Global Warming & Bangladesh [BP 10]

Courtesy of Bangladesh High Commission

(1) Bangladesh is experiencing one consequence of global warming: sea level rise. According to a New York Times article, Borrowed Time on Disappearing Land, a very poor woman lost her home to rising waters and more intense storms, which have been predicted for years by climate scientists.Bangladesh is situated near India, on the Bay of Bengal.

(2) These issue related to global warming are affecting the economically poor people of Bangladesh, who lack the resources and money to counter the consequences of sea level rise to their coastal villages.

(3) According to the Bangladesh High Commission, the country

as a vacation land has many facets. Her tourist attractions include archaeological sites, historic mosques and monuments, resorts, beaches, picnic spots, forest and wildlife. Bangladesh offers opportunities for angling, water-skiing, river cruising, hiking, rowing, surfing, yachting and sea bathing as well as bringing one in close touch with Mother Nature.  She is also rich in wildlife and game birds.

(4) According to the Gardner Harris, the author of the article, the reason why Bangladesh is experiencing sea level rise is because

"widespread burning of fossil fuels is releasing heat-trapping gases that are warming the planet. While this will produce a host of effects, the most worrisome may be the melting of much of the earth’s ice, which is likely to raise sea levels and flood coastal regions."

 (5) Bangladeshis have started to leave the coastal areas being affected by sea level rise. According to a climate scientist quoted in the article, "rising sea levels will inundate some 17 percent of the land and displace about 18 million people."

(6)  The issues related to global warming and its consequences are significant in this situation because it's an issue of fairness and justice. Bangladeshis have contributed little of the CO2 that has caused the Earth's climate to warm; however, their lives, their land, and their customs are being negatively affected by the warming, caused most entirely by rich countries like the United States, China, and Europe. What Bangladeshis can expect? "rising seas are increasingly intruding into rivers, turning fresh water brackish. Even routine flooding then leaves behind salt deposits that can render land barren," meaning the citizens won't have fresh, clean drinking water nor will they have land on which to grow their own food.

(7) The solutions to this issue will not be easy. One solution is for all the rich countries who have contributed to global warming to kick-in hundred billions of dollars into a fund that will allow people like Bangladeshis to fund solutions to sea level rise. Another solution is to allow those affected by global warming to immigrate to countries like the U.S., U.K., and other European countries. These solutions, as I said, won't be easy because it deals with a lot of money to implement. Climate change, however, is real and so are its consequence. If we do nothing, the problems will get worse.