Biodiversity and Challenges

 Biodiversity and the major challenges: Perspective

Bangladesh

Bangladesh, which is situated on the largest deltaic plain in the world, is a land of biodiversity. The

country consists of floodplains and a small part of the hilly area with a sub-tropical monsoon climate.

eighty percent of the land is low lying formed by river alluvium from the Ganges and the Brahmaputra

and their tributaries. the unique geophysical position and appropriate climatic conditions have adorned

the land with a rich variety of biodiversity. In a broader aspect, it contains five ecosystems. these are

coastal and marine ecosystems, inland freshwater ecosystems, terrestrial forest ecosystems,

hilly ecosystems, and man-made homestead ecosystems. .the forests of the country are of three

different types distinct from one another hill forests, plain land forests, and mangrove forest

. The world's largest continuous mangrove forest the Sunderbans is in the southwestern part of the

country, a large tract of evergreen and semi-evergreen hill forest is in the eastern part while

many wetlands are defined as hair, the container of aquatic plants, migratory birds, and freshwater

fishes are there in the northeastern part. The Bay of Bengal is situated in the south forming the

coastal belt of the land. the longest sea beach and huge ocean resources have referred to its high

potential for developing the blue economy. This geographical arrangement has endowed the

country rich with flora and fauna. Bangladesh is home to a large variety of mammal species,

birds, reptiles, amphibians as well as freshwater fish, shrimps, and crabs. The land is well

known for agro biodiversity with enormous crop varieties. It is also a base for insects, butterflies,

choral, mollusks, shells, and algae. Bangladesh is renowned for its biodiversity for ages.

Due to rapid urbanization, the biodiversity and ecosystem of the country are experiencing huge

damage. During the last decade, it took a different shape which is similar in many other regions

of the world. The increase in population, globalization, industrialization,construction of infrastructures

are considered as the major causes for this loss this loss got momentum over the last couple of

decades due to Climate change which is a key factor in this arena as well. A great number of

plant and wildlife species are gone extinct from the land and a substantial number of remaining

plants, mammals,birds and reptiles are on the verge of extinction. Consequently, Biodiversity

conservation initiatives are to be taken immediately. The country has signed many regional and

international treaties and agreements and is committed to conserving the remaining biodiversity. It

has adopted several conservation measures to preserve the rich biological heritage. We have

declarations of protected areas, ecologically critical areas, world heritage sites, and Ramsar sites

against different areas noted for their biodiversities. Presently we have thirty-eight protected

areas which include seventeen national parks and twenty-one wildlife sanctuaries.

Considering the challenges as a threat to biodiversity. there are several socio

economic, biophysical, and organizational factors.

Firstly Bangladesh is a small country with a huge population and densely populated

locations. Extreme poverty and a high unemployment rate are common phenomena here. Most of

the people live in rural areas and depend on natural resources to earn their livelihood

Natural forests are their main source of fuel consumption. It causes deforestation and exploitation of

forests, plants, and animal products.

Secondly Bangladesh is a climate vulnerable country.It falls into the few countries considered as

victims to climate change and associated see level rise.it has been identified that a major part

of the country has a possibility of getting inundated if the water level rises only by fifty cm.For

the last three decades we have experienced extreme hot weather, high rise in temperature and

tremendous natural calamities such as cyclones, river erosion, hailstorm and flood .this climate

driven calamities are a great threat against living animals and the ecosystem.

Thirdly, Biodiversity conservation and intact ecosystem are closely linked with each other. due to

globalization and rapid urbanization our land use pattern, cropping pattern are changing.

Introduction of high yielding variety ,usage of agricultural land for housing and road construction,

embankments and other man made factors are having immense impact to wild habitats.

Fourthly Illegal poaching ,logging are much frequent in our country.in the international market

there is a high demand for skin, bone, flesh, teeth and other organs of wild animals having

aesthetic and medical properties. People of our country in association with those illegal traders

get involved in these sort of illegal activities and are responsible for the depletion of biodiversity.

Fifthly Environmental pollution and degradation are posing threat to aquatic biodiversity.

unplanned construction of industries and solid or chemical waste management are causing

pollution to soil and water. The aquatic ecosystem is jeopardized thereby. In addition, toxic

agrochemicals and industrial effluents are depleting aquatic or marine biodiversity.

sixthly, limitation in legal and policy framework is considered a major barrier to the conservation

of biodiversity. there is a lack of adequate institutional and administrative frameworks and

suitable policies. weak implementation and poor monitoring remain an impediment here. lack of

coordination among different govt agencies, weak national information system, and absence of

proper knowledge on ecosystem structure and function are considered as a foremost limitations

from our side.

lastly, there is a lack of political commitment and willingness which is a major problem in

preserving biodiversity. It has been noticed mostly that politically influential and elite persons are

involved in industrialization and other big constructions .they are engaged in river

encroachment and other illegal and harmful interventions.

above all public awareness is a great factor in the conservation of the biodiversity of the country.

The absence of biodiversity-related information and knowledge and the low capacity for biodiversity

management are very important drawbacks on our side.

Bangladesh is a very vulnerable country to climate-induced calamities. Awareness among

people should be boosted up. Formulation of the legal framework, proper implementation of existing

laws, and strong monitoring are required. Coordination among different agencies and commitment

from political parties are other major requirements. It is to be noted that ours is a land of

untapped potential. If properly explored and utilized those would bring our economic affluence.

besides preserving our biodiversity and ecosystem sustainable development would be

ensured. Bangladesh which is renowned for its biodiversity from ancient days will regain its

decreasing beauty. from the political groups to the marginal people, a concerted approach will be

able to achieve this.

Aarya Ibteda Foyez

Section:M11

ENG-101

ID NO:22201509

G suite:aarya.ibteda.foyez@g.bracu.ac.bd