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Climate Change and Its Impacts on the Livelihoods of the Vulnerable People in the Southwestern Coastal Zone in Bangladesh

Md. Afjal Hossain
Daffodil International University, 102, Shukrabad, Mirpur Road, Dhaka, Bangladesh

Md. Imran Reza
382/1 North Kazipara, Mirpur, Kafrul, Dhaka, 1216, Bangladesh

Sania Rahman
382/1 North Kazipara, Mirpur, Kafrul, Dhaka, 1216, Bangladesh

Imrul Kayes
382/1 North Kazipara, Mirpur, Kafrul, Dhaka, 1216, Bangladesh

Abstract/ Executive Summary:

Bangladesh is globally considered one of the most vulnerable and exposed countries to climate change (Climate change and Bangladesh Department of Environment, Government of People’s Republic of Bangladesh. Climate Change Cell, Dhaka, 2007). There is evidence of prominent increases in the intensity or frequency of many extreme events such as flood, land erosion, heat waves, tropical cyclones, intense rainfall, tornadoes, drought, storm surges, salinity intrusion, etc. which cause loss of livestock, damage to pasturelands, increase fodder scarcity, destroyed shelters, decreased production, increased management costs to the incidence of diseases, etc. in Bangladesh. This paper, therefore, intends to do three things: (1) it shall identify the extreme climatic hazards, vulnerabilities and risks; (2) it shall find out the impacts of climatic hazards on the livelihood of the vulnerable people; and (3) it shall propose some possible strategies for reducing the vulnerability to the climatic hazards. The present paper is intended as a concept paper to deal with the impact level assessment on livelihoods due to climate change. The method has followed both qualitative and quantitative approaches in the southwestern coastal zone in Bangladesh and used secondary data and information. The livelihood and income of a large population depend on the natural resource base and most of the poor people often live in marginalized lands and areas more prone to natural disasters. Climate change means that many natural disaster-prone areas will become more prone due to increased frequency and intensity of disasters. Drought-prone areas will become hotter and drier, with less predictable rainfall; flood frequency and intensity along onset and recession will be changed in the future; the nature of cyclone and storm surges will be different from the historical trend. All of these together will change crop yields and affect many poor people’s livelihoods. Agriculture yields have been decreased and the cropping pattern has been changed in recent years. Adverse impacts of climate change are likely to reduce availability and deteriorate the quality of water for domestic use. Moreover, climate change is likely to increase the prevalence and infection of vector- and water-borne diseases such as malaria and dengue fever, cholera and dysentery, etc. The degradation of biodiversity will reduce the availability of many traditional medicines which may affect poor and rural people who depend more on natural resources for medicine as well as income and food. Sea level rise (SLR) will drastically affect the poor people who are in the coastal areas and flood plain zone in Bangladesh. However, many actions undertaken to address the baseline or contextual risks in Bangladesh are also synergistic with the so-called adaptations that might be required as climate change impacts manifest themselves.

Keywords: Climate change, Livelihood, Vulnerability

Location: Climate change and Bangladesh Department of Environment, Government of People’ Republic of Bangladesh

Start Date: 00-01-2007

End Date: 00-12-2007

Program Area: Risk Management in Agriculture

Non-commodity: Climate change

Objectives:

(1) it shall identify the extreme climatic hazards, vulnerabilities and risks; (2) it shall find out the impacts of climatic hazards on the livelihood of the vulnerable people; and (3) it shall propose some possible strategies for reducing vulnerability to the climatic hazards.

Methodology:

Bangladesh is one of the poorest countries in the world and is a member of the least developed countries group. It has a population of 139.2 million (UNDP 2006), making it one of the most densely populated countries, and the present population growth rate is 1.7% in 2004. Though the growth rate has decreased significantly, the high base population makes the need for development efforts that much more challenging. Climate change comes as an additional and huge burden on an already stressed economy and ecosystem. Bangladesh’s geological and spatial location makes its highly populous and extended coastal lands and islands extremely flat, dynamic and vulnerable. The general characteristics of the seasons are as follows: • Winter is relatively cooler and drier, with the average temperature ranging from a minimum of 7.2–12.8ºC to a maximum of 23.9–31.1ºC. The minimum occasionally falls below 5⁰C in the north, although frost is extremely rare. • Pre-monsoon is hot with an average maximum of 36.7ºC, predominantly in the west for up to 10 days, very high rate of evaporation, and erratic but occasional heavy rainfall from March to June. In some places, the temperature occasionally rises up to 40.6ºC or more. • Monsoon is both hot and humid, brings heavy torrential rainfall throughout the season. About four-fifths of the mean annual rainfall occurs during the monsoon. The mean monsoon temperatures are higher in the western districts compared to those for the eastern districts. • Post-monsoon is a short-living season characterized by withdrawal of rainfall and gradual lowering of night-time minimum temperature. The SAARC Meteorological Research Council (SMRC) carried out a study on the recent relative sea-level rise on the Bangladesh coast. It is predicted that around 10% of the Bangladesh area will be inundated by 45 cm and over 21% of the country areas confined on the coast of Bangladesh will be inundated by 1 m sea-level rise (IPCC 2001). One of the predictions of climate change is the intensification of extreme weather events such as cyclones and associated storm surges. The Bangladesh coast is vulnerable to recurrent cyclones. The increase in the intensity of wind velocity is expected to incur greater losses to vulnerable communities and ecosystems. The Bay of Bengal is an ideal breeding ground for tropical cyclones and depressions. The low-lying coastal zone in Bangladesh is located between the extensive drainage network of the Ganges–the Brahmaputra–Meghna river system on one side and tidal and cyclonic activity from the Bay of Bengal on the other. The coastal embankments paradoxically also tend to block efficient drainage of freshwater on the other (land) side at times of excess rainfall and riparian flooding. From the above findings, the impacts of climate change and variability on biophysical systems and consequences are evident.

Source of Information: Climate Change and the Sustainable Use of Water Resources (pp.297-303), January 2012

Article Link (Online Journal): DOI: 10.1007/978-3-642-22266-5_15,

Funding Source:

Budget:

Total Budget (Tk.) :

Achievement/Findings:

The livelihood and income of a large population depend on the natural resource base and most of the poor people often live in marginalized lands and areas more prone to natural disasters. Climate change means that many natural disaster-prone areas will become more prone due to increased frequency and intensity of disasters. Drought-prone areas will become hotter and drier, with less predictable rainfall; flood frequency and intensity along onset and recession will be changed in the future; the nature of cyclone and storm surges will be different from the historical trend. All of these together will change crop yields and affect many poor people’s livelihoods. For example, the 2007 floods inundated 32,000 km2 in area, destroying over 85,000 houses and destroying or partially damaging approximately 1.2 million acres of crops. The total estimated loss was over US$1 billion. It is likely that natural disasters will damage more houses and will cause temporary migration. It may also require children to help more with household tasks, leaving less time for schooling. Malnourishment and diseases also impair learning. Extreme climate change-related disasters threaten school buildings and educational materials. For example, cyclone Sidr caused huge damage to school buildings and wiped out teaching materials. Adverse impacts of climate change are likely to reduce availability and deteriorate quality of water for domestic use. Direct climate change effects include increases in mortality and illness associated with heatwaves, particularly among the elderly and the urban poor. Women and children are particularly vulnerable to extreme weather events. For example, when the 1991 cyclone hit Bangladesh, 90% of victims were women and children. From the above findings, the impacts of climate change and variability on biophysical systems and consequences are evident. It is also found that the coastal zone, northwestern zone, central region and piedmont plain are most susceptible to existing climate variability and anticipated future climate change. A summary of causes of impacts, vulnerable areas and impacted sectors are given. The intensity of impacts on different sectors due to changes of vulnerability context is given

Knowledge Management: Journal