Climate Change: Effects in Coastal Areas of Bangladesh

Bio-103, Fall 2012 Section: 8

Submitted by Sajid Salim Asif Rahman MD. Mosiour Rahman Iftekharul Alam 051 514 030 092 0543 030 092 0283 030 091 0293 030

Submitted to Dr. S. M. Mostafa Kamal Khan

Table of Contents
1.0 Introduction ............................................................................................................................................. 1 1.1 Climate Change ................................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Coastal areas of Bangladesh ............................................................................................................... 2 2.0 Causes of Climate Change ...................................................................................................................... 3 2.1 Natural causes of climate change: ....................................................................................................... 3 2.2 Human causes of climate change: ....................................................................................................... 4 3.0 Effects of Climate Change in Coastal Areas of Bangladesh ................................................................... 6 3.1 Ingression of Soil Salinity:.................................................................................................................. 6 3.2 Flood and Water Logging ................................................................................................................... 7 3.3 Intrusion of Saline water ..................................................................................................................... 7 3.4 Future Projection of Climate Change Impacts in Bangladesh ............................................................ 8 4.0 Initiatives Taken and Recommendations ................................................................................................ 9 4.1 International actions on climate change: ............................................................................................. 9 4.2 Action taken by Bangladesh: ............................................................................................................ 11 4.3 Recommendations: ............................................................................................................................ 14 5.0 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................ 15 References ................................................................................................................................................... 16

Climate Change & Coastal Areas of Bangladesh

1.0 Introduction
Climate change is a rising issue of importance in our day and age, and one that is threatening our global society on many levels. In the past few decades, scientists have discovered that our planets climate has been changing at an alarming rate. The way in which we have changed the land to accommodate ourselves is evident in many areas including farming, cities, residential areas, and production; all of these changes have had an effect on the planet. These changes are now threatening the preservation of our planet. Evidence of climate change and global warming are rapidly increasing, but most nations dependency on the economy and influences of capitalism are not only making these issues worse, but almost completely stopping the need for a solution to climate change. It is increasingly apparent that our dependency on the economy and the want for profit is considered far more important than the current state and preservation of the planet that we inhabit.

1.1 Climate Change

Climate is simply the weather that is dominant or normal in a particular region. The term climate includes temperature, rainfall and wind patterns. Geography, global air and sea currents, tree cover, global temperatures and other factors influence the climate of an area. Climate change is a long-term shift in the statistics of the weather (including its averages). We know that the global climate is currently changing. The last decade of the 20th Century and the beginning of the 21st have been the warmest period in the entire global instrumental temperature record, starting in the mid-19th century. Climate change is a significant and lasting change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns over periods ranging from decades to millions of years. It may be a change in average weather conditions, or in the distribution of weather around the average conditions (i.e., more or fewer extreme weather events).

Climate Change & Coastal Areas of Bangladesh

1.2 Coastal areas of Bangladesh

Bangladesh, a flood plain delta, is a land of rivers and canals. The country is sloping gently from the north to the south, meeting the Bay of Bengal at the southern end. The whole coast runs parallel to the Bay of Bengal, forming 710 km long coastline. According to the coastal zone policy of the Government of Bangladesh, 19 districts out of 64 are in the coastal zone covering a total of 147 upazillas of the country. Out of these 19 districts, only 12 districts meet the sea or lower estuary directly.

Figure 1: Coastal areas of Bangladesh

The southern part of Bangladesh falls under coastal zone that receives discharge of numerous rivers, including Ganges-Brahmputra-Meghna (GBM) river system, creating one of the most productive ecosystems of the world. Except Chittagong-Coxs Bazar, all parts of the coastal zone are plain land with extensive river networks and accreted land, which is known in Bangladesh as char land. India is at the west of the zone whereas Myanmar is at the east of the coast.

Climate Change & Coastal Areas of Bangladesh

2.0 Causes of Climate Change

The causes of climate change can be divided into two categories, human and natural causes.

2.1 Natural causes of climate change:

The earth's climate is influenced and changed through natural causes like volcanic eruptions, the earth's orbital changes and solar variations. Solar variations: The Sun is the source of energy for the Earth's climate system. Although the Sun's energy output appears constant from an everyday point of view, small changes over an extended period of time can lead to climate changes. Some scientists suspect that a portion of the warming in the first half of the 20th century was due to an increase in the output of solar energy. As the sun is the fundamental source of energy that is instrumental in our climate system it would be reasonable to assume that changes in the sun's energy output would cause the climate to change. Volcanism: Volcanic eruptions release gases and particulates into the atmosphere. Eruptions large enough to affect climate occur on average several times per century, and cause cooling (by partially blocking the transmission of solar radiation to the Earth's surface) for a period of a few years. The eruption of Mount Pinatubo in 1991, the second largest terrestrial eruption of the 20th century (after the 1912 eruption of Novarupta affected the climate substantially. Global temperatures decreased by about 0.5 C (0.9 F). Much larger eruptions, known as large igneous provinces, occur only a few times every hundred million years, but may cause global warming and mass extinctions. Plate tectonics: Over the course of millions of years, the motion of tectonic plates reconfigures global land and ocean areas and generates topography. This can affect both global and local patterns of climate and atmosphere-ocean circulation.

Climate Change & Coastal Areas of Bangladesh

Figure 2: Earth plate tectonic movements

Earth orbital changes: The earth makes one full orbit around the sun each year. It is tilted at an angle of 23.5 to the perpendicular plane of its orbital path. Changes in the tilt of the earth can lead to small but climatically important changes in the strength of the seasons, more tilt means warmer summers and colder winters; less tilt means cooler summers and milder winters. Slow changes in the Earths orbit lead to small but climatically important changes.

2.2 Human causes of climate change:

The earth's climate is influenced and changed through human causes like greenhouse gases, Carbon Dioxide (CO2): Carbon dioxide is undoubtedly, the most important greenhouse gas in the atmosphere. Changes in land use pattern, deforestation, land clearing, agriculture, and other activities have all led to a rise in the emission of carbon dioxide. It is said that carbon dioxide accounts for more than three quarters of current human greenhouse-gas emission. Nitrous oxide (N2O): Accounts for around 8% of the warming impact of current human greenhouse-gas emissions. Key sources include agriculture (especially nitrogen-fertilised soils and livestock waste) and industrial processes. Nitrous oxide is even more potent per gram than methane. 4

Climate Change & Coastal Areas of Bangladesh

Figure 3: Human caused greenhouse effects

Fluorinated gases ("F gases"): Account for around 1% of the warming impact of current human greenhouse-gas emissions. Key sources are industrial processes. F-gases are even more potent per gram than nitrous oxide. Methane: Methane is another important greenhouse gas in the atmosphere. About of all methane emissions are said to come from domesticated animals such as dairy cows, goats, pigs, buffaloes, camels, horses, and sheep. These animals produce methane during the cud-chewing process. Methane is also released from rice or paddy fields that are flooded during the sowing and maturing periods. When soil is covered with water it becomes anaerobic or lacking in oxygen. Under such conditions, methane-producing bacteria and other organisms decompose organic matter in the soil to form methane. Nearly 90% of the paddy-growing area in the world is found in Asia, as rice is the staple food there. China and India, between them, have 80-90% of the world's rice- growing areas.

Climate Change & Coastal Areas of Bangladesh

3.0 Effects of Climate Change in Coastal Areas of Bangladesh

Climate change is affecting our coastal areas in number of ways. Any change in climate would lead to destabilization of environmental and social conditions around the globe. These disturbances could jeopardize the conservation of natural ecosystems and sustainability of socioeconomic systems. These changes in global climatic condition has been increasing the risk of hydro-metrological disasters globally and causing substantial environmental and economic loss including loss of lives, especially in the least developed countries like Bangladesh that is highly exposed to those disasters.

3.1 Ingression of Soil Salinity:

The coastal areas of Bangladesh have already been facing salinity problem which is expected to be exacerbated by climate change and sea level rise, as sea level rise is causing unusual height of tidal water. In dry season, when the flows of upstream water reduce drastically, the saline water goes up to 240 kilometers inside the country and reaches to Magura district. Salinity ingress also causes an increase in soil salinity, especially when farmers irrigate their lands with slightly saline surface water at the beginning of the low flow period. SRDI (Soil Resource Development Institute of the Government of Bangladesh) reported that, soil salinity levels south of Khulna and Bagerhat towns ranged between 8 to 15 dS/m during the low flow season. It is also reported that, several sub-districts (such as Kachua, Mollahat, and Fultali) south of the Sundarbans are known to be non-saline in the pre-Farakka period have began to develop soil salinity during the low flow seasons of 1980s.

Figure 4: Soil salinity causing vast unfertile land

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3.2 Flood and Water Logging

Due to geographical setting Bangladesh has to receive and drain-out huge volume of upstream waters. The flows of mighty rivers the Meghna, Padma and Brhammaputra, originated from the Himalayans, drain-out in the Bay of Bengal flowing through-out the country. In the summer, from May to August, the melting of glaciers in the Himalayans makes the rivers in Bangladesh live. The rainy season, which is strongly influenced by monsoon wind from the South-West, also sets on at the same period and causes huge precipitation. Sundarban, the worlds largest stretch of mangrove forest, is also vulnerable to the consequences of global warming and sea level rise.

Figure 5: Water logging and the distress of people

As the tidal flow and wave action is high in the mangrove forest area so only 45 centimeters sea level rises would inundate about 75 percent of forest area and 67 centimeters rise in sea level would submerge the entire Sundarbans. Though, in congruence with sea level rise, siltation process would cause relative elevation of Sundarban but this relative elevation might not be enough to combat the risk of sea level rise. In fact the risk of over flooding and inundation of Sundarban is still a concern.

3.3 Intrusion of Saline Water

Salinity intrusion in Bangladesh coast is very seasonal. In the rainy season (June-October) intrusion of saline water is minimum due to extreme flow of fresh water, but in the dry season, 7

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especially in winter, saline water goes upward gradually. In the rainy season where saline water ingress to 10 percent of countrys area, in the dry season saline water reaches to countrys 40 percent area even.

3.4 Future Projection of Climate Change Impacts in Bangladesh

Climate change brings it adverse affects along with it. Although being one of the least developed nations we are highly impacted by its influences. From our primary economy dependency agriculture to our bio-diversity nothing is safe from its unpleasant grasp. In order to fight it we need to know the extent of its affect: Crop production & food security: Rainfall patterns are changed due to climate change crops yields are expected to drop significantly. Crop production will decrease 30% in 2100. Production of rice & wheat will reduce 8.8%, and 32% within 2050 respectively. Salinity: There are 13% areas are salinity at Bagerhat, Khulna & Sathkhira, the southwestern coastal districts of Bangladesh at present which will increase 16% in 2050 and 18% in 2100. Coral bleaching: Corals are vulnerable to thermal stress. If the sea surface temperature increases 1-3 C then corals bleaching will occur frequently. Mangrove forest: About 75% area of mangrove forest, Sundarban (60007 Sq. km) will submerse if the sea level will increase 45 cm. If the sea level rise 1 m then the islands of Bay of Bengal and whole Sundarban will destroy including its fauna & flora. Fisheries: Death rate of shrimps fingerlings will increase if the water temperature is more than 32C (CEGIS), diseases of fish may increase and production of sweet water fish will shrink and extinct if the sea level rise. Health: More floods are contaminating water. Increasing water borne diseases such as cholera, diarrhea etc., more droughts are decreasing food production, rise of temperature will favor for pest and pathogen that will increase dengue, malaria, diarrhea etc. 8

Climate Change & Coastal Areas of Bangladesh

Rise in the sea level: If the sea level raises then low-lying non-embankment coastal area may be completely inundated. It will increase the risk of coastal salinity. Scarcity of saline free drinking water will increase highly. Current agricultural practices will change. Biodiversity: If the global temperature rises by 2 Centigrade, 30% of all land species will be threatened by an increased risk of extinction.

4.0 Initiatives Taken and Recommendations

To fight back this calamity national and international organizations have started to take initiatives. Organizations like UN, Governments and local NGOs have started to play their role to stop and delay it. Below some of these initiates are discussed:

4.1 International actions on climate change:

Man-made climate change is a global challenge that requires a global response. The United Nations has played a central role in coordinating international efforts to slow the pace of climate change and manage the risks associated with it. The international framework for action is built upon: UNFCCC: The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), which sets the overall framework for international efforts to tackle climate change. The Convention was adopted at the Rio Summit in 1992 and 195 countries have now signed up to it. The goal of the convention is to stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations at a level that would prevent dangerous man-made interference in the climate system. The Kyoto Protocol: It was adopted in 1997 and came into force in 2005. It set binding targets for 37 industrialized countries and the European Union for reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 5.2 per cent against 1990 levels over the five-year period 2008-2012.

Climate Change & Coastal Areas of Bangladesh

The Cancun Agreements: The agreement set out commitments to enhance international action and co-operation on the management of climate change risks, particularly in developing countries. National governments also agreed in 2010 that emissions need to be reduced so that global temperature increases are limited to less than 2 degrees. Conferences: The UN Climate Change Conference in Durban in 2011, which delivered a breakthrough in the international communitys response to climate change, with a decisio n by national governments to adopt a universal legal agreement on climate change as soon as possible, and no later than 2015. In response to greater agreement at the international level, increased scientific consensus and greater public recognition of the need for action different governments have introduced a significant amount of new national legislation, policies and initiatives to address climate change. Some of the international agreements and initiatives are: North America: Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI or ReGGIe) is a regional initiative by states and provinces in the Northeastern United States and Eastern Canada regions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Australia: A carbon pricing scheme in Australia commonly referred to as a carbon tax, commenced on 1 July 2012; it requires businesses emitting over 25,000 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions annually to purchase emissions permits. As such, only the top 300 Australia business emitters are affected. New Zealand: The New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme (NZ ETS) is a partial-coverage allfree allocation uncapped highly internationally linked emissions trading scheme. The NZ ETS was first legislated in the Climate Change Response (Emissions Trading) Amendment Act 2008 in September 2008 under the Fifth Labour Government of New Zealand. UK: The United Kingdom's Climate Change Program was launched in November 2000 by the British government in response to its commitment agreed at the 1992 United Nations Conference

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on Environment and Development (UNCED). The 2000 program was updated in March 2006 following a review launched in September 2004. India realizing the need to address both climate change and energy security has given rise to a Prime Ministerial directive called the National Action Plan (NAP) which identifies eight areas or missions for focused energy and climate policy interventions: solar energy, energy efficiency, sustainable habitat, water, Himalayan ecosystems, sustainable agriculture, strategic knowledge for climate change and a Green India".

4.2 Action taken by Bangladesh:

The Climate Change Action Plan is a 10-year programme (2009-2018) to build the capacity and resilience of the country to meet the challenge of climate change. The needs of the poor and vulnerable, including women and children, will be mainstreamed in all activities under the Action Plan. In the first five year period (2009-13), the programme will comprise six pillars: Food security, social protection and health: Climate change is likely to impact most severely on the poorest and most vulnerable in society. Every effort will made to ensure that they are protected and that all programmes focus on the needs of this group for food security, safe housing, employment and access to basic services, including health. Under this pillar we will: o Increase the resilience of vulnerable groups, including women and children, through development of community-level adaptation, livelihood diversification, better access to basic services and social protection (e.g., safety nets, insurance) and scaling up. o Develop climate change resilient cropping systems (e.g., agricultural research to develop crop varieties, which are tolerant of flooding, drought and salinity, and based on indigenous and other varieties suited to the needs of resource poor farmers), fisheries and livestock systems to ensure local and national food security.

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Comprehensive Disaster Management: Comprehensive Disaster Management systems will be further strengthened to deal with the increasingly frequent and severe natural catastrophes as a result of climate change. We will build on and extend our proven experience in this area. Under this pillar we will: o Strengthen the government's capacity and that of civil society partners and communities to manage natural disasters, and ensure that appropriate policies, laws and regulations are in place. o Strengthen community-based adaptation programmes and establish them in each of the disaster prone parts of the country. o Strengthen our cyclone, storm surge and flood early warning systems to enable more accurate short, medium and long-term forecasts. Infrastructure: It is imperative that existing infrastructure (e.g., coastal and river embankments) is well-maintained and fit for purpose and that urgently needed infrastructure (e.g., cyclone shelters, urban drainage) is put in place to deal with the likely short and medium-term impacts of climate change. Under this pillar we will: o Repair and rehabilitate existing infrastructure (e.g., coastal embankments, river embankments and drainage systems, urban drainage systems) and ensure effective operation and maintenance systems o Plan, design and construct urgently needed new infrastructure (e.g., cyclone shelters, coastal and river embankments and water management systems; urban drainage systems, river erosion control works, flood shelters) to meet the changing conditions expected with climate change Research and knowledge management: Research will be undertaken to estimate the likely scale and timing of climate change impacts on different sectors of the economy, to inform planning of future investment strategies. We will also ensure that Bangladesh is effectively linked to regional and national knowledge networks, so that Bangladeshi organizations and the

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general public are aware of the latest research, lessons and technologies available in other countries. Under this pillar we will: o Model climate change scenarios for Bangladesh by applying global climate change models and Methodologies at regional and national levels. o Model the likely hydrological impacts of climate change on the GangesBrahmaputra-Meghna system to assess likely future system discharges and river levels in order to derive design criteria for flood protection embankments. o Monitor and research the impacts of climate change on ecosystems and biodiversity Mitigation and low carbon development: Even though Bangladesh's contribution to the generation of greenhouse gases is very low, we wish to play our part in reducing emissions now and in the future. Under this pillar we will: o Develop a strategic energy plan and investment portfolio to ensure national energy security and lower greenhouse gas emissions. o Expand the social forestry programme on government and community lands throughout the country. o Expand the 'greenbelt' coastal a forestation programme with mangrove planting along the shoreline. Capacity building and institutional strengthening: To meet the challenge of climate change, the capacity of government ministries and agencies, civil society and the private sector will be strengthened. Under this pillar, we will: o Review and revise, where appropriate, all government policies (sector by sector) to ensure that they take full account of climate change and its impacts. o Mainstream climate change in national, sectoral and spatial development planning (in government ministries and agencies, local government, the private sector, civil society and communities) and ensure that impacts on vulnerable groups and women are prioritized in plans. 13

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4.3 Recommendations:
We can stop climate change by doing some simple work every day. The ways to stop climate change are given below: Change a light: Replacing a regular light bulb with a compact fluorescent one saves 150 pounds of carbon dioxide each year. Recycle more and buy recycled: Save up to 2,400 pounds of carbon dioxide each year just by recycling half of our household waste. By recycling and buying products with recycled content we also save energy, resources and landfill space! Check car tires: Properly inflated tires mean good gas mileage. For each gallon of gas saved, 20 pounds of carbon dioxide are also never produced. Use less hot water: It takes a lot of energy to heat water. Reducing the amount used means big savings in not only our energy bills, but also in carbon dioxide emissions. Using cold water for our wash saves 500 pounds of carbon dioxide a year, and using a low flow showerhead reduces 350 pounds of carbon dioxide. Avoid products with a lot of packaging: Preventing waste from being created in the first place means that there is less energy wasted and fewer resources consumed. When we purchase products with the least amount of packaging, not only do we save money, but we also help the environment! Reducing your garbage by 10% reduces carbon dioxide emissions by 1,200 pounds. Plant a tree: A single tree can absorb one ton of carbon dioxide over its lifetime. So we should pant more trees besides road, near our house. If we cut a tree then we should plant at least 2 trees. Turn off electronic devices when not in use: Simply turning off our TV, VCR, computer and other electronic devices can save each household thousands of pounds of carbon dioxide each year. 14

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5.0 Conclusion
The issue of climate change draws attention to the power of human activity to transform the planet in its entirety, and it is brought into sharp focus by the coastal areas like Bangladesh. The issue of rising sea level and other potential impacts of changing global climate also point to the transformations in the physical world that occur even without human influence. Oceanic islands provide a particularly cogent reminder that the living things with which we share our world, the patterns of the weather, and even the earth beneath our feet, shift and change of their own accord. Faced with a world in which there is instability and movement all around, and deep beneath our feet, we might easily lose our bearings completely. Life, weather and geological processes are all dynamic forces that play a part in the forming of islands, and continue to contribute to their ongoing transformation. Similar dynamics are also at work on larger land masses, but because oceanic islands are encircled by sea and often far from o her lands, they are especially useful for drawing out the different forces and elements that work together, or sometimes against each other, in the making of the world.

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References
1. Anwar Ali (1999) Climate change impacts and adaptation assessment in Bangladesh Vol. 12: 109116 2. James S. Pender (2008) What is climate change? And how it will effect Bangladesh 3. www.climatefrontlines.org/ 4. http://teacher.buet.ac.bd/ 5. http://en.wikipedia.org/ 6. http://www.nfpcsp.org/ 7. http://www.grida.no/ 8. http://www.sdnbd.org/ 9. http://www.pedz.uni-mannheim.de/ 10. http://www.bdresearch.org.bd/ 11. https://www.nies.go.jp/ 12. www.krishok.org

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