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Kasia
(2013-09-27 2:27 AM)
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Climate Change: A great risk for BangladeshThursday, 28 April, 2011By Fazlous SatterExecutive DirectorCentre for Human Rights, Development Human Security (CHRDHS)Climate change poses sicnfiigant risks for Bangladesh, yet the core elements of its vulnerability are primarily contextual. Between 30-70% of the country is normally flooded each year. The huge sediment loads brought by three Himalayan rivers, coupled with a negligible flow gradient add to drainage congestion problems and exacerbate the extent of flooding. The societal exposure to such risks is further enhanced by Bangladesh’s very high population and population density. Many projected climate change impacts including sea level rise, higher temperatures (mean temperature increases of 1.4b0C and 2.4b0C are projected by 2050 and 2100 respectively), evapo-transpiration losses, enhanced monsoon precipitation and run-off, potentially reduced dry season precipitation, and increase in cyclone intensity would in fact reinforce many of these baseline stresses that already pose a serious impediment to the economic development of Bangladesh. A subjective ranking of key climate change impacts and vulnerabilities for Bangladesh identifies water and coastal resources as being of the highest priority in terms of certainty, urgency, and severity of impact, as well as the importance of the resources being affected. (Agrawala. Shardul, Ota. Tomoko, Ahmed. Ahsan Uddin, Smith. Joel, Aalst. Maarten Van).With rise in temperature, sea level will rise because of thermal expansion and ice melt. Sea level rise has various impacts on Bangladesh a coastal country facing 710 km long coast to the Bay of Bengal. It already has affected Bangladesh by land erosion, salinity intrusion and loss in biodiversity. Its potential threats are coming even strongly in the future. Sea level rise will cause river bank erosion, salinity intrusion, flood, damage to infrastructures, crop failure, fisheries destruction, loss of biodiversity, etc. along this coast. A one-meter sea level rise (SLR) will affect the country’s vast coastal area and flood plain zone. It will affect Millennium Development goals, causing environmental refugees. Most vulnerable sectors to one metre sea level rise are coastal resources, water resources, agriculture and the ecosystem of Bangladesh . . .For more of this excellent analysis, please check out the complete text under Posts
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