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Environmental Degradation, Neoliberal Development, and Deforestation in the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh: A Critical Analysis in the Context of Ongoing Climate Crisis
Version 1
: Received: 3 September 2024 / Approved: 4 September 2024 / Online: 4 September 2024 (08:37:14 CEST)
How to cite:
Nadiruzzaman, M.; Shewly, H. J.; Rashid, B.; Dutta, O.; Mukul, S. A. Environmental Degradation, Neoliberal Development, and Deforestation in the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh: A Critical Analysis in the Context of Ongoing Climate Crisis. Preprints2024, 2024090334. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.0334.v1
Nadiruzzaman, M.; Shewly, H. J.; Rashid, B.; Dutta, O.; Mukul, S. A. Environmental Degradation, Neoliberal Development, and Deforestation in the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh: A Critical Analysis in the Context of Ongoing Climate Crisis. Preprints 2024, 2024090334. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.0334.v1
Nadiruzzaman, M.; Shewly, H. J.; Rashid, B.; Dutta, O.; Mukul, S. A. Environmental Degradation, Neoliberal Development, and Deforestation in the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh: A Critical Analysis in the Context of Ongoing Climate Crisis. Preprints2024, 2024090334. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.0334.v1
APA Style
Nadiruzzaman, M., Shewly, H. J., Rashid, B., Dutta, O., & Mukul, S. A. (2024). Environmental Degradation, Neoliberal Development, and Deforestation in the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh: A Critical Analysis in the Context of Ongoing Climate Crisis. Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.0334.v1
Chicago/Turabian Style
Nadiruzzaman, M., Orchisman Dutta and Sharif A. Mukul. 2024 "Environmental Degradation, Neoliberal Development, and Deforestation in the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh: A Critical Analysis in the Context of Ongoing Climate Crisis" Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.0334.v1
Abstract
Though Bangladesh is often labelled as "climate change ground zero," the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) were never considered a significant climate change hotspot until heavy rainfall and consequent landslides in 2017. This shift in problem narrative seemingly overlooks myriad environmentally unsustainable 'development' initiatives along with (il)legal deforestation. This paper examines climate change trends and impacts on the lives and livelihoods of diverse local groups in CHT. By analysing changing patterns in meteorological data and qualitative information on changes and challenges in everyday life and the livelihoods of local people, we show a shortfall of captured climate data on CHT to make a strong case for climate change. Yet, this study finds that this region is exposed to a substantial threat of land degradation, flash floods, water scarcity, landslides, and other slow and quick onsets due to a combined effect of deforestation, neoliberalised development, and slight changes in temperature and precipitation patterns. This paper calls for proactive measures to address climate change impacts by endorsing sustainable development strategies prioritizing environmental stewardship, social justice, and economic prosperity.
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
