as a surcharge.

The surcharge goes up as the engine capacity of the vehicles increases.

For example, it slapped Tk 50,000 as a surcharge on the ownership of a second car with higher engine capacity -- between 1,500cc and 2,000cc or 75 kilowatts and 100 kilowatts.

The surcharge is Tk 3.50 lakh if the engine capacity of the vehicle is 3,500cc or 175 kilowatts, according to the NBR notification.

The tax administration has kept the rate of surcharge against the engine capacity of cars unchanged for FY25 but said it would only be applicable for individual taxpayers.

A senior official of the NBR said it exempted companies and firms from payment of the surcharge since the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) is yet to prepare a proper database of ownership of vehicles by companies.

Officials cannot properly track the ownership of cars by firms and companies during the renewal of registration or issuance of fitness certificates, the official said.

"They can do this for individual taxpayers. So, we have kept the surcharge payments for individual taxpayers," he said.

As per the NBR's circular, taxpayers must pay the surcharge during the renewal of fitness certificates.

The NBR also imposed conditions for the renewal of fitness certificates in the circular.

It imposes higher taxes if owners of vehicles, including those operated commercially, fail to show proof of submission of income tax returns for the current fiscal year, according to the circular.

As of June this year, Bangladesh had 61 lakh registered vehicles. Of those, the number of private passenger cars, microbuses, and jeeps stood at 6.3 lakh, according to BRTA data.

The NBR collected Tk 1,575 crore in taxes from the issuance of fitness certificates and renewal of registration in FY21, which was 48 percent higher compared to the previous year.​

 

[Saif]

Managing Sundarbans' resources sustainably

Though often touted as a protected landscape, the world's largest closed canopy mangrove forest, the Sundarbans, cannot be said to be entirely protected. In fact, the Sundarbans, is under severe ecological distress, thanks to its depredation by humans as well as the vagaries of Nature. The victims

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Managing Sundarbans' resources sustainably
FE
Published :
Jul 12, 2024 21:30
Updated :
Jul 12, 2024 21:30

File photo
Though often touted as a protected landscape, the world's largest closed canopy mangrove forest, the Sundarbans, cannot be said to be entirely protected. In fact, the Sundarbans, is under severe ecological distress, thanks to its depredation by humans as well as the vagaries of Nature. The victims are not only the Bengal Tigers, but also the birds and other animal species including the river dolphins and waterfowls surviving in its aquatic environment. To save this forestland declared a UNESCO world heritage site as well as a wetland of international importance under the Ramsar convention, Bangladesh and Germany are learnt to have reached two deals recently. The agreements so inked would reportedly ensure sustainable management of the Sundarbans and the Marine Protected Area (MPA) Swatch of No Ground (SONG). Notably, established in October 2014, the so-called 'Swatch of No Ground Marine Protected Area' is a reserve covering an area of 1,636 square kilometres and located 30 km away from the Dublar Char islands of the Sundarbans in the Bay of Bengal. It is a habitat of some endangered species of dolphin and whale.

A collaborative effort between the ministry of environment, forest and climate change (MoEFCC) and the ministry of fisheries and livestock (MoEFL), the endeavour, also termed SONG project, as spelt out in the agreements, aims to strengthen marine conservation in Bangladesh by way of improving collaboration and capacity building among responsible authorities and stakeholders. Understandably, the users of the Sundarbans' resources including fishermen, women and youth of the coastal communities living close to the MPA are among the stakeholders. As they are dependent on the Sundarbans for their sustenance, their participation is vital for what the project terms sustainable management of the Sundarbans and the MPA. But how can they possibly contribute effectively to the humongous task of protecting and managing the resources of the mangrove forest and the marine protected area while at the same time conserving their delicate ecosystems without the knowledge and skills required for the purpose? Here comes the question of developing their planning and surveillance capacities, skill of scientific monitoring and the ability of knowledge-based decision-making using digital tools. Once equipped with the required capacities and skills, it is expected that the coastal communities would be able to understand how they are inextricably linked to the Sundarbans and its MPA ecosystem and how they can thrive by way of proper management and conservation of the system.

As the neighbouring India does also share a portion of the Sundarbans, the strengthening of regional cooperation including financing is an imperative for sustainable management of the Sundarbans and restoration of the coastal ecosystem both in Bangladesh and India. To this end, a project styled, Sundar-BAY, is also learnt to be under implementation jointly by Bangladesh and India between March 2024 and February 2027 stressing public-private partnership between the two neighbours. As expected, this project will also focus on the conservation of the mangrove forest by providing ecosystem services to the local communities. Alongside building institutional capacity, promoting joint training programmes and providing environmental education, the SUNDAR-BAY project will also help initiate sustainable income generation activities among the local communities.

Both the projects will contribute towards meeting the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially those concerning conservation of biodiversity and natural resources. There is no denying that managing the resources of the Sundarbans including the marine protected area surrounding it sustainably is about meeting a major existential challenge for Bangladesh. A host of other projects are also working with similar objectives in the Sundarbans. What is important is that they should be in a synergy to come up with a positive outcome.​

 

[Saif]

When protector turns polluter

The Sundari canal in Chattogram’s Hathazari upazila is facing a severe environmental crisis due to indiscriminate dumping of garbage by the municipality.

www.thedailystar.net

When protector turns polluter
Hathazari municipality dumping waste in canal; landfill set up next to waterbody without permission

It's tough to notice Sundari canal amid the piles of waste dumped next to one of its banks. Hathazari municipality has set up a landfill next to it without permission and continues to dump household waste there. A portion of the canal has already been turned into a narrow drain, obstructing its waterflow. Photo: Star

The Sundari canal in Chattogram's Hathazari upazila is facing a severe environmental crisis due to indiscriminate dumping of garbage by the municipality.

As the state agency, who is the custodian of the canal, has been dumping household wastes for years, a portion of the canal has already turned into a narrow drain, obstructing the waterflow of this waterbody.

The landfill, adjacent to the canal, was established in 2013 without obtaining environmental clearance from the Department of Environment (DoE).

The canal, around 5km in length, started from Jangalchari and ended at Subedar Pukur area under the upazila.

This correspondent visited the spot on Saturday and observed that a huge amount of plastic packets of chips, biscuits and several types of single use plastic (SUP) were lying along the banks on both sides of the canal.

Sultan Ahmed, a resident of the Madhyakhil area near the landfill, said, "It is unbearable for me and my family to stay home when the bad smell spreads after the municipality dumps the garbage."

Mansur Alam, a resident of the Rangipara area, regularly cultivates crops using water from the hilly canal.

"Sometimes the canal water turns black during discharge of untreated wastewater from the landfill into the waterbody," he added.

A protected forest, around 50 acres, is located near the landfill. Due to dumping garbage next to the forestland, some trees have already died.

Anwarul Islam, forester of the Hathazari Forest Office, said he verbally urged officials of the municipality to take measures to shift the landfill.

According to the Environmental Conservation Act, filling a canal (waterbody) is a punishable offence.

Nur Hasan Sajib, an assistant director of DoE, Chattogram, who has been transferred to Noakhali recently, confirmed that the municipality is using the land as a landfill without obtaining permission from DoE.

"We asked the authorities several times to set up a waste management plant. But they don't heed to our instructions," he claimed.

Lokman Hossain, a activist and resident of the upazila, said the environmental destruction is going on in broad daylight.

Asked why the municipality is violating the law and dumping waste in open spaces and the waterbody, Biplab Muhuree, secretary of the Hathazari municipality, said they are trying to set up a waste management plant.

"We are working to buy land to establish a plant. But we are facing a shortage of funds," he claimed.

He also admitted they established the existing landfill without getting permission from the authorities concerned as they had no space to dump the collected waste.​

 

[Saif]

Canals are no one's property to destroy at will

Strict enforcement of environmental laws vital to protect them

www.thedailystar.net

Canals are no one's property to destroy at will
Strict enforcement of environmental laws vital to protect them

VISUAL: STAR

Two recent reports of The Daily Star have once again highlighted the worrying trend of canals and such waterbodies being subjected to misuse and exploitation, leading to them being filled up and obstructing their flow. We have seen the destructive effects of such practices in urban areas, including in Dhaka, which as recently as Friday got severely waterlogged as drainage canals filled with waste couldn't channel rainwater to the rivers. Abuse of canals in rural areas, where they play a crucial role by holding excess water and helping in irrigation, can have myriad other implications.

Our first report sheds light on the woeful state of a canal in Chattogram's Hathazari upazila. The local municipality has been dumping waste there for years, turning a part of it into a narrow drain. Adjacent to the canal is a landfill established without the necessary clearance from environmental authorities. This has only exacerbated the situation, with plastic waste seen littering the banks. Locals have described unbearable stench and adverse effects on their crops, but they are not the only victims. There is a 50-acre protected forest nearby that is being degraded, too.

A similar situation prevails in Kurigram's Rajarhat upazila, where a local influential has seized a portion of a canal for fish farming. Reportedly, the canal flows through 8-9 bighas of land owned by Bangladesh Railway and the Water Development Board before emptying into Teesta River. But its illegal occupation is disrupting the water flow, causing inundation of farmlands and affecting farmers.

Clearly, the degradation of canals is jeopardising not only local ecosystems but also the lives and livelihoods of people. And often, this is being done either by government bodies themselves, which is deeply alarming, or because of their negligence and inaction. The question is, why are they allowing this to happen despite knowing its devastating effects? While practical issues may sometimes create the scope for degradation of canals, like in the case of Hathazari municipality, the authorities must find a way to resolve them and ensure that no one—however powerful—can compromise these important waterbodies. The government should also ensure strict enforcement of all environmental laws and regulations.​

 

[Saif]

Indifference is killing our canals

Cumilla EPZ authorities must answer for pollution of canals

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Indifference is killing our canals
Cumilla EPZ authorities must answer for pollution of canals

Given the speed with which our rivers, canals, and other water bodies are being grabbed or polluted, it may appear as if we are in some kind of a sick competition to destroy them. Every day, we are bombarded with news of influential people and institutions harming the lifelines of the country—not just big rivers but also the canals running through cities and towns. According to a recent report by this daily, the canals in Cumilla Sadar south upazila have been facing such onslaughts for some time now.

The problem has been traced to untreated industrial waste from the Cumilla Export Processing Zone (Cumilla EPZ) being discharged into at least five canals. As a result, some 70,000 people of 50 villages have lost their livelihoods. In the past, when the water of the canals was clear, it could be used for irrigation, fishing and other household purposes. But now the water has turned black and foul and is destroying crops while the fish population has also depleted. Two of the canals have already lost their navigability and shrunk due to deposition of industrial sludge.

The question is, why are the Cumilla EPZ factories discharging untreated waste into nearby canals despite there being a Central Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP) since 2014? It has been alleged that EPZ authorities often keep CETP operations suspended. What is the point of setting up a CETP if it cannot serve its purpose? Why is nothing being done despite the immense sufferings of local people?

Like these canals in Cumilla, there are countless others in the country that have been facing the same existential threat due to grabbing and indiscriminate waste disposal. The canals of Dhaka are perhaps the worst example in this regard, but those in Chattogram and other major districts are in no better shape. We have seen how the Chaktai canal in Chattogram was reduced to a narrow strip over the years. These filled-up water bodies are why many cities go under water even after a moderate rain. We, therefore, urge the authorities to revive at-risk canals by stopping illegal waste disposal.​

 

[Saif]

Dhaka’s canals cannot be saved without decisive leadership

Alarming loss of canals over the past 80 years

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Dhaka's canals cannot be saved without decisive leadership
120 kilometres of canals have been lost over the past 80 years

VISUAL: STAR

The crisis surrounding Dhaka's rivers, ponds and open spaces has been repeatedly highlighted in recent years. A new study by the River and Delta Research Centre (RDRC) now turned the spotlight on canals, which are fast disappearing thanks to encroachment, unplanned urbanisation, and negligence from the authorities. According to the study, Dhaka has lost a staggering 120 kilometres or 307 hectares of canals—which is more than the distance between the capital and Mymensingh city—over the past 80 years. Researchers compared the 1880-1940 land survey, known as the Cadastral survey, with satellite images from 2022 before concluding that some 95 canals have been completely lost or reduced to less than half of their original length.

In other words, 55 percent of the land occupied by canals and river channels during the Cadastral survey has been lost by now. Even though successive governments have excavated 10 major canals and created four new lakes, it was nothing compared to the critical loss of water bodies that Dhaka continues to suffer to this day, as various reports have shown. If the trend holds, it may not be too far into the future that these once-treasured features of the city would cease to exist, at least in the way they were intended to.

The question is, how long before we realise the gravity of this situation? How long before we say, "enough is enough"? Canals, like other waterways, are vital for our existence. They serve as lifelines for local communities, facilitating drainage, supporting ecosystems, and contributing to the overall well-being of the people. But the encroachment and filling of these waterways with structures, farmland, and streets have exacerbated flooding, waterlogging and environmental degradation.

Often, this happened at the behest of the government itself. As a recent Rajuk survey showed, 68 public ponds within its jurisdiction alone have been illegally occupied and filled up by individuals and government organisations. Many canals also had to go through the same fate, as did many riverbanks, low-lying areas and open spaces.

While the canals that disappeared may not be recovered, preserving or restoring the ones that still exist is possible, experts say. We think this is where we must urgently focus on. A key challenge in this regard is the lack of specific authorities for many canals and the prevalence of collusion among land grabbers, responsible officials, and politicians that often enable encroachment. We must break this cycle. It will require decisive leadership, effective policies and strict enforcement, as well as active participation from all stakeholders.​

 

[Saif]

No denying we’re victims of climate change, but we’re leaders of solutions, responses

The world is still not taking climate change seriously enough, even though the annual United Nations Conferences of Parties (COPs) try to focus minds on the urgency of the task

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No denying we're victims of climate change, but we're leaders of solutions, responses

The world is still not taking climate change seriously enough, even though the annual United Nations Conferences of Parties (COPs) try to focus minds on the urgency of the task.

Ahead of COP29 in Azerbaijan this November, Bangladesh's Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Saber Hossain Chowdhury, has been in Brussels for talks with the EU's Climate Action Commissioner, Wopke Hoekstra, and to participate as a panelist in the opening session of the Second Conference of the Environment and Climate Mobilities Network (ECMN) in the city of Liège.

The minister spoke to Political Editor Nick Powell about his country's strategy and ambition to face the challenges of climate change, not as victims but as champions of a belief that heeding the warnings of science is also a pathway to a prosperous future.

Saber Hossain Chowdhury does not hide from the size of his task. He told me that Bangladesh faces, what he calls, "a rather frightening reality" of climate change "desertification, sea level rise, loss of food security, it's all there".

His country is what he describes as one of the world's "most dynamic, most populous delta", where the River Ganges and its tributaries reach the Bay of Bengal.

"When sea levels rise, people get displaced, you lose land. We'll lose about 17% of our land between now and 2050. There'll be forced migration of at least 12 million people. That's huge and that's in a country that's already one of the most densely populated in the world.

"We've had remarkable successes over the past years on food security. We've ensured food security but even that is now going to be challenged. Once you lose land, once you have erratic rainfall patterns, once you have salinity pollution, it's going to reduce your yields, these all contribute to make challenges steeper."

Unsurprisingly, he told me there is an "absolute imperative of ensuring that COP29 delivers -- and that delivery has to be across all the major themes of mitigation, adaptation and finance. Those themes include not only getting the planet on track to avoid unsustainable overheating --exceeding 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels -- but also meeting the enormous costs of adapting to the reality that humanity faces even if that target is met".

To make for effective adaptation, there have been pledges of money from the world's wealthier countries, who have long been the principal beneficiaries of economic growth achieved only at a huge ecological cost.

But the minister argues that it's time "to move from the billions to the trillions" of US dollars, if the world is going to get real about the size of the task. "It's a cost that is only increasing," he points out, "because we are so far away from the 1.5 degrees Celsius target -- that needs urgent action."

The idea of a loss-and-damage fund for countries like Bangladesh, which has played a negligible part in causing climate change but faces some of its most severe consequences, was first agreed upon at COP27 in Sharm el-Sheikh. The European Union's support for the idea was decisive in obtaining agreement. At COP28 in Dubai, funds were pledged but only in the hundreds of millions.

Saber Hossain Chowdhury said Bangladesh needs over US$230 billion by 2050 just on account of adaptation. But he told me there is a crucial next step to make at COP29, even before the amount of money is agreed upon.

"Before we even go the quantum, it is absolutely imperative to have an agreed upon definition of climate finance … If we are not able to define climate finance, how do you ensure monitoring? How do you ensure transparency? Those are fundamental questions.

"The last thing you want to see is funds pledged in the past repackaged as climate finance. Climate finance must be new and additional, not old money channeled as new."

As for the amount, it could easily be more than estimated.

"In Bangladesh, we need US$9 billion every year for adaptation. That's assuming that global temperatures will be 1.5 [degrees above pre-industrial levels]. If it's anything above that, then the requirement goes up. So, every tenth of a degree increase in temperature matters. 1.5 is not just a target, it's the absolute maximum that science tells us we can go to."

The minister is also acutely aware of the need to agree at COP29 the rules and definitions of climate finance.

"It cannot be loans, commercial loans, because that's a double whammy. We haven't created the problem in the first instance but we're having to deal with it. Having to pay interest on the money we borrow, that's something which is not acceptable.

"It's really one of the last opportunities for the world to come together, show solidarity and really act on climate change, not just words and platitudes but action, implementation and delivery."

He argues that as the science is very clear and everyone has signed up and agreed to it, "there is absolutely no excuse for further delay".

"There has to be a continuity of the process. We cannot go back and try to open up issues that have already been discussed and resolved.

"We talk about sea level rise in Bangladesh but even America is going to be affected as will be Europe due to cryosphere changes -- melting snow, ice sheets, glaciers and permafrost. It's all at a very critical level and some are suggesting that 1.5 is no good, we should be targeting 1.0 because the damage that we see today -- floods, cyclones, typhoons -- they've become regular events. Urgent action based on science, that's the important thing. It's not what Bangladesh says, it's what the science says."

He also said, "That perspective isn't just a national perspective, it's also a global perspective because what happens to Bangladesh will not remain in Bangladesh. A country that is landlocked won't experience sea-level rises. But it will still have extreme heat. The frequency of hurricanes [is] increasing, the intensity of the harm that it causes is there for all to see. It won't just be the voice of Bangladesh, but a voice of the world."

Saber Hossain Chowdhury sees the European Union as a strong ally. It has been a crucial development partner for Bangladesh and offers a more equal trade and cooperation relationship as the country becomes increasingly prosperous.

"We've found the European Union to be quite progressive, when it comes to climate … Of course, there've been elections recently in Europe and we have to respect the mandate of the people. But through all that, when it comes to the climate agenda, there's going to be consistency. Europe is also very important in the global negotiations".

The minister recalled the breakthrough in the COP process achieved in Paris, "because you had a community of China, the European Union and the US that actually came together. To us, the European Union is actually a bridge between the various groups and how it can bring China and the US to the table, so that we have global consensus and solidarity, political ownership and commitment, is going to be very important".

He told me that no one is going to question the EU's net zero targets but when it comes to a country like Bangladesh trying to deliver on net zero, the realities of the developing countries and the least developed countries also have to be factored in.

"So, in terms of our exports of ready-made garments to Europe, how's that going to play out? You have due diligence; you have all of the new regulations that are coming in. But it's important that those are enforced in a transparent, a practical and a realistic manner."

Saber Hossain Chowdhury stressed to me that Bangladesh did not approach the enormous challenges it faces with the mindset of a victim.

"Of course we are victims, nobody is trying to deny that … victims to a greater extent than most of the other countries. But we are also a leader when it comes to solutions … responses to climate change".

He spoke of the world's growing interest in Bangladesh's pioneering work in creating an early warning system for natural disasters, such as severe storms and flooding. Even as global warming has worsened those phenomena; the country has reached a point where hardly any lives are lost when it is hit by these.

It was, he said, just one aspect of the remarkable transformation achieved under the leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

"Her vision is of Bangladesh not just being a victim but also a champion … The climate change trust fund set up in 2011, when climate wasn't a major issue -- or at least not as major as it is today.

"We have the Mujib Climate Prosperity Plan, which has a very ambitious trajectory. We want to move from vulnerability to resilience and then on to prosperity. How many countries in the world, how many prime ministers, have tried to reframe climate change as a potential pathway to prosperity?"

He added, "These are areas where Bangladesh, under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, is showing the path for others to follow. That's also important, that we're not just victims but we are also champions when it comes to adaptation. We are a role model when it comes to mobilising local communities. Locally-led adaptation is something that everyone follows".

He pointed to achievements across his portfolio of environment, forest and climate change. When he took office in January, he gave himself 100 days to start addressing Bangladesh's environmental problems. He told me that good progress has been made.

"We've done an evaluation and went public on this because I think it's important that we create space for accountability and public discussion on what we promised and what we delivered. So, there were 28 targets, 28 work programmes that we had initiated. The success rate in completing them, not taking into account those that were partially addressed, is around 78 percent.

"Of course, ideally, I would have loved to have seen 100 percent. But the fact that we are being transparent, acknowledging that there is room for improvement, this indicates how steep the challenges are. We addressed not just climate change but also air pollution and marine pollution. There's a global plastics treaty that is being negotiated now and hopefully, by the end of this year, we'll have a legally binding agreement."

He further said, "Air quality is a major concern for us and both air quality and marine pollution also have transboundary connections. You need national action of course, but you also must have regional aspiration -- countries in the region coming together to collaborate.

"Of the 10 most polluted rivers in the world, two are in Bangladesh. The Ganges and the Jamuna flow through Bangladesh. It's not just our waste, it is the waste of the surrounding countries because it all flows down to the Bay of Bengal. We're having to manage waste that we ourselves have not produced."

The minister added, "Our domestic priority is to reduce the cost of environmental degradation. We've done extremely well in terms of GDP growth and other economic fundamentals but we want to make sure that the growth trajectory continues. The cost of environmental degradation is high, not just in economic terms but also in terms of public health.

"We've also started to focus on biodiversity. The forests are a very important reserve for us. We've the largest mangrove forest in the world. So basically, environment, forests, biodiversity and climate change; these are the four pillars on the basis of which we will work".

To read the rest of the news, please click on the link above.
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[Saif]

Recovering grabbed forest lands

Although it has been a wild guess that vast swathes of forest lands of the country are being grabbed every year, no statistics of the lost lands was available until an official statement weeks ago said that the government was going to intensify its efforts to recover 187,000 acres of illegally occu

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Recovering grabbed forest lands
WASI AHMED
Published :
Jul 16, 2024 21:49
Updated :
Jul 16, 2024 21:49

Although it has been a wild guess that vast swathes of forest lands of the country are being grabbed every year, no statistics of the lost lands was available until an official statement weeks ago said that the government was going to intensify its efforts to recover 187,000 acres of illegally occupied forest lands from the grabbers. The statement is unnerving given the less than required forest lands the country is supposed to have. Over and above, it speaks of colossal unruliness of a section of people eager to dodge government regulations as well as make the most of the inaction of the authorities that understandably includes collusion, to say the least.

It was reported that until June, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change sent eviction proposals to the Deputy Commissioners until June, 2024 to recover 51,007 acres of occupied land and cleared 30,162 acres as of May last. Referring to the move, the minister heading the ministry said at a press conference that his ministry is going to send more eviction proposals to recover the lands from the grabbers, as part of what he termed a 100-day priority action plan. He added that the ministry is set to implement natural resource mapping to identify and locate natural resources like hills, forest, mountains, wetlands etc. so that the grabbers cannot occupy natural resources of the country.

The total forest area of Bangladesh is 2.6 million hectares, which is nearly 17.4 per cent of the total land area of the country. Forestry sector accounts for about 3.0 per cent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) and 2.0 per cent of the labour force. However, these figures do not reflect the real importance of the sector in terms of monetary value. The GDP figure, however, does not count the large quantities of fuel wood, fodder, small timber and poles, thatching grass, medicinal herbs, and other forest produces extracted illegally. The low contribution of the forestry sector to the GDP is also explained by several other factors, e.g., the value added from wood processing is counted under the industry sector, rather than the forestry sector. The benefits provided by forest ecosystems include: goods such as timber, food, fuel and bio-products; ecological functions such as carbon storage, nutrient cycling, water and air purification, and maintenance of wildlife habitat; and social and cultural benefits. Services provided by forests cover a wide range of ecological, political, economic, social and cultural considerations and processes. The contribution of forest resources in protecting watershed and irrigation structures, reclaiming land from the sea, protecting coastal areas from storm damage, and in maintaining and upgrading the environmental quality, has not been quantified.

Owing to factors such as grabbing, over-exploitation, conversion of forest land into agriculture, forest resources in Bangladesh have been continuously depleting in terms of both area and quality. According to a Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), between 1990 and 2015, Bangladesh annually lost 2,600 hectares of primary forest (FAO 2015). Primary forest land gradually decreased from 1.494 million hectares in 1990 to 1.429 million hectares in 2015. Thus annual rate of deforestation in Bangladesh was 0.2 per cent during 1990-2015 (FAO, 2015).

The economic, social and environmental importance of ecosystem services provided by forests is increasingly recognised globally. The primary objective of sustainable forest management relies on benefits from ecological services without compromising forest's ability to provide those services. Still, forestland grabbing is a harsh reality all over the world. Governments with well planned forest management and preservation schemes are alert in addressing the matter as a top priority. More than 1.6 billion people depend on forest for food, water, fuel, medicines, traditional cultures and livelihoods. Tropical rainforests produce up to 40 per cent of all terrestrial primary plant production, and play a vital role in safeguarding the climate by naturally sequestering carbon. Yet, each year an average of 13 million hectares of forest land disappear.

Coming to what has transpired from official statement about the grabbed forest land in the country, it is clear that for a long time grabbers have been benefiting from what may euphemistically be called 'laxity' of the regulators. Now, swooping on them may not be easy, since the eviction process might involve litigation-a process notable only for its time-consuming nature. In many cases, the grabbers have raised structures, and also it is not unlikely that some of them might have obtained lease from the government, in violation of the regulations, taking advantage of technical loopholes. So, for the 100-day priority action plan to succeed, there has to be a well orchestrated approach to addressing the situation. In this connection, the authorities need to look into the lease of lands in the
Chottogram Hill Tracts. Chances are high that these lease deeds are perhaps not in conformity with forest preservation rules.​

 

[Saif]

Dhaka filling up with garbage

Proper action needed to remove accumulated waste

www.thedailystar.net

Dhaka filling up with garbage
Proper action needed to remove accumulated waste

VISUAL: STAR

In the aftermath of the mayhem that saw the destruction of multiple public infrastructures across Dhaka city on July 18-20, we face a grim, putrid reality. While several service sectors have been severely disrupted due to the violent clashes and attacks, the city's garbage management system has also collapsed. According to media reports, since July 18, the authorities have been unable to collect household waste from residential and other areas. As a result, Dhaka has been filling up with garbage.

The events of the last one week disrupted the garbage management system of both city corporations. Garbage collection was halted during the complete shutdown called by the quota reform movement. Later, saboteurs vandalised garbage management offices and vehicles. According to a report by this daily, four garbage-carrying compactors and 29 vehicles including 10 garbage-carrying container carriers used by the Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) were set ablaze at its zone-4 office in Mirpur-10 on Friday and Saturday. Meanwhile, in the Matuail landfill area, four garbage-carrying vehicles of Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) were burnt down, Prothom Alo reported. Amounting to Tk 120 crore in losses, these made up one-fourth of DNCC's garbage management fleet and had the collective capacity of carrying 400 tonnes of waste.

The DNCC mayor has said his office is prioritising garbage removal and has staff working in shifts amid the curfew, but it will still take a week for things to go back to normal for all kinds of crisis. If the garbage is left to rot out in the open, it poses a serious threat to not only public health and well-being, but the environment as well.

The massive loss has greatly affected the city corporations' garbage management system, the result of which is visible now. Piles of household waste are seen lying on the streets, spreading stench around. Collectors have not visited households for the last four or five days, forcing people to dump their garbage either in the local garbage containers or directly on the streets, per another report in this daily. The secondary transfer stations are full to the brim and the garbage is now spilling onto the streets in several areas of the city. We understand that this is an unprecedented situation, and the city authorities have limited resources at the moment. But they should have had a back-up plan.

The DNCC mayor has said his office is prioritising garbage removal and has staff working in shifts amid the curfew, but it will still take a week for things to go back to normal for all kinds of crisis. If the garbage is left to rot out in the open, it poses a serious threat to not only public health and well-being, but the environment as well. Moreover, if it rains, the garbage could block the drains and cause water-logging, exacerbating the problem. We urge the city corporations to be more prudent in handling the situation and mobilise the available resources to urgently remove all the garbage from the streets to prevent another potential crisis.​

 

[Saif]

How to decolonise our battle against climate change

ALMOST everything we buy exploits the environment and the people who depend on it to a greater or lesser extent. Almost everything we buy contributes to climate breakdown through...

www.newagebd.net

How to decolonise our battle against climate change
by Laurie Parsons 18 August, 2024, 00:00

| —Counter Punch

Most colonial economies were organised around extraction, providing the raw materials that drove imperial growth. As a result, even when the imperial administration is taken out, the underlying economic structures put in place by colonisers are very difficult to get away from and continue to hold newly independent countries back, writes Laurie Parsons

ALMOST everything we buy exploits the environment and the people who depend on it to a greater or lesser extent. Almost everything we buy contributes to climate breakdown through emissions, local environmental degradation, or, most commonly, both. Yet, in a world where greenwashing is so commonplace that almost every product proclaims ecological benefits, it tends not to be seen that way. In fact, it tends not to be seen at all.

Carbon emissions and pollution are a phase that we all pass through, meaning that the ability — and crucially the money — to avoid the ratcheting risks of climate change is something we have earned, and others too will earn as each nation continues inexorably along its separate curve. Wealthy countries accept this narrative because it is comfortable and provides a logical and moral explanation of the relative safety and health of the rich world.

But what if it wasn’t true? What if one place was devastated because the other was clean? Just as carbon emissions are not acts of God, neither is exposure to the results of those emissions. In other words, you can’t remove money from the geography of disaster risk.

This is carbon colonialism: the latest incarnation of an age-old system in which natural resources continue to be extracted, exported, and profited from far from the people they used to belong to. It is, in many ways, an old story, but what is new is the hidden cost of that extraction: the carbon bill footed in inverse relation to the resource feast.

Most colonial economies were organised around extraction, providing the raw materials that drove imperial growth. As a result, even when the imperial administration is taken out, the underlying economic structures put in place by colonisers are very difficult to get away from and continue to hold newly independent countries back.

On a basic level, exporting raw materials adds less economic value to the country that does it than processing, manufacturing, and reselling those materials, so for every watt of energy, every hectare of land, and every hour of work used to make goods exported from the global North to the South, the South has to generate, use, and work many more units to pay for it.

Decolonising climate change

WE ALREADY have the ways and means to decolonise how we measure, mitigate, and adapt to climate change.

This task is as sizable as it is vital, but at its core are three priorities. First, carbon emissions targets based on national production must be abandoned in favour of consumption-based measures, which, though readily available, tend to be marginalised for rich nations’ political convenience. Secondly, with half of emissions in some wealthy economies now occurring overseas, environmental and emissions regulation must be applied as rigorously to supply chains as they are to domestic production.

By adopting these new viewpoints, we can aim towards a final priority: recognising how the global factory manufactures the landscape of disaster. Our globalised economy is built on foundations designed to siphon materials and wealth to the rich world while leaving waste in its place.

Yet there is, as ever, another way. It is possible to reject the globalisation of environmental value by giving voice to the people it belongs to. Environments do not have to be merely abstract commodities.

Giving greater value to how people think about their local environments is seen as a way to decolonise our environmental thinking, move away from extractivism, and perhaps forestall the slow death of nature that began in the 1700s.

Environmental myths and how to think differently

ONE of the most widely shared myths in climate change discourse is that climate change increases the likelihood of natural disasters. This burden is ‘disproportionately’ falling upon poorer countries. Yet, it is fundamentally flawed. Climate change is not causing more natural disasters because disasters are not natural in the first place. They do not result from storms, floods, or droughts alone, but when those dangerous hazards meet vulnerability and economic inequality.

A hurricane, after all, means something completely different to the populations of Singapore and East Timor. This difference is no accident of geography but of a global economy that ensures that some parts of the world remain more vulnerable to climate change than others. Natural disasters are, therefore, economic disasters: the result of centuries of unequal trade and the specific, everyday impacts of contemporary commerce.

With rich countries doing an ever-diminishing share of their manufacturing, the responsibility to report real-world emissions is left to international corporations, which have little incentive to report accurate information on their supply chains.

The environments of the rich world are becoming cleaner and safer, even in an increasingly uncertain environment. The resources needed to tackle the challenges of climate change are accruing and being spent to protect their privileged populations.

Yet, for most of the world, the opposite is true. Natural resources continue to flow ever outward, with only meagre capital returning in compensation. Forests are being degraded by big and small actors as climate and market combine to undermine traditional livelihoods. Factory workers are toiling in sweltering conditions. Fishers are facing ever-declining livelihoods.

In other words, we have all the tools we need to solve climate breakdown but lack control or visibility over the production processes that shape it. From legal challenges to climate strikes and new constitutions, people are waking up to the myths that shape our thinking on the environment. They are waking up to the fact that climate change has never been about undeveloped technologies but always about unequal power.

As the impacts of climate breakdown become ever more apparent, this can be a moment of political and social rupture, of the wheels finally beginning to come off the status quo.

Demand an end to the delays. Demand an end to tolerance for the brazenly unknown in our economy. Demand an end to carbon colonialism.

CounterPunch.org, August 16. Laurie Parsons is a senior lecturer in human geography at Royal Holloway, University of London, and principal investigator of the projects The Disaster Trade: The Hidden Footprint of UK Imports and Hot Trends: How the Global Garment Industry Shapes Climate Vulnerability in Cambodia. He is the author of Carbon Colonialism: How Rich Countries Export Climate.​

 

[Saif]

55 acres of forest land recovered from former minister Hasan Mahmud's brother

The Forest Department today recovered at least 55 acres of forest land that had been illegally occupied by Ershad Mahmud, brother of former Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud, in Rangunia upazila of Chattogram

www.thedailystar.net

55 acres of forest land recovered from former minister Hasan Mahmud's brother

The Forest Department today recovered at least 55 acres of forest land that had been illegally occupied by Ershad Mahmud, brother of former Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud, in Rangunia upazila of Chattogram.

A team from the Forest Department, led by Maruf Hossain, assistant conservator of forests of the Chattogram South Forest Division, carried out the operation. The team removed several structures during the drive, including six sheds of a farm and a restaurant.

The operation began at 10:00am and continued until 4:00pm at Shukhbilash village under Padua union in Rangunia upazila, confirmed Abdullah Al Mamun, divisional forest officer (DFO) of the Chattogram South Forest Division.

"We will soon conduct another drive to recover additional forest land where Ershad Mahmud has planted orange," the DFO added.​

 

[Saif]

Forest encroachers will be punished, vows Environment Adviser Rizwana

Environment, Forest and Climate Change Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan has said that any influential person involved in encroaching on forest land will face the full force of the law. She sounded the warning a day after the Forest Department reclaimed 55 acres of land reportedly under the illegal poss

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Forest encroachers will be punished, vows Environment Adviser Rizwana
Published :
Aug 27, 2024 23:48
Updated :
Aug 27, 2024 23:48

Environment, Forest and Climate Change Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan has said that any influential person involved in encroaching on forest land will face the full force of the law.

She sounded the warning a day after the Forest Department reclaimed 55 acres of land reportedly under the illegal possession of Ershad Mahmud, the younger brother of former foreign and environment minister and Awami League joint general secretary Hasan Mahmud, bdnews24.com reports.

The land was reclaimed during a raid in the Sukbilas village of the Padua Union in Chattogram’s Rangunia Upazila on Monday.

For over a decade, Ershad had been clearing forest trees and occupying the land to build six houses for a dairy farm.

He had grabbed Forest Department land near the Dashmail area on the Rangamati-Bandarban road, constructing a park and restaurant named Muktijoddha Park.

He also created three ponds in a hilly area by blocking water flow.

However, the Forest Department has not provided any information regarding legal actions against the encroachers after reclaiming the land.

When contacted on Tuesday, Rizwana told bdnews24.com: "I saw [on Monday] that it has been evicted. There are more such incidents in Bangladesh. I will establish a system where ministers, officials, NGOs, land grabbers—whoever illegally occupies protected forest land or any other land—will face punishment."

"Illegally occupying forest department land is a criminal offence. Whoever does it will have to face consequences,” added Rizwana, herself an award-winning activist campaigning for environmental justice for decades.

“The government is currently busy dealing with the floods. I know this area has been cleared, and more [illegal establishments] will be evicted. We will try to bring all the criminals together and ensure they face justice."​

 

[Saif]

Sundarbans reopens Sunday after three-month closure

The Sundarbans are set to reopen for foresters and tourists from Sunday after a three-month closure. Following a long break, forester families living near the Sundarbans in Khulna are getting ready to resume fishing and crab hunting. Mihir Kumar Doe, conservator of forests for the Khulna region,

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Sundarbans reopens Sunday after three-month closure
Published :
Aug 29, 2024 23:12
Updated :
Aug 29, 2024 23:12

The Sundarbans are set to reopen for foresters and tourists from Sunday after a three-month closure.

Following a long break, forester families living near the Sundarbans in Khulna are getting ready to resume fishing and crab hunting.

Mihir Kumar Doe, conservator of forests for the Khulna region, said as many as 12,000 boats and trawlers have been issued board licence certificates, or BLCs, for resource extraction in the Sundarbans. Each year, between 100,000 and 150,000 fishermen, golpata collectors, and beekeepers use these boats to harvest resources from the forest, bdnews24.com reports.

He says that the Sundarbans are not only a reservoir of biodiversity but also rich in fishery resources. From June to August, which is the breeding season, most fish in the Sundarbans’ rivers and canals lay their eggs. To safeguard this process, Bangladesh Forest Department, or BFD, has imposed a three-month ban on fishermen and tourists entering the forest.

Mihir also said: "Fishermen and tourists will receive entry passes to the Sundarbans starting Sept 1.

“Instructions have also been issued to the designated forest stations in this regard.”

According to the permit's validity, the camp officers of the forest guards will maintain a list of fishermen staying in the Sundarbans. The forest guards will patrol each canal and inspect the approved fishermen's boats following the list.

However, ordinary fishermen and golpata collectors complain that crime in the Sundarbans increases significantly during the prohibition period. Some unscrupulous local fishermen’s gangs, operating in the area adjacent to the Sundarbans, enter the forest through secret arrangements with certain forest department officials and engage in illegal fishing and crab hunting by using poison in a short amount of time.

Inside the forest, trees are burned and used to make dried fish. The demand and price for these dried shrimp are high in both domestic and international markets.

These fish and crabs are sold openly in markets around the Sundarbans. This situation has impacted legitimate fishermen, who have called for the identification and prosecution of the criminals involved.

In this regard, Mihir said, "The forest guards work to suppress all types of crimes related to the Sundarbans during the prohibited season. However, there are a few isolated incidents."

The forest official also said that if any allegations of negligence or connivance with criminals are proven against forest guards in the performance of their duties, appropriate action will be taken.

According to the BFD, the watershed area of the Sundarbans in Bangladesh, which covers 6,017 sq km, is 1,874.1 sq km. This accounts for 31.15 per cent of the entire Sundarbans area. The Sundarbans contains around 450 canals, including 13 major rivers.

This tidally flooded forest reservoir is home to 210 species of whitefish, including Bhetki, Rupchanda, Datina, Chitra, Pangash, Loitta, Poa, Topse, Lakkha, Koi, Magur, Kain, and Hilsa.

There are also 24 different species of shrimp including Galda, Bagda, Chaka, Chali, and Chami.

14 species of crabs, including the world-famous softshell crab, breed here.

People from around the world are drawn to the Sundarbans, renowned for its extraordinary natural beauty and located near the Bay of Bengal. Over 250,000 tourists visit its seven ecotourism centres each year.

216,000 tourists visited the Sundarbans in the fiscal year 2022-23, generating a revenue of Tk 39.4 million for the Sundarbans division, the BFD reports.

In the fiscal year 2021-22, 75,560 domestic tourists and 864 foreign tourists visited the Sundarbans. During that period, the Sundarbans division earned Tk 8.894 million from tourism.

Khulna tour operators have said the tourism season in the Sundarbans begins in October and runs until March. Business owners in this sector eagerly anticipate these six months of business. However, last season, the Sundarbans-centric tourism industry suffered a collapse due to the country’s unstable political situation.​

 

[Saif]

Why should Bangladesh have Sundarbans biosphere reserve?

Bangladesh does not have any of the 748 biosphere reserves spread all over the world.

www.thedailystar.net

Why should Bangladesh have Sundarbans biosphere reserve?

Increasing donor interest in the Sundarbans could be capitalised by channelling further finance, to help declare and manage the Sundarbans biosphere reserve. PHOTO: REUTERS

When we discuss biodiversity conservation in Bangladesh, the Sundarbans Reserved Forest always receives special attention. Although the Sundarbans Biodiversity Conservation Project, supported by the Asian Development Bank, failed by getting suspended abruptly in 2003, other funders, such as USAID, GIZ/Germany, European Commission, FCDO/UK, World Bank, and UNDP, have always prioritised this ecosystem, especially since 2011. This coincided with the tension between the Government of Bangladesh (GoB) and UNESCO's World Heritage Committee (WHC) over the Rampal Power Plant, starting in 2014. The regular recommendations from the WHC prompted the GoB to undertake several initiatives, captured in the country's State of Conservation Report of 2022 (whc.unesco.org). Two notable developments are the preparation of the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) of Southwest Region of Bangladesh for Conserving the Outstanding Universal Value of the Sundarbans (2021) led by the CEGIS, and the Methodological Framework for Ecological Monitoring of the Sundarbans (2023) by Bangladesh Forest Department (BFD) and IUCN.

In November 2023, Bangladesh achieved a significant milestone in conservation diplomacy. In the General Conference of UNESCO, Bangladesh was elected a member of the International Coordinating Council of the Man and the Biosphere (MAB-ICC) for four years receiving the highest vote in Group 4. The MAB is an intergovernmental scientific programme of UNESCO. Operating since 1971, it brings together the natural and social sciences to protect ecosystems and promote sustainable development. The MAB-ICC is the main governing body of the MAB.

Biosphere reserve is a core concept promoted by the MAB, where a region is designated as a biosphere reserve to undertake a combination of environmental, social, economic and cultural actions, linking with scientific evidence. A biosphere reserve has three zones: core zone—for strict protection, buffer zone—for sound ecological practices, and transition zone—for sustainable human activities. Details on biosphere reserves can be found in UNESCO's Technical Guidelines for Biosphere Reserves (2022).

Interestingly, although Bangladesh is governing the MAB, it does not have any of the 748 biosphere reserves spread all over the world. The recent developments in this regard demand an answer to the question: Should Bangladesh explore the possibility to declare Sundarbans as its first biosphere reserve?

Before answering this question, we need to be clear: why we need so many designations for a single ecosystem—reserved forest, wildlife sanctuaries, world heritage site, Ramsar site, and now biosphere reserve. All such inscriptions have value. Nationally, the whole Sundarbans has been a reserved forest for the last 149 years, and due to its rich biodiversity, 53 percent of it is wildlife sanctuaries under the country's Wildlife Act 2012. But, given its global significance as a natural heritage, it became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997, and for its global importance as a water-bird habitat, it was declared a Ramsar site in 1999 under the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands.

There are a few reasons why we should now explore the possibility of the Sundarbans to become a biosphere reserve: i) Bangladesh is now part of a strong global biodiversity network as a member of the MAB-ICC. This should allow Bangladesh to seek support and guidance from fellow members to prepare its proposal on the Sundarbans Biosphere Reserve; ii) through the SEA, Bangladesh now has good understanding of the whole south-west region. This will act as a basis for demarcating three biosphere reserve zones as noted above; ii) increasing donor interest in the Sundarbans could be capitalised by channelling further finance, which will be needed to declare and manage the Sundarbans biosphere reserve; iv) the Protected Area Management Rules 2017 has provisions to declare core and buffer zones, landscapes, and corridors (Clause 21) to allow different activities within and around a protected area, which could be aligned with biosphere reserves' guidelines to find and apply complementarity; v) an ecological monitoring framework for the Sundarbans is now available, which will create a strong basis to undertake scientific research in the envisaged Sundarbans Biosphere Reserve.

The environment ministry now needs to do three things. First, the ministry should establish a national committee on Man and the Biosphere. To do this, it needs to revisit the national committee established in 2004. The composition of this committee should reflect Bangladesh's changed aspirations as a member of the MAB-ICC and the recent developments in the conservation sector. Second, the ministry needs to work with the forest department to formulate a project to prepare an application for Bangladesh Sundarbans to be designated as a biosphere reserve. UNESCO's technical guidelines will be a great help in this. The target should be to submit the proposal to the MAB Secretariat over the next one year. In that way, the Sundarbans could be designated as a biosphere reserve in October 2025 in Hangzhou, China during the 5th World Congress on Biosphere Reserve. Third, the ministry should urgently map scientific institutions of Bangladesh and abroad to support the above proposal development. This mapping would also help to undertake research within the biosphere reserve once the declaration is made.

The interim government of Bangladesh is now actively reforming our institutional, legal and policy regimes. Along with reform, we need to rejuvenate the country's conservation actions and introduce new approaches in biodiversity space. Having the Sundarbans Biosphere Reserve could be a landmark of our ongoing journey to protect our nature while attaining sustainable development.

Dr Haseeb Md Irfanullah is independent consultant working on environment, climate change, and research system and visiting research fellow at the University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB).​

 

[Saif]

Factoring climate change in economic planning

"Despite some uncertainty around its magnitude, climate change clearly dampens output levels in Asia and the Pacific through channels such as loss of physical capital, people's health conditions and productivity." The Asia-Pacific Quarterly Economic Update, prepared and published by the United Nat

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Factoring climate change in economic planning
Asjadul Kibria
Published :
Aug 31, 2024 23:18
Updated :
Aug 31, 2024 23:18

"Despite some uncertainty around its magnitude, climate change clearly dampens output levels in Asia and the Pacific through channels such as loss of physical capital, people's health conditions and productivity."

The Asia-Pacific Quarterly Economic Update, prepared and published by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), made the statement in the highlights of the publication released in the third week of last month. As the report provided a brief note on climate change and economic output, the above-mentioned text summarises the note.

The ESCAP paper mentioned that Asia and the Pacific are facing various manifestations of climate change, such as higher surface temperatures, delayed monsoons, droughts, and intense flooding. The current devastating flood in Bangladesh is an example in this connection. It also added that climate change affects economic outcomes through diverse channels in this region, which is the most disaster-prone region in the world.

The natural disasters have affected millions of people's physical capital or health conditions in the region. For instance, increased water scarcity and heat reduce agricultural productivity and aggravate food insecurity. Heat also reduces labour productivity and increases the spread of diseases such as dengue. The broader effect of climate change is reflected in climate-induced migration and conflict disrupting economic activities in different countries. Various climate mitigation and adaptation policies also have economic implications, it further pointed out. So, what is the economic cost of climate change in the region?

ESCAP paper provided the cost estimate in various scenarios. For example, the average annual losses in gross domestic product (GDP) due to climate hazards could amount to $980 billion per year in a 2°C warming scenario in Asia and the Pacific. Also, under a high carbon emissions scenario, climate change could lead to a GDP loss of 24 per cent in developing Asia by 2100.

Though the estimates do not claim that these will happen ultimately, there is no doubt that there is no way to avoid the negative impact of climate change. "There is broad agreement that the output impact is negative, that there is a high chance of negative surprises (e.g. more extreme weather events than anticipated), and that poorer countries are more vulnerable to the adverse impacts of climate change," said the quarterly report of the ESCAP. It also cautioned that the lack of consensus on the precise output impacts of climate change 'should not deter governments from actively pursuing national climate goals.'

The ESCAP's brief note on climate change and economic output is relevant for Bangladesh when the eastern part of the country is submerged heavily due to flash floods. Many in the country squarely blamed India for releasing water from the Dumbur dam over Gumti River in neighbouring Tripura state with no warning. India, however, denied that the dam release was deliberate and said excessive rain was a factor - although it conceded that a power outage and communications breakdown meant they failed to issue the usual warning to neighbours downstream. Though India can't avoid its responsibility for not providing warnings in time, the weak forecast system in the local Met Offices is also somewhat responsible.

One also needs to remember that three-fourths of Bangladesh is floodplain, and managing the water flow of any transboundary river is challenging. It is true that Bangladesh and India share 54 common transboundary rivers, but Bangladesh is in a more difficult position for being a lower riparian country. India is an upper riparian country that essentially controls the river flows and is not always cooperative in sharing the water. The joint-river commission is also not adequately functional, and India's indifference to Bangladesh's legitimate demand for balanced management of these rivers is well known. It does not mean that India is responsible for the current flood or any other flood, for that matter, in Bangladesh. The misinformation and disinformation on the social media alleging an 'Indian conspiracy' to 'punish Bangladesh' by opening a dam are nothing but irresponsible comments and not helpful in addressing the problem.

In fact, flood management requires both domestic capacity and international cooperation. Bangladesh and India need to work mutually, especially when the negative impact of climate change is widening. Both countries need to continue their efforts in data collection and data sharing on a regular basis. Otherwise, it will be difficult to manage floods and contain losses and damage.

The current flood in Bangladesh is a big blow to the already troubled economy mismanaged by the authoritarian Hasina regime during the last one and a half decades. Preliminary estimation showed that the country's fisheries and livestock sectors incurred an estimated loss of over Tk 20 billion due to current floods. The actual loss will be greater, and the overall economic damage is yet to be estimated. The 2022 floods in Pakistan caused damage equivalent to 4.8 per cent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) as it was one of the most devastating ones in the world that year. Hopefully, Bangladesh will not suffer to that extent, and the damage will be much less compared to Pakistan.

Economic output is widely linked with climate change today, and there is no way to avoid the impact of natural disasters originating from climate vulnerability on the economy. One way to reduce the negative impact is to shield vulnerable people with climate risk insurance to some extent. Another way is to manage natural disasters like floods and cyclones better. Above all, the current flood reminds us that Bangladesh must redesign its climate policy and realign its economic policy.​

 

[Saif]

UNDP and French delegations meet Environment Advisor Rizwana Hasan

A high-level delegation from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), led by Resident Representative Stefan Liller, met with Syeda Rizwana Hasan, the Environment, Forest, and Climate Change, and Water Resources Advisor, at the secretariat on Sunday. The discussions covered a range of criti

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

UNDP and French delegations meet Environment Advisor Rizwana Hasan
UNB
Published :
Sep 01, 2024 20:42
Updated :
Sep 01, 2024 20:42

A high-level delegation from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), led by Resident Representative Stefan Liller, met with Syeda Rizwana Hasan, the Environment, Forest, and Climate Change, and Water Resources Advisor, at the secretariat on Sunday.

The discussions covered a range of critical environmental and climate change issues facing Bangladesh.

The topics included enhancing collaboration between the Government of Bangladesh and UNDP on sustainable environmental management, climate resilience, climate change adaptation, ecosystem-based management in Ecologically Critical Areas (ECAs), community-based management in haor regions, sustainable energy, low-carbon urban development, climate-resilient livelihoods, sustainable land management to combat climate change vulnerability, and the reduction of hazardous chemicals.

During the meeting, advisor Syeda Rizwana Hasan highlighted the importance of continued partnership and innovative solutions to address the environmental challenges in Bangladesh.

She stressed the need to explore new opportunities for collaboration and strengthen ongoing initiatives aimed at protecting the environment and promoting sustainable development in the country.

Resident Representative Liller reaffirmed UNDP’s commitment to supporting Bangladesh in achieving its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly in combating climate change and preserving natural resources.

Earlier, a French delegation led by the French Ambassador to Bangladesh, Marie Masdupuy, also met with Syeda Rizwana Hasan and discussed various issues including forest protection, transboundary air pollution, river pollution, ecosystem preservation, industrial pollution, and the protection of hill ecosystems, including the Sundarbans, Sal forests, and the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT).

The meeting also addressed the urgent enforcement of a polythene shopping bag ban, climate action collaboration, National Adaptation Plan (NAP) implementation, coastal afforestation, and the Adaptation Pact.​

 

[Saif]

‘Won’t tolerate river pollution’

Environment, Forest, and Climate Change Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan has issued a stern warning against the pollution of rivers by businesses.

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‘Won’t tolerate river pollution’

Syeda Rizwana Hasan. File photo

Environment, Forest, and Climate Change Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan discussed with The Daily Star's Pinaki Roy how the interim government is going to stop businesses from polluting the rivers of Bangladesh.

Environment, Forest, and Climate Change Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan has issued a stern warning against the pollution of rivers by businesses.

"This generation who waged the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement never saw any pollution-free rivers in Bangladesh. I want to show it to them," Rizwana said

In an interview with The Daily Star, Rizwana, also in charge of the water resources ministry, said the interim government is preparing a list of rivers that have been heavily polluted by industrial waste.

"We will not tolerate pollution of any river by any business to increase profits," she remarked. The adviser also mentioned that rivers belong to people.

Bangladesh has many rivers, and the government must protect them all. But it is also true that this government would not be able to work for all at the same time, said Rizwana, known for her work as an environmental activist.

"We have to set examples and so, we're thinking if we can free one river in each of the eight divisions from pollution and encroachment.

"Whoever works on the issue in future can follow the model. But it doesn't mean we're neglecting other rivers," she said.

The adviser mentioned that the High Court had earlier ordered the authorities concerned to evict 66,000 grabbers.

"We're asking eight divisional commissioners to submit their plans on freeing all those rivers from encroachment."

Asked how the government is going to clean the Buriganga, one of the most polluted rivers in the world, she said, "It's very challenging to make this river pollution-free. I said it earlier as well. It will take a long time to make the river water free from chromium. But we can start the process."

Apart from the Buriganga, many rivers like the Labandaha in Gazipur, the Sutang in Habiganj, and the Hari-dhoya in Narsingdi, are polluted by industrial waste.

To free these rivers from pollution, Rizwana said, they will identify the factories responsible for it and engage locals to protect the rivers.

"I think this is going to be easier for us because there are young generations in all districts who can engage in the process."

If the government officially authorises the organisations that work voluntarily to save rivers, they will feel empowered and show interest in working on the issue, said the adviser.

So, involving the local community in protecting rivers, like giving responsibility to a group to monitor two kilometres of a certain river, and engaging students in this process will be part of the plan to save rivers, said Rizwana.

She also instructed the Department of Environment to conduct drives against the factories responsible for pollution.

Rizwana said owners of many industries make excuses for not operating effluent treatment plants (ETPs) even if they have ETPs. Sometimes, they run the ETPs the whole day but release polluted water into rivers at night.

"We need some suggestions on how to monitor and stop these ill attempts. I don't think it is impossible to detect and stop them," the adviser said and suggested using separate meters for biological ETPs to detect pollution.

For example, she said it cannot be confirmed without tests whether the Hari-dhoya River in Narsingdi is being polluted as industries are far from the riverbanks.

If the government can provide a meter, it will be possible to find out easily if the ETPs are functional in a particular period.

Rizwana encouraged good businesspersons to lead the next generation by example in refraining from releasing industrial waste into rivers. "We will welcome them in our initiative."

She said her ministry would sit with the industries ministry to discuss the issue of the Central Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP) not functioning properly at Savar Tannery Industrial Estate.

The adviser said she has been vocal from the very beginning that the Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation is not the proper authority to monitor the CETP.

"We have to form an expert committee who will work to make the CETP functional," she said, emphasising cooperation between the two ministries.

About blackwater pollution of the rivers, Rizwana said the DoE made a list in 2017 that shows most of the rivers were polluted by sewage. "We cannot stop blackwater pollution within a very short period this government would get. Maybe we'll be able to prepare a plan."

Asked about the priorities and challenges of her work, the environment adviser said this government, unlike an elected administration, would get a short time to address many big environmental issues.

Another big challenge will be to turn the environmental administration to a people-oriented one. "It never took people's views before taking any development project."​

 

[Saif]

Hope for our rivers

Environment adviser’s words must be turned into action

www.thedailystar.net

Hope for our rivers
Environment adviser’s words must be turned into action

We are heartened by the resolute stance of Syeda Rizwana Hasan, the interim government's environment adviser, to take action against businesses that continue to pollute our rivers. The adviser has realistically stated that, given the limited time available, the interim government will begin by clearing one river in each division of the country. She has particularly emphasised holding polluting businesses accountable, especially those that are not operating their effluent treatment plants (ETPs) despite having them.

We think that involving the community, especially the local youth, in this process can make a significant difference. Authorising organisations already working on river conservation will ensure greater stakeholder participation, which is an effective strategy. Installing metres to monitor whether ETPs are operational would encourage businesses to be more diligent in their environmental responsibilities.

In the past, despite the High Court giving clear directives to the government to evict river encroachers, precious little has been done to free them. It is not just rivers but other water bodies such as canals around the cities that have either been grabbed or polluted by indiscriminate household garbage and industrial waste. This daily has published endless reports, editorials and opinion pieces on river grabbing and river pollution, but to no avail.

What is worse is that, despite lists of river grabbers and polluters being complied, the former government has not taken action. In many cases, the culprits have been government bodies that have encroached upon river land and built structures, while others have also exploited their connections to the political elite for the same end. For instance, the Buriganga has been rendered nearly lifeless due to relentless pollution from industrial waste, plastic waste, medical waste and sewage.

Although tanneries of Hazaribagh have been transferred to Savar in a bid to reduce pollution in the Buriganga, many continue to pollute another river, the Dhaleswari, by dumping untreated industrial wastewater. This is because the Central Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP) is not functioning properly, and nothing has been done so far to address this issue. The interim government, therefore, has a challenging task ahead with limited time. Empowering the National River Conservation Commission, which has been weakened due to political interference, could be a first step. Additionally, it must also ensure that ETPs in all polluting industries are properly installed and being operated.

We sincerely hope that the interim government will be committed to freeing as many rivers as possible and establish a model that subsequent governments can follow.​

 

[Saif]

Wider reform key to ending plastic menace

We appreciate the environment adviser’s directive to ban the use of polythene and polypropylene bags in all superstores across Bangladesh

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Wider reform key to ending plastic menace
Expand the scope of plastic ban, ensure enforcement

VISUAL: STAR

We appreciate the environment adviser's directive to ban the use of polythene and polypropylene bags in all superstores across Bangladesh. This, we hope, will be the first of many long-needed measures to rein in plastic pollution in the country. At present, chain superstores offer free bags, made from polypropylene, for customers to pack their groceries, although thin polythene and plastic bags were banned in 2002. According to the latest directive, instead of these bags, superstores will have to make jute or cloth bags available for purchase starting from October 1.

Although the order targets a small portion of commercial plastic usage in the country, smaller steps taken in phases might actually be more effective than issuing blanket bans that lose steam over time, as previously seen. The key here is enforcement, so the administration must ensure compliance from market managers and customers. It also must ensure that low-cost alternatives are easily accessible to wean customers off their dependence on plastics. Previous attempts to encourage jute bag usage have largely failed for supply shortages and lack of proper marketing. That said, the government should also consider schemes to promote research on and commercial production of eco-friendly alternatives like Sonali bags.

At the same time, campaigns can be launched to create awareness about the health and environmental hazards of plastics, encouraging customers and entrepreneurs to adopt the 3Rs—reduce, reuse and recycle—of waste management. Another area that requires awareness is proper disposal of plastics. Plastic litter is not only impacting our ecosystem, polluting waterbodies, or harming aquatic lives; it is also clogging sewers, drains, and canals and thus contributing to waterlogging in urban areas. While we understand that completely phasing out plastics may not be possible, reducing its usage and ensuring proper disposal are certainly doable.

In the long run, we hope that the environment adviser, having long fought for environmental causes herself, will be able to bring some much-needed reforms in the sector. Once the plastic ban in superstores takes effect, the authorities should gradually expand the scope of the ban by targeting various related industries including restaurants and packaging as well as all governmental and non-governmental institutions. They should also clamp down on polythene production and restrict the import of plastic products.​

 

[Saif]

Preserving our future by saving our forests

Most of the forest and relevant laws in practice are from the British regime, and devoid of any consideration of the people.

www.thedailystar.net

Preserving our future by saving our forests

If forests and wildlife habitats are to exist, necessary legal power needs to be given to stop encroachment and protect them. FILE PHOTO: REUTERS

With the recent fall of an authoritarian regime and an interim government in place, the expectations and demands of people in Bangladesh are skyrocketing, and there is a desire to take full advantage of new opportunities and possibilities. In a similar vein, conservationists and natural resource management professionals expect the management of forests and other resources to be more effective now, protecting the long-term interests of the country and its population.

Previous regimes were more concerned about success stories in all sectors, with fabricated success carefully covering unattended challenges. Political interference was widespread in institutional decision-making, leading to wastage of public resources, ignorance of expert opinions, and forsaking of participation and stakeholder consultation. Against this backdrop, the Forest Department and other related agencies gradually drifted far from their due course.

The interim government may weigh on several issues that I believe are crucial for transforming the public forest management system into a more transparent and accountable one.

One such issue is data tampering and the misrepresentation of facts. It has been customary, over the past decade, to present exaggerated scenarios in terms of achievement. For instance, the data regarding national forest cover, which was shown to be around 12.6 percent, while it is in reality around 8.6 percent. These has immense bearing on our national forest coverage targets, and the targets against the relevant SDGs, policy, plans, and strategies, as the distorted data places us on an impractical trajectory.

Therefore, the scholarly demand is to correct the course through updating Bangladesh's actual forest cover data, and reconsider various national targets accordingly.

Most of the forest and relevant laws in practice are from the British regime, and devoid of any consideration of the people. Moreover, parts of the reserved forests are declared as Protected Areas to fulfil international obligations, which further limits accessibility and the rights of the people. It has never been a practice of the Forest Department to arrange public consultation while declaring public forests as Protected Areas. At present, 52 percent of the Sundarbans forest (including the waterways) has been declared as Protected Areas with harsher usage regulations. This often makes the lives of forest-dependent locals miserable, and ultimately results in exacerbated illegal practices.

The rights of local communities should be ensured by revising the boundaries of declared Protected Areas and subsequent declarations. Alongside the Protected Areas management plan, a mandatory management requirement for each Protected Area should be prepared for real action to fill the missing gaps.

Another area of concern is the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT), an underutilised hidden gem for forest restoration and carbon conservation. Despite the widespread deforestation (522,158 ha) and forest degradation (146,210 ha) in the CHT region, efforts are not being taken to restore it at scale because of the conflicting land management responsibilities of the various departments. Some part of the CHT forest land is managed by the Forest Department, termed as reserved forests, while most of it is under the management of the deputy commissioners representing the land ministry, often termed as unclassified state forests. The latter has no mandate to prevent forest degradation or restoration; therefore, the lands are undergoing further degradation due to massive expansion of agriculture and horticultural crops. The Forest Department, on the other hand, has no functional ties or programmes under the administrative structures created in light of the 1997 CHT Accord.

However, appropriate community-based forest conservation programmes could increase forest cover by eliminating conflicting land uses and create further opportunities to foster employment in the hills, generate timber and non-timber products, secure livelihoods and thus reduce landslide, soil erosion and siltation, improve watersheds, regulate local climate, and achieve both national REDD+ and Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) targets. Furthermore, it is possible to earn a considerable amount of foreign currencies from the voluntary or regulatory carbon markets through emission reduction by carbon conservation in the forests.

Unfortunately in the forestry sector, we see exclusionary, vested interest-led and often politically biased, inefficient and even unnecessarily planned and implemented development programmes. Some salient examples include the installation of non-profitable and useless ropeway in the name of Sheikh Russel Aviary and Ecopark in Rangunia, the establishment of a safari park at Lathitila forest and numerous ecoparks. Some of these initiatives have caused irreparable harm to forests and wildlife and enabled embezzlement and wastage of public money.

To ensure resourceful forest conservation activities, the Forest Department has drafted a forest policy and a forestry master plan using huge debt investment; it has been awaiting approval for eight years. These forest policy and forestry master plan should be discussed, approved and implemented immediately before these become obsolete.

Even more concerningly, the Forest Department does not have the capacity to prevent encroachment. Even though enormous lands—104,000 hectares—have already been encroached, the field-level staff are still putting their life at risk to prevent encroachment and hill-cutting, resulting in physical assaults and even death of forest personnel in the recent past.

Shockingly, the Government and Local Authority Lands and Buildings (Recovery of Possession) Ordinance, 1970 currently in use did not retain the legal power of divisional forest officers for eviction, which was in the earlier ordinance. After sending the list to the deputy commissioners, the Forest Department must wait for the eviction orders and the appointment of magistrates. By the time all approvals are obtained, the forest is already encroached upon and destroyed. Actions for evictions, if ever, are taken from the office of the deputy commissioner. However, these are often purely populist, bowing down to the wishes of political leadership.

If forests and wildlife habitats are to exist, necessary legal power needs to be given to stop encroachment and protect them. The misuse of forests cannot go on any further. People should stand up for forests, for only then will forests survive—and so will people.

Rakibul Hasan Mukul is deputy chief conservator of forests at the Forest Department (lien), executive director at Arannayk Foundation, and organising secretary at the Institution of Foresters Bangladesh (IFB).​

 

[Saif]

Polybag use: Enforcement of ban needed

The news that use of polythene bags are going to be banned at the country's superstores carries no meaning. First, most superstores do not allow the material's use; second, and more importantly, the 2002 ban on polythene imposed under the 1995 Bangladesh Environment Conservation Act, first of its k

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Polybag use: Enforcement of ban needed
Published :
Sep 11, 2024 22:20
Updated :
Sep 11, 2024 22:20

The news that use of polythene bags are going to be banned at the country's superstores carries no meaning. First, most superstores do not allow the material's use; second, and more importantly, the 2002 ban on polythene imposed under the 1995 Bangladesh Environment Conservation Act, first of its kind in the world, is still in force---it was never scrapped. So, there is no way of banning something that is already banned. It is the enforcement of the law that should be the real issue. Here it is selective enforcement understandably to study it as a test case with the purpose of gradually moving towards complete enforcement all across the country. Superstores avoid using polythene but they also have to use much thicker poly bags for certain items such as fish and meat from which blood oozes out. The law has some concessional provisions for plastic bags. Bags or plastic graded as polyethylene terephthalate (PETE or PET) is safe for use and environment.

Clearly, the debate hinges not on fresh ban on polythene and plastic but on enforcement of the legal provisions. Focusing on superstores which rarely use the poly bags randomly used in groceries and kitchen markets may be convenient but it will hardly make a dent in the colossal problem. Production facilities must be dismantled. After the ban slapped in 2002, polythene bags nearly disappeared from the market and for the first six months people changed their habit in favour of carrying gunny, paper and fabric bags for shopping. Why polythene staged a comeback is the result of lax monitoring and a lack of alternative to the easiest, cheapest and most convenient but highly harmful type now posing a serious threat to the country's environment and by extension its future. It takes as long as 200-400 years for degradation of polythene and plastic materials. In fact, both land and seas of this planet are under severe threat of plastic pollution.

That the adviser in charge of the ministry of environment, forest and climate change has been holding meeting with the stakeholders to know about the preparation for the alternative to poly bags is appreciable. The approach to the problem before enforcement of the law can be replicated when the area gets expanded from superstores to groceries and kitchen markets in the large cities and then all across the country. Reportedly, Dhaka alone uses 4.0 million polythene bags daily. This is mind-boggling and has to be stopped as soon as possible.

The important thing is to go about the task of making polythene bags a thing of the past. No doubt, the first thing ought to be to set a deadline and make effective arrangement for the alternative to such bags. The country's jute mills, mostly incurring losses, can be given a new lease of life if those are assigned to produce the required number of bags of finer quality. But the best alternative would be sonali bag made from jute cellulose invented by scientist Mobarak Ahmed Khan. Currently, the state-owned Latif Bawani Jute Mills produces only 15,000 sonali bags a day. The bag compares better with its polythene counterpart and is biodegradable, environmentally friendly and recyclable. But it is far costlier. Further research and experiment may make cellulose separation cheaper. If mills of higher capacity can be developed, mass production and use of the bag will definitely bring down the cost. Machines of greater capacity can be developed in collaboration with industrial partners abroad.​

 

[Saif]

Prof Yunus should take the climate fight to UNGA

Prof Yunus is now in a position to elevate the country’s voice in the climate crisis that affects Bangladesh most acutely.

www.thedailystar.net

Prof Yunus should take the climate fight to UNGA

Prof Yunus has the global credibility to lead on this issue and can share his vision of Bangladesh becoming a climate-conscious country. PHOTO: REUTERS

As world leaders gather at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) this September, Bangladesh faces a unique opportunity to push its climate agenda. Prof Muhammad Yunus, the interim government's chief adviser, will head a small delegation of seven members. The responsibility will primarily rest on him to advocate for Bangladesh and other vulnerable nations of the Global South, a role he is well-prepared for given his global stature. Having put Bangladesh on the map through his pioneering work in microfinance, Prof Yunus is now in a position to elevate the country's voice in the climate crisis that affects countries like Bangladesh most acutely, despite being least responsible for it.

In his meetings, Prof Yunus must make the case for greater accountability from wealthier nations, which have historically been the largest contributors to the climate crisis. These nations bear the greatest responsibility for supporting countries like Bangladesh already experiencing the worst impacts. Despite the urgency for adaptation and recovery across the Global South, financial commitments from the Global North remain inadequate and slow to materialise. If this imbalance continues, vulnerable countries will face even greater devastation, further deepening inequalities and exacerbating the climate emergency.

Prof Yunus should highlight the alarming situation we face. Throughout its 4.5 billion-year history, Earth has undergone five mass extinction events, each causing devastating losses. The fourth event, 225 million years ago, wiped out 90 percent of all species, while the most recent, 65 million years ago, eliminated half of Earth's species. Though humans have existed for only 300,000 years, they are now pushing the planet toward a sixth mass extinction event through their activity. Modern civilization, which has flourished for the past 10,000 years under stable and predictable climate conditions, is now facing unprecedented disruption. Rising greenhouse gas levels are dismantling the very systems that have sustained humanity, threatening food security and livelihoods, especially in vulnerable nations like Bangladesh.

Since the Industrial Revolution, atmospheric CO2 levels have surged from a stable 200-300 parts per million (ppm) to over 420 ppm today. Including methane and other gases, the total exceeds 500 ppm, levels humanity has never encountered before. The consequences are already clear.

For Bangladesh, where millions depend on agriculture, the stakes are high. Erratic weather patterns driven by rising global temperatures are causing floods, droughts, and extreme weather events, putting food security at risk. With a large population reliant on subsistence farming, Bangladesh is a compelling example of how climate change directly threatens livelihoods, while global action remains slow.

Reducing carbon emissions to net zero by mid-century, as outlined in the Paris Agreement, is essential, but insufficient. Over a trillion tonnes of excess CO2, already in the atmosphere, will persist for centuries. Even if we fully stopped emissions today, which is unlikely, the damage from accumulated greenhouse gases would continue to worsen. To address this challenge, a two-pronged global approach is necessary: significantly reducing the current annual emissions of 50 billion tonnes and removing the excess one trillion tonnes present in the atmosphere.

For countries like Bangladesh, waiting for long-term solutions is not an option. Immediate action is important, particularly through mechanisms like the Loss and Damage Fund, a landmark achievement of COP27 in Sharm El Sheikh. However, despite this breakthrough, operationalising the fund has been frustratingly slow. Recent board meetings have failed to deliver the financial support vulnerable nations need to recover from climate disasters. This delay is further compounded by the failure of developed countries to meet their commitment to jointly mobilise $100 billion per year by 2020. Wealthy nations and multilateral development banks must urgently step up and fulfil these promises, providing the climate finance necessary to support countries already grappling with extreme weather and rising sea levels.

Prof Yunus has the global credibility to lead on this issue. In his meetings, he can share his vision of Bangladesh becoming a climate-conscious country. He can talk about exploring education reform to integrate climate science and leadership development into the national curriculum to ensure that future generations have an understanding of climate change and the leadership skills to drive meaningful social change. These reforms align with Prof Yunus's broader vision of achieving "Three Zeros," which are zero poverty, zero unemployment, and zero net carbon emissions.

Through my work at the Global Youth Leadership Center, I have seen first hand how empowering young people with climate education and leadership skills can create ripple effects in their communities. In countries across the Global South, where climate impacts are already being felt, young people are stepping up to address local challenges. But while local actions are inspiring, they are not enough to tackle the global scale of the problem. Without substantial financial and technical support from the Global North, the most vulnerable countries will continue to suffer the worst consequences of climate change.

As Prof Yunus heads to UNGA, he must remind the world that Bangladesh, like many other vulnerable countries, is on the frontline of a crisis it did not cause. The larger share of responsibility falls on those who have contributed the most to this problem. To avoid catastrophic consequences, the world must take immediate action. Bangladesh can lead the way, but we cannot fight this battle alone.

Ejaj Ahmad is the founder and CEO of the Global Youth Leadership Center and the founder and executive chairperson of the Bangladesh Youth Leadership Center.​

 

[Saif]

To reform Bangladesh's environment sector, focus on biodiversity conservation

Environment is one of three pillars of sustainable development, while society and economy are the other two.

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To reform Bangladesh's environment sector, focus on biodiversity conservation​

The environment sector currently has three major concerns: biodiversity, climate change, and pollution. FILE PHOTO: HABIBUR RAHMAN/STAR

While Bangladesh is currently overwhelmed with reforming different sectors, including public administration, banking, education, law enforcement, and judicial systems, we are not hearing much about reforming the environment sector. This is a bit odd, since we have several environment champions as the advisors of the current interim government. There might be two reasons for that: either environment is not a priority at the moment, or environment sector doesn't need any reforming.

I believe the first point falls short since environment is one of three pillars of sustainable development, while society and economy are the other two. Therefore, failing to prioritise the environment can't be an option. Nevertheless, the environment sector currently has three major concerns: biodiversity, climate change, and pollution. Given the extremely desperate situations we are in now to fight these challenges, reforming our environmental institutions, policies, laws, and practices are crucial.

First, we need to reorient our mindset. A country having 50 percent area as wetlands and 40 percent people living in cities and towns, we must let go of the idea that increasing the percentage of forest is the main measure of biodiversity conservation. When we talk about conservation and ecosystems, we should include our natural and man-made waterbodies, green and planted areas on fallow land, arable land (having agroforestry), roadsides, rural homesteads, roof-tops, and industrial spaces in the biodiversity estimates.

Second, over the last few decades, we have lost many wetlands to urbanisation. From 1990 to 2020, Dhaka alone lost about 70 percent of its waterbodies. It may sound utopian to evict millions of people from young urban areas and re-water the lost wetlands. But it is not practical at all technologically, financially, legally, or ethically. However, we can legally bind city corporations, municipalities, real estate developers, and housing societies to make those settlements "nature hubs" by restoring old or creating new water-ways, and increasing green spaces by waterbodies, on open land, and on concrete structures, for example. Legally, we need to ensure no more urban wetlands are killed. Furthermore, we shouldn't monetise aquatic ecosystems' benefits nor should we put high taxes or transfer costs on these ecosystems to increase public revenue or discourage their conversion. This is because we now have many individuals and groups who can simply purchase ecosystems, despite what the price tags may be. A complete embargo on further switching of wetlands for other use is the only option we have.

Third, the government needs to reclaim its encroached land legally belonging to the forest department (250,000 acres) or the railway authority (4,000 acres) and bring these under restoration and plantation programmes with appropriate plant species. It may seem impossible, but given these departments' recent past successes and an absence of certain ill forces at the moment, it is feasible. Such reforestation and afforestation programmes should not be a crazy festival of planting thousands of saplings over a week, then totally losing their traces over the next few months. We must capitalise on our 30-year experience of community-based natural resource management to make such plantation sustained. To stop government-supported destruction of forest land and planted land, especially on the coast, we need to put legal measures in place which will make it difficult even for the government to allocate forest land/planted land to build cantonments, stadiums, economic zones, or settlement through harmful executive orders.

Fourth, we need to have updated, authentic figures of our forest cover and the total area of wetlands. We can brag about increasing the number of protected areas through gazette notifications, but without knowing exactly what biodiversity, small and big, we are trying to protect, the whole effort is meaningless. Thus, only counting the tiger population every 3-5 years is not enough. Similarly, fisherfolks are prevented from catching fish several times a year, but we don't have any scientific data if such fishing bans are actually increasing aquatic biodiversity. So, to ensure our biodiversity protection is evidence-driven, from now on, no terrestrial or aquatic ecosystem should be declared protected until we know details about the biodiversity itself. Additionally, these protected areas' biodiversity should be periodically checked. Any legal restrictions on harvesting natural resources like fish should be revisited based on up-to-date scientific information, to ensure if such bans are bringing envisaged benefits.

Fifth, in 2017, the Bangladesh Country Investment Plan (CIP) for Environment, Forestry and Climate Change (2016-2021) estimated a need for around $423 million every year to take biodiversity actions. In 2019, Bangladesh reported to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) that, during FY2015-FY2018, the environment ministry and its departments annually spent about $15 million. Despite such poor allocations, to ensure that finance is available for conservation, we don't need to reform our laws. Three legal instruments already have funding provisions: the Ecologically Critical Area Management Rules, 2016 (Article 23), the Protected Area Management Rules, 2017 (Article 29), and the Bangladesh Biodiversity Act, 2017 (Article 36). We now need to operationalise these funds, put real money in them, and establish coherence or jurisdictional boundaries among them to avoid overlapping. By formulating a "Bangladesh Conservation Fiscal Framework," we could start outlining country's conservation finance.

Postscript: The environment ministry is currently updating the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP). I wonder how reforming our environment sector will be reflected in that.

Dr Haseeb Md Irfanullah is an independent consultant working on environment, climate change, and research system; a visiting research fellow at the University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB).​

 

[Saif]

Govt must finance and promote Sonali bag

Environment, forest and climate change adviser to the government has instructed the city's super shops not to use polythene bags but arrange for the biodegradable and environmentally friendly alternative. The environment advisor is well known nationally and internationally for her environmental act

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Govt must finance and promote Sonali bag
Syed Mansur Hashim
Published :
Sep 17, 2024 21:58
Updated :
Sep 17, 2024 21:58

Environment, forest and climate change adviser to the government has instructed the city's super shops not to use polythene bags but arrange for the biodegradable and environmentally friendly alternative. The environment advisor is well known nationally and internationally for her environmental activism and the declaration by the interim government to eliminate the use of plastic bottles in government offices is perhaps the first step in moving towards a more environmental-friendly policy stance.

A laudable initiative, but there are many hurdles on the way! In 2002, the government led by the BNP had actually banned polythene bags without taking any major steps to stop production of polythene and plastic goods in the country. While this threw the supply chain of polythene packaging in disarray for a while, people started adapting to the new status quo by going back to jute bags.

That ban didn't have the desired impact because no real enforcement by the environment officials, no clear-cut directives issued on how to deal with errant traders and buyers of polythene packaging material, including shopping bags were there. All this was compounded by the illegal production and distribution of poly bags, simply because jute bags available back then were considered unsuitable for modern shopping needs. Hence, that initiative failed.

Some developments have taken place since those early days. Dr, Mubarak Ahmed Khan, A Bangladeshi scientist has discovered the secret of unlocking a biodegradable substitute to harmful plastic. Back in 2017, he had developed a polymer made from jute fibre rocking the hugely powerful plastic sector which is closely connected to the world of petrochemicals. While his discovery garnered global public attention as it had opened up the possibility of replacing one of the most environmentally-damaging materials the world uses today to carry and package goods, mass production of the 'Sonali bag' has remained a distant dream.

There should be no confusion as to why nothing has happened. Leaving aside geopolitics and the massive sway the plastic industry holds over government decision-making in any country, there is a question of its viability in the face of well-entrenched business interests. Merely expressing the wish to promote this biodegradable material as the building block of an entirely new industry that will replace an old one that provides thousands of crores of Taka in VAT contribution to the national exchequer isn't going to get much traction. The plastic industry goes beyond simply providing VAT revenue to the government, it employs hundreds of thousands of people at various stages of production and distribution and allows for durable packaging to all sorts of goods across various sectors of the economy.

That said, there is no reason why Sonali bag cannot be made viable. The initial investment of about Tk100 crore, if invested into a project as working capital for the production of this bag, will enable the Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation to reach government's production targets set for consumption. Dr. Mobarak has stated that given the present machinery and introduction of certain new technology, national goals for replacing plastic poly bags is reachable. What is required is not just political will, but putting into place a regime of practices for effective enforcement of any directive that will involve supplanting either plastic polythene or single use plastics in the economy. That is something the government has to think deeply over prior to taking on the power plastic lobby. Lastly, if Sonali bag can be made viable in Bangladesh, there are huge possibilities for products made of jute fibre in the export market. It is the government that must come up with requisite finance for taking this groundbreaking initiative forward. Only the state has the power to effect change at the policy level.​