Sunderbans climate change is flashpoint
The Sunderbans, spreading across West Bengal and Bangladesh, is fast emerging as the climate change flashpoint of the globe. Despite the warning signals of increased frequency of cyclones and tidal floods, the West Bengal government has drawn up a massive project to expand the Haldia port which will directly impact the western Sunderbans region.
Environmentalists already complain against increasing oil spillage from vessels in and around the Mongia Port that are adversely affecting its biodiversity.
Environmentalist Bittu Sahgal warns against the effects of oil spill on the growth and survival of the two species of trees (gewa and sundari) found in the Sunderbans.
“Unless the state government, along with the Bangladesh government, takes decisive action, we are going to witness a bigger migration of climate refugees than what took place before the 1971 war,” Mr Sahgal said and warned that already entire communities are being forced to relocate to other districts.
Mr Sahgal, editor of Sanctuary magazine, had earlier been a member of the ministry of environment and forests’ committee looking into infrastructure projects coming up in this area.
“We had shot down a proposal to start an international steamer channel by the Inland Waters Authorities which would have cut across the Sunderbans tiger reserve. We warned the MoEF (ministry of environment and forests) that granting permission would result in toxic oil spills, noise pollution and the need for regular dredging to maintain the requisite depth of the water channel,” said Mr Sahgal.
The government is reported to be keen to restart this project as it will shorten the distance between India and Bangladesh.
“Sunderbans has become a posterboy of the ill-effects of climate change,” said Chandra Bhushan, deputy director, CSE, who in a recent report had highlighted that the sea level in the area had almost doubled to 10 mm in the last decade while the sea surface temperature (SST) had risen at 0.5 degrees Celsius per decade. Rising salinity has adversely affected agriculture. This Unesco world heritage site is the largest single block of tidal mangrove forests in the world, covering 10,000 sq. km, of which 4,000 sq. km are in West Bengal while the rest is in Bangladesh.
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