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

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Cox's Bazar beach facing severe existential threat

COX'S BAZAR, Sept 10: Cox's Bazar, home to one of the world's longest natural sea beaches, is increasingly facing a threat of destruction due to unchecked sand extraction, destruction of beach vegetation and casuarina trees, unplanned urbanisation and mounting pressure from tourism infrastructure.

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Cox's Bazar beach facing severe existential threat

Waves crash against an eroded portion of Cox's Bazar beach, exposing damaged geobags as the shoreline continues to recede. — FE Photo

COX'S BAZAR, Sept 10: Cox's Bazar, home to one of the world's longest natural sea beaches, is increasingly facing a threat of destruction due to unchecked sand extraction,

destruction of beach vegetation and casuarina trees, unplanned urbanisation and mounting pressure from tourism infrastructure.

Locals claim that at least 500 feet of the beach's sandy stretch has disappeared into the sea over the past five years. Although geobags have been placed at several points to combat erosion, the measure has failed to provide a lasting solution.

In many places, the bags have torn apart, shifted from their original positions or become exposed as sand beneath them has been washed away, making the erosion even more visible.

During a recent visit to Laboni, Sugandha and Kalatali points of Cox's Bazar beach, signs of severe erosion were found at several locations. In some areas, sections of the

beach have dropped several feet, while in others, the removal of sand from beneath geobags has created gaps and cavities. In several places, waves have battered and torn the geobags apart, scattering their remains across the beach.

The situation is not only damaging the natural beauty of the beach but also creating discomfort for tourists. As the sandy stretch and natural dunes continue to shrink, tourism-dependent businesses and the fragile coastal ecosystem are also coming under growing threat.

A tourist couple, Jesmin Bokhari and Shah Rukh Bokhari, who travelled to Cox's Bazar from Mirpur in Dhaka with their family, said the condition of the beach had deteriorated significantly.

The environment of the beach has become very poor. Looking at the eroded shoreline, it feels as if a war has taken place here. Instead of temporary repairs, the authorities should take a long-term approach to solving the problem, they commented.

Local residents said that only a few years ago, many parts of the beach had extensive sandy stretches, rows of casuarina trees and natural dunes covered with beach vegetation. Today, powerful waves are crashing directly onto many of those areas.

Erosion becomes particularly severe during the monsoon, they said. Despite repeated efforts to protect the shoreline with geobags, the expected results have not been achieved.

Tourism entrepreneur Shahed Selim said Cox's Bazar beach suffers severe damage every year during the monsoon.

"The beach is gradually losing its existence because of sand extraction from the sea and the destruction of beach vegetation and casuarina trees," he said.

According to people concerned with the issue, interference with the natural movement of seawater, encroachment on the beach, pollution, inadequate drainage and unplanned urbanisation have further complicated the situation.

H.M. Faridul Alam Shaheen, joint convener of Dharitri Rokkhae Amra, a local environmental organisation, blamed sand extraction and unplanned activities for the worsening situation.

"Geobags are being placed in the affected areas, but they are not working. They are also affecting the natural beauty of the beach. Every year, a significant amount of money is being spent on geobags, but it seems that the entire expenditure is going into the water," he said.

Experts opine climate change is not the only factor behind the erosion. Unplanned tourism development and the destruction of natural sand dunes have also contributed significantly to the deterioration of the beach.

They believe that geobags may temporarily reduce the impact of waves, but they cannot provide a long-term solution. Instead, restoring natural dunes and bringing back the beach's ecological balance should be prioritised.

Fazlul Kader Chowdhury, president of the Cox's Bazar Civil Societies Forum, said the beach was globally renowned for its natural beauty.

"But if uncontrolled sand extraction, destruction of dunes and vegetation, and unplanned development continue, the beach's natural defence system will become even weaker," he said.

Oceanographer Abdul Qayyum suggested that sand be brought from other areas to replenish the eroded sections.

Salahuddin Ahmed, sub-divisional engineer of the Cox's Bazar Water Development Board, said the agency had faced various obstacles while attempting to work on beach erosion control two years ago.

"Because of those obstacles, we currently have no ongoing work there," he said.

However, Cox's Bazar Deputy Commissioner Md A. Mannan said initiatives were underway to identify erosion-prone areas and formulate a permanent project.

"We are identifying the areas where erosion control measures are necessary and preparing a Development Project Proposal (DPP) for submission to the government. We hope work can begin through a government-funded project once the necessary allocation is secured," he said.​

 

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Bangladesh unveils $1.85b plan for green transition

Bangladesh has outlined a $1.85 billion investment plan to execute an equitable green economic transition, becoming the first country in Asia to incorporate a dedicated Just Transition chapter into its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC 3.0). The framework translates the country's climate ta

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Bangladesh unveils $1.85b plan for green transition

Bangladesh has outlined a $1.85 billion investment plan to execute an equitable green economic transition, becoming the first country in Asia to incorporate a dedicated Just Transition chapter into its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC 3.0).

The framework translates the country's climate targets into actionable and bankable investment opportunities, according to an action plan presented at a national high-level dialogue in Dhaka on Thursday.

The dialogue was jointly organised by the Department of Environment, International Labour Organisation (ILO), South Asian Network on Economic Modeling (SANEM) and the Embassy of Sweden.

The strategy was developed through a cross-mapping of 14 national strategy documents, including the Eighth Five-Year Plan, Perspective Plan 2041 and Bangladesh Delta Plan 2100. It consolidated 258 commitments into 33 core priorities.

These priorities form an action matrix containing 69 traceable and time-bound activities across six key sectors-energy, transport, construction, agriculture, waste management, and industrial processes and product use (IPPU).

The final implementation plan will be incorporated into NDC 3.0 this month before being presented to international development partners and global investors at COP31 in November.

SANEM Executive Director Dr Selim Raihan and ILO Just Transition Technical Officer Elisa Benistant Fremigacci jointly presented the action plan and its annexes at the dialogue.

Speaking as the chief guest at the event, State Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Shaikh Faridul Islam said the government was focusing on field-level measures to clean major rivers and reduce air and noise pollution.

Referring to his recent visits to facilities in Rajshahi, he stressed the need to improve occupational safety and health standards for factory and waste-management workers.

Workers are central to economic growth and therefore need fair wages, stronger social protection and skills upgrading to cope with technological changes, he said.

Bangladesh is also targeting 10,000 MW of renewable energy within five years as part of its clean-energy transition, including through wind power projects such as those in Cox's Bazar.

The government is forming an inclusive, multi-sectoral team to present strong research and policy positions at COP31, the state minister added.

Speaking at a panel discussion, Dr Fahmida Khatun, distinguished fellow at the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), said a just transition must focus on creating employment through the green transition.

She called for sector- and occupation-level mapping to identify where jobs would be gained or lost and proposed adding a green jobs module to the Labour Force Survey to establish a reliable baseline. She also stressed the need for data disaggregated by sex, age, geography, and formal and informal employment to better target social safety-net programmes such as the Family Card.

Emission-reduction tracking should be paired with employment and decent-work indicators, she said, calling for an institutional mechanism to integrate data across the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics, government ministries, employers and worker organisations.

Moustapha Kamal Gueye, director of the ILO's Just Transition Priority Action Programme, said climate ambition requires building human capacity among workers, businesses and communities to transform energy, agriculture and transport systems.

Social justice and decent work are essential to climate mitigation and adaptation rather than merely additional benefits, he said, stressing that social dialogue should be formally institutionalised instead of remaining ad hoc.

Bangladesh Employers' Federation Secretary General Farooq Ahmed said a just transition required a whole-of-society approach involving all stakeholders, not just employers and workers.

He noted that Bangladesh accounts for only 0.47 per cent of global carbon emissions, yet remains disproportionately vulnerable to climate change because of its geographical position.

He identified three key responsibilities: raising public awareness, mobilising financial and technical resources, and developing a framework for resilience and preparedness.

He also called for climate issues to be communicated in simple and accessible language and stressed the need to build the capacity of small and medium-sized enterprises to adapt to environmental and technological changes.

Mesbahuddin Ahmed, chairman of the National Coordination Committee for Workers' Education, recalled past industrial disruptions caused by globalisation and cautioned against repeating instances where workers lost jobs without opportunities for retraining.

The current green transition must prioritise worker reskilling and involve worker organisations from the outset, he said.

Sector-level specialisation is also crucial to understanding future workforce needs and designing appropriate training, he added, stressing that a just transition must go beyond policy documents to deliver real jobs, job security and effective skills transfer.

ILO Country Director Max Tunon moderated the panel discussion.​