Bangladesh Solutions

https://c1.staticflickr.com/5/4437/36550223785_be3d29f6cf_b.jpgBangladesh Solution Summary

We sectioned our solutions for climate adaptation into three distinct categories of solutions: Emergency Response, Long-term Preparation, and Prevention. Emergency Response solutions detail short-term plans for coastal communities in the case of sudden disaster. Long-term Preparation solutions detail plans for consistent preparedness, gradually raising resistance to climate risks over the course of the coming century. Prevention solutions address direct mitigation of climate change, to detract from the severity of future climate risks.

Bangladesh will be seriously affected by all three global threats of climate change–extreme weather, sea level rise, and rising temperatures–and the solutions proposed by our plan attempt to address all of these issues. However, because of its unique location on the Bay of Bengal, Bangladesh is heavily affected by annual monsoons and biannual cyclone seasons, and these climate threats are already affecting the people within the country. These issues are already threatening the densely-populated, low-income community of the coastal region of the country, and as such, solutions that solve issues related to cyclones and monsoon flooding have a higher priority in our plan.

Another feature necessary to consider when implementing solutions in Bangladesh are the impacts of each solution on the existing social, cultural, technological, and environmental issues. We propose using community-based adaptation, which involves empowering communities by educating community members and finding connections with existing practices, as a link between our specific solutions and Bangladesh’s complex socio-economic landscape. Previous interventions by outsiders have had unintentional consequences that negatively affected the community and the environment. Therefore, any solutions need to be reviewed on a community level before any implementation begins. Solutions that are most able to involve indigenous and existing practices and the current cultural climate will ultimately have the least negative impact on the community, and are thus considered a higher priority solution.

Other factors considered when prioritizing solutions were relative cost, potential positive impacts on the community, and what sector of Bangladesh the solution is most able to assist. Before creating this plan, we completed a risk assessment of climate change on Bangladesh, and chose four vulnerable areas that would be affected by climate change most dramatically: emergency response, disaster mitigation, agriculture, and public health. In order to ensure that this plan would address all of these issues, each of which are incredibly important to the well-being of the country, we selected the solutions from each affected area that we thought would have the largest positive impacts, based on the requirements stated above. In an ideal world, all of the solutions listed in our plan would be implemented within the next decade, but we acknowledge the physical and financial infeasibilities of this task. Below is an (unranked) list of the solutions that we consider high priority for implementation in Bangladesh:

  • Cyclone SheltersClimate change is causing cyclones to decrease in frequency but increase in intensity. Cyclone shelters are a necessary step to protect the people of Bangladesh in disaster situations.
  • Emergency Alert SystemIf those who live in rural areas are unaware of a coming cyclone or storm until it starts to hit, they may not have time to get to safety. Alert systems will allow them advance notice to prepare.
  • Paved Roads and Waterway TransportationEvacuations and movement of emergency supplies would be made easier with a well-maintained transportation system.
  • Adapting PoldersImproving the existing polder system would lower flooding risks for 8 million Bangladeshi people.
  • Manmade PondsManmade ponds act as water catchment systems during floods, and excavated soil can be used to raise land for buildings.
  • Protecting and Expanding Existing MangrovesMangrove forests act as a natural barrier protecting the coastal regions against storm surge, sea level rise, and coastal erosion.
  • IrrigationEfficient irrigation strategies reduce the strain on the water table and increase crop yield overall.
  • Sustainable Land ManagementSustainable farming practices are necessary to keeping Bangladesh’s land fertile, nutrient rich, and agriculturally productive.
  • Urine Diverting Dry ToiletsThese toilets are designed to improve sanitation and limit the risk of water contamination and waterborne diseases during flooding events.

 


Emergency Response

Climate change will lead to an increase in weather-related disasters. Therefore, it is important that communities properly prepare for immediate response during emergencies in order to reduce the associated climate risks. Solutions related to emergency response increase awareness of the risks associated with flooding, extreme weather, and high temperatures and create procedures for how to act during an emergency that are well known by the community.

Long-term Preparation

The threats associated with climate change are beginning to put numerous sectors of coastal communities, such as infrastructure, agriculture, and transportation, in danger. If current trends continue, these problems will only get worse over the coming decades. Long-term preparation solutions focus on reducing the vulnerabilities of these sectors.

Prevention

The solutions for Bangladesh are not primarily aimed at mitigating climate change itself, even though some Bangladesh solutions can also help mitigate climate change. Unlike Cambridge, Bangladesh is already being severely affected by threats such as periodic floods and cyclones. Since more livelihoods are immediately endangered by climate-related threats in Bangladesh than in Cambridge, addressing adaptations to climate change is a more urgent concern than mitigating climate change in Bangladesh. Therefore, in our limited research time, we decided to prioritize adaptive over preventative solutions to tackle the impacts of climate change. 

 


Affected Areas

The entirety of Bangladesh will be affected by climate change, but some sectors will have more drastic consequences than others. Based on vulnerability to the threats of climate change and importance to the lives and well-being of the people of Bangladesh, we have identified four core areas that necessitate immediate action in terms of preparing the country for climate change.

  Agriculture Disaster Mitigation Emergency Response Public Health