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Fish, rice, mangroves and lush delta wetlands where the giant Ganges, Brahmaputra and Megna rivers flow into the Bay of Bengal.
It’s not a luxury. But for farmers and fishermen who live on the edge of the world’s largest mangrove forest, there is more than enough. Now, the environment is at risk.
Coal will start burning at a power plant near the Sundarbans this year as part of Bangladesh’s plan to meet its energy needs and raise living standards, officials said. With a population of 168 million, Bangladesh is one of the most densely populated countries in the world. Once the power plant starts operating at full capacity, it will generate 1,320 megawatts of electricity, equivalent to what Bangladesh’s largest coal-fired power plant currently produces.
Developing countries need better lives for their people. But economic growth powered by fossil fuels creates environmental problems and makes life worse.
The Maitree Super Thermal Power Project, commonly known as the Rampal coal-fired power plant, will burn about 4.7 million tons of coal annually, emitting about 15 million tons of carbon dioxide and other planet-warming gases. In addition, around 12,000 tonnes of coal will be shipped through the Sundarbans every day, raising concerns about water pollution.
Low-lying Bangladesh has been hit by tropical cyclones and rising sea levels, with millions at risk of being displaced by floods and other extreme weather. Just two weeks ago, Cyclone Citron killed 24 people, exiled 20,000, lost 10,000 homes and destroyed 15,000 acres of crops.
“If the outcome is not good, we will have to sell our properties and relocate,” said farmer Luftar Rahman.
New fossil fuel projects are impossible if the world is to limit warming to the 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) temperature target set in the Paris Agreement, top scientists say. Although it has one of the lowest emissions in the world, Bangladesh has pledged to reduce its total emissions by 22% by 2030. The construction of the coal-fired power plant could hamper the country’s efforts to reduce emissions.
But in October, about 80 percent of the country was without power for seven hours as the country’s power grid collapsed. Such blackouts and prolonged blackouts, sometimes as long as 10 hours a day, affect businesses including the apparel industry, which accounts for 80 percent of exports. Bangladesh is the world’s second largest apparel exporter after China.
“We are desperately waiting to start generating electricity at Rampal. This plant will definitely help ease our energy woes,” said Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury, energy adviser to the Bangladeshi prime minister.
Bangladesh wants poor countries to get funding to help adapt to the devastating effects of a warming world. Until May this year, Bangladesh chaired the Climate Vulnerability Forum, a partnership of countries most vulnerable to climate change. With much of the land at or just below sea level, the country has already suffered severe flooding and erratic rainfall. A World Bank report estimates that Bangladesh could lose $570 million a year from climate change-related extreme weather events.
Bangladesh shut down diesel power plants in June due to rising fuel prices. Bangladesh has two active coal-fired power plants, and some experts say another is not needed.
“We need to invest in transmission and distribution systems. At the moment, it will be more beneficial for the country,” said Khondaker Golam Moazzem of the Centre for Policy Dialogue, an economic think tank based in Dhaka.
The country also has cleaner resources at home.
“Bangladesh has huge gas potential. Compared to coal, onshore and offshore exploration and production of natural gas resources may be a better option,” said Dhaka economist and environmental activist Anu Mohammad.
Renewable energy already powers millions of Bangladeshi households.
“Bangladesh actually has one of the fastest growing residential solar systems,” said Sally Mulhook, director of the Dhaka-based International Centre for Climate Change and Development. “Another option is offshore wind power. With the latest technology available, it is conceivable that wind power generated in the Bay of Bengal could meet the needs of not only Bangladesh but also neighbouring regions of India and Myanmar.”
The Rampal mine will be funded by the governments of Bangladesh and India. Officials said the Sundarbans were chosen because of the availability of water and navigation facilities. Coal for the power plant will also come from India.
Sundarbans, Bengali for “beautiful forest”, have evolved over thousands of years from the vast rivers of the Indian subcontinent. The Ganges, Brahmaputra and Megna rivers dumped rich sediments that were collected thousands of miles from the Himalayas to the Indian Ocean.
“Mangroves are a natural shield against the ill effects of climate change, and if they are affected, so will the 10 million people living in this coastal delta,” said Mohammed, a Dhaka economist and environmental activist. “Power generation has Lots of alternatives. But there’s no other option than the Sundarbans.”
Mangroves are more efficient than terrestrial forests at absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
“In my grandfather’s time, all the rice we needed was harvested from our land. There was enough rice and fish for everyone,” said Abul Kalam, 60, who has lived in the Sundarbans all his life. “If this power plant comes up, there will be no fish in our area. How can we grow crops when they are dumping toxic waste water here?”
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