seminar report -...

SEMINAR REPORT

on

Identification and Assessment of Potential Accreted

Char Land for Plantation in Coastal Areas

25 June 2015

Korobi Conference Hall, Ban Bhaban, Agargaon, Dhaka

Climate Resilient Participatory Afforestation and Reforestation Project

Bangladesh Forest Department

Seminar on Identification and Assessment of Potential Accreted Char Land for Plantation in

Coastal Areas

i

Table of Content

1. Introduction .................................................................................................................. 1

2. Objectives of the Seminar ........................................................................................... 3

3. Key Note Presentation ................................................................................................. 4

4. Open Discussions ...................................................................................................... 10

5. Address by the Chief Guest ...................................................................................... 13

6. Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 15

Appendix-1: Slides of the presentation ........................................................................... 17

Appendix-2: Seminar date and schedule ........................................................................ 35

Appendix-3: List of participants ....................................................................................... 37

List of Tables

Table 1: Forest Types of Bangladesh ................................................................................ 5

Table 2: Potential Area (in ha) for Coastal Afforestation in Forty Identified Char Lands

………..8

Table 2: Potential Area (in ha) for Coastal Afforestation in Seventy Five Unidentified

Char Lands …8

List of Figures

Figure-1: Nature and Cause of Delta Shifting and Land Accretion......................................... 7


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List of Photographs

Photo 1: Mr. Md. Yunus Ali, Chief Conservator of Forests, Chair of the Seminar

Photo 2: Key note speaker of the seminar Engr. Waji Ullah, ED, CEGIS


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Photo 3: A typical coastal char land with mangrove afforestation


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1. Introduction

Honorable Prime Minister while visiting the Ministry of Environment & Forests (MOEF) on

May 15, 2014 asked for the preparation of a master plan for the identification and

assessment of newly accreted char lands through afforestation in the country’s coastal

areas. Accordingly a Seminar was organized on 25 June 2015 by Bangladesh Forest

Department (BFD) at Ban Bhaban, Agargaon, Dhaka under the Climate Resilient

Participatory Afforestation and Reforestation Project (CRPARP).

The Seminar entitled, “Identification and Assessment of Potential Accreted Char Land for

Plantation in Coastal Areas” was attended by Dr. Ainun Nishat, Professor Emeritus, BRAC

University as the Chief Guest, and Engr. Md. Waji Ullah, Executive Director, CEGIS as the

Key Note Speaker. Mr. Md. Yunus Ali, Chief Conservator of Forests (CCF), Bangladesh

Forest Department (BFD) chaired the Session.

Photo 1: Mr. Md. Yunus Ali, Chief Conservator of Forests, Chair of the

Seminar

The CRPARP, funded under the Bangladesh Climate Change Resilience Fund (BCCRF),

focuses on enhancing resilience of forest ecosystems and communities in ten coastal and

hill forest divisions (covering nine districts). The CRPARP project has four components and

Component 3 provides for review and update of the Forestry Master Plan, 1995.

The Seminar was intended to identify newly potential accreted char lands assessment

methodology and relevant ideas for the preparation of a char land afforestation plan for


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newly accreted coastal char lands. The char land afforestation plan will be integrated with a

revised Forestry Master Plan to be prepared by updating the Forestry Master Plan of 1995.

The invitation card, the list of participants and a copy of the power point presentation are

attached as an Appendix for ready reference. Main objectives of the Seminar are presented

in Chapter-2 of the Report. A summary of key note presentation is discussed in Chapter-3

whereas Chapter-4 summarizes the discussions held during the Seminar. The Chief Guest’s

address is presented in Chapter-5 and finally chapter-6documents main conclusions of the

report.


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2. Objectives of the Seminar

Main objectives of the Seminar are as below:

To discuss and share relevant data and ideas on coastal afforestation on newly

accreted char land with the experts working in this arena,

To identify a methodology for assessing newly accreted char lands in the coastal

area, and

To make an initial assessment of potential accreted char land available for

plantations in coastal areas.


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3. Key Note Presentation

The Chief Conservator of Forests was the chair of the session. He extended warm welcome

to the participants and key note presenter. He particularly thanked the Chief Guest, Dr.

Ainun Nishat, Professor Emeritus, BRAC University and a renowned expert of the country on

water and environment for sparing his valuable time. The CCF informed that, BFD for more

than 40 years has worked on mangrove afforestation in coastal areas and in the process

valuable lessons have been learnt on raising coastal plantations. He suggested to focus on

reclamation of newly accreted char lands through plantation, as a priority, in view of heavy

load of sedimentation coming from the Himalayas but also for addressing climate change.

Photo 2: Key note speaker of the seminar Engr. Waji Ullah, ED, CEGIS

The CCF introduced Engr. Md. Waji Ullah, Executive Director, CEGIS and requested him to

make his presentation as a key note speaker of the Seminar. Engr. Md. Waji Ullah made an

interesting presentation based on Power Point (PP), which, as he informed was jointly

prepared by the CEGIS and BFD. The presentation outline was as below:

Presentation objective and rationale

Forest resources and their distribution

Forest and land management for sustainable development

Coastal zone overview

Coastal land use, Delta shifting and land accretion

Methods to accelerate land deposition

Benefits of afforestation

Existing Acts, Policies and Rules

Forestry and plantations in coastal belt

Land accretion process through afforestation

Future follow up and concluding remarks


Coastal Areas

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The presentation objective was to identify and assess potential char lands for plantation and

cluster multi-level opinions to find out the process, issues and solutions for afforestation in

newly accreted char lands. Important rationale included climate change, huge flow of

sediments, land scarcity, and the country’s development goals focusing on attaining a middle

income status by 2021 and a high income status by 2041.

A slide was devoted to present the country’s forests in the following categories:

Table 1: Forest Types of Bangladesh

Sl. No. Forest Type Area

(in million ha)

% of the Country’s

Geographical Area

1 Hill forests 0.67 4.65

2 Mangrove forests 0.60 4.09

3 Plain land Sal forests 0.12 0.83

4 Coastal afforestation 0.18 1.24

5 Unclassified state forests 0.73 5.08

6 Homestead forests 0.77 5.03

Important goods and services accruing from the country’s forests were also listed. It was

mentioned that nearly 14 million people depend on forests directly or indirectly for their livelihoods. However, the national accounting contribution of forest sub-sector to national

GDP is only 1.4% (2014).

Presenter also showed the slide on importance of mangrove forest in the coastal area of

Bangladesh. He mentioned that, production of leaf litter and detritus matter which are broken

down by bacteria, fungi and other microorganisms which is eventually exported into the

nearly river, estuary and coastal waters that provide a valuable source of food for aquatic

organisms and also play a vital role to soil formation (binding/compacting/stabilization).

Moreover mangroves play important roles by saving life and properties of the coastal

communities from cyclone and tidal bore.

Significant additional char land areas are covered by mangrove plantations facing the Bay of

Bengal which were planted with the main aim of increasing the national forest resources and

the protection against natural calamities, and carbon sequestration. Positive roles of

afforestation of mangrove species in the coastal accreted land include as below:

Conserve and establish the newly accreted land and accelerate further accretion.

Produce timber and fuel wood for industrial and domestic use.

Mitigation of cyclones and tidal surges by creating shelter belt by mangrove forest

which naturally grow under coastal condition.

Create employment opportunities for a large number of people living in remote

rural areas.

Improve socio-economic condition of the coastal peoples.

Development of coastal aquaculture and fish breeding ground.


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Wildlife and aquatic resource conservation management and development.

Of the total 19 coastal districts (covering 153 Upazilas, the country’s 32% area and 28%

population), 12 districts (comprising 51 Upazilas) are directly exposed to the country’s 710

km coastline which is vulnerable to adverse impacts of climate change and consequent

natural disasters. The coastal regions of Bangladesh covers 19 districts : Bagerhat,

Barguna, Barisal, Bhola, Chandpur, Chittagong, Cox’s Bazar, Feni, Gopalganj, Jessore,

Jhalkati, Khulna, Lakshmipur, Narail, Noakhali, Patuakhali, Pirojpur, Satkhira and Shariatpur.

Map 1: Coastal area of Bangladesh

Afforestation in coastal districts started in 1960 after Bangladesh experienced devastating

cyclonic storms. Till 2013, a total of 1,92,395 ha mangrove and 2,873 ha Nypa plantations

have been raised in the coastal areas by Bangladesh Forest Department.

The shore land in the coastal areas are categorized into : i) tidal and wave dominated

western coast including the Sundarbans, ii) fluvial dominated middle coast, and iii) wave and

long-shore process dominated east coast. Most of the potential accreted char lands are and

will be available in future in the fluvial dominated region as indicated in Figure 1 (also see

slides 7-10 in Annexure-1) as below:


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Fluvial dominated

Tide & wave dominated

Wave

& l

ong-s

hore

pro

cess

dom

inate

d

BANGLADESHINDIA

Nature and Cause of Delta Shifting and Land

Accretion

POTENTIAL ACCRETED CHAR LANDS

Figure 1: Nature and Cause of Delta Shifting and Land Accretion

Over the last century, it is experienced that, the fluvial dominated central coast along

Meghna estuary experienced severe dynamism, leading accretion of more lands.

Bangladesh Delta has progressed about 50 km towards the sea and the net accretion was

1700 km2 from 1943 to 2008 and BFD successfully afforested these areas with mangrove

and other species which has great contribution to country natural resources. In the fluvial

dominated zone net accretion rate was 4.5 km2 per year for the period of 1773–1943; 40

km2/year for the period of 1943–1973 and 16 km2/year for the period of 1973–2008.

He mentioned that, there are different methods to accelerate land deposition or accretion

and the land accretion process in coastal areas can be facilitated and guided by a)

Engineering Interventions and b) Biological Interventions. The engineering interventions are

cross dams, river channelization, river training works and polderization and the biological

interventions are tidal river management (TRM), coarse infilling and afforestation.

Engineering interventions and biological methods including afforestation for accelerating

sediment trapping and land deposition were explained, along with possible plantation types

established under different projects. Subsequent slides focused on presentingrelevant legal

framework, the objectives of existing Forestry Master Plan, thematic areas to be covered under Bangladesh Delta Plan, and the GOB Vision 2021.

This was followed by listing out major issues and challenges of char land accretion and

afforestation, and explaining land accretion process through afforestation. The participants

were told as to how CEGIS can help assess newly accreted char lands and established

plantations, and assist in their monitoring by applying remote sensing and GIS based

technology and tools.

Based on their previous work on remote sensing and GIS, the CEGIS has identified and

estimated potential char land for mangrove afforestation of 20,316 ha. as mud flats and 166 ha. covered with uri grass in 40 identified and established char lands (Table 2). Moreover,


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almost 75 unidentified char lands have potential for coastal afforestation of 10,099 ha as mud flats and 9 ha (Table 3) covered with uri grass.

Table 2: Potential Area (in ha) for Coastal Afforestation in Forty Identified Char Lands

Mangrove

forest

Mud flat Uri grass Land Sand Total area

26,816 20,316 166 98,541 494 146,332

Table 3: Potential Area (in ha) for Coastal Afforestation in Seventy Five Unidentified

Char Lands

Mangrove

forest

Mud flat Uri grass Land Sand Total area

4,478 10,099 9 7,314 289 22,189

Mr. Ullah mentioned that, regular periodic forest and other ecosystems health and valuation

assessments and monitoring could be undertaken by employing modern and web-based

technology including satellite imagery, aerial photography, drones, GIS and MIS. The CEGIS

is a scientifically independent organization that performs integrated environmental analysis

using technologies on GIS, RS, IT and databases. The CEGIS staffs have expertise in

fisheries, economics, agriculture, sociology, GIS, RS, hydrology, database, programming,

ecology, biology, river morphology, engineering, ground water, soil science, etc.The

organization has vast experience in environmental planning using advanced techniques for

RS, GIS, database development and management, and modern communication facilities. He

emphasized on a comprehensive RS & GIS –based joint study and monitoring with BFD in

the coastal areas to find out these area precisely.

He said, beyond the ecosystem services, plantations on newly accreted mud flats help in

stabilizing the land, which can later on be settled by victims of erosion elsewhere. These

adopted management measures not only contribute to forestry resource management but

also to the social, environmental and economic wellbeing of the coastal communities. These

efforts are at present being integrated into an Integrated Coastal Zone Management Plan

(ICZMP). A draft Coastal Zone Policy has been formulated with specific objectives of

sustainable management of coastal resources as well as coastal forest and preservation and

enhancement of critical ecosystems and ecological processes. Accordingly some priority

investment programs need to be developed to conserve and sustainable management of the

mangroves.

Bangladesh Delta Plan is under preparation considered coastal land management and

afforestation for 100 years. Mangrove management planning will be a consultative effort and

the followings GOB plans, policies, Rules, and Acts may be found relevant:

Forest Act, 1927

Bangladesh Wildlife (Conservation and Security) Act, 2012

National Adaptation Program for Action (revised in 2009).

Bangladesh Climate Change Strategy and Action Plan, 2009

Bangladesh Sixth Five Year Plan, 2011-15

Bangladesh Delta Plan (under preparation for 100 years)


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Integrated Coastal Zone Management Plan (ICZMP)

Bangladesh Environment Conservation Act, 1995 (amendment in 2010)

Bangladesh’s National Environment Policy, 1992

National Plan of Action (NPA)

National Land Use Policy, 2001

National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP), 2004

Coastal Zone Policy, 2005

Coastal Development Strategy, 2006

The CCF extended his sincere thanks to the key note Presenter, after which the participants

were requested to offer their valuable comments and suggestions. He mentioned that this is

a conference of professionals, and he opened the floor for expert discussions and

comments.


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4. Open Discussions

At the beginning of the Session, the Chairman welcomed the participants to this session and

sought their utmost cooperation in conducting the discussions meaningfully. He invited all

experts from different organizations to take part in discussion and to give their valuable

suggestions and opinions which would be valuable for identification and assessment of

potential accreted char land for plantation in coastal areas.

Main issues deliberated in the Seminar are discussed in this Chapter. Mr. Gopal Krishna

Debnath, Project Director, LGED suggested that before allowing human habitations in

reclaimed char lands, basic facilities should be ensured. He said that it takes more than 20 years to reclaim a newly accreted char land. He raised his concerns on eucalyptus and

acacia planting on wide scale and asked as to what is the government policy on this.

The CCF commented that, ecological constraints and economic potential are important

determinants in peoples’ decision-making on planting of tree species.

Dr. Paramesh Nandi, Project Manager, Community Based Adaptation to Climate Change

through Coastal Afforestation Project informed that newly accreted char lands undergo many

changes as evolving habitats (e.g. mud flats, lowlands, moderately raised lands, and raised

lands) shape their reclamation and development. Suitable species for planting also differ as

char lands evolve.

Mr. A. Z. Md. Zahedul Islam, Chief Scientific Officer, SPARSO commented that the

presentation has not given any new knowledge on the topic. For example, he said that in addition to afforestation, there may be other parameters suitable for char land stabilization.

He informed that for the Second Forestry Project, the SPARSO was responsible for the

monitoring and evaluation component and similar services can be given to BFD under the

CRPARP as well.

Photo 3: A typical coastal char land with mangrove afforestation


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In response, Engr. Md. Waji Ullah mentioned that the PP was presented to generate new

ideas, although CEGIS has in-house analytical tools, which can be made available on

demand. He mentioned that the wave and tidal areas of the Sundarbans are different than

the fluvial region comprising the country’s middle coast.

Md. Joynal Abedin, Additional Chief Engineer, LGED emphasized on an integrated approach

with relevant GOB agencies as the LGED, Water Development Board, BFD, Department of

Livestock, and the Land Ministry (as represented by local administration) play important

roles and responsibilities in the char land accretion and reclamation cycle. He mentioned

about the Char Development and Settlement Project (CDSP) which has completed in 4

phases. He regretted the Government’s decision to lease out land in Suborna char which

was reclaimed through afforestation.

Dr. Mariam Akhter of the FAO, Dhaka suggested to include in the PP about main sources of

the quoted works. She informed that, soon the RIMS of BFD will be equipped with necessary

remote sensing and GIS analytical tools based on which char land identification and

plantation monitoring can be done in-house. She enquired as to whether the CEGIS carries

out in-house research with its own fund or it solicits funds under different development

projects.

Engr. Md. Waji Ullah responded that the CEGIS has done considerable research work in

association with partner organizations. Mr. Motaleb Hossain Sarker, Director, Ecology,

Forestry and Biodiversity Division, CEGIS informed about the CEGIS’s Morphological

Prediction Model for predicting char land accretion. He also mentioned that satellite image-

based modeling will enable assessment of newly accreted char lands.

The PD, CRPARP at this juncture emphasized on the main objectives of organizing the

Seminar and requested all the participants to make technical contribution which will be used

in the preparation of a master plan for the afforestation of newly accreted char lands in

coastal areas. He particularly asked the relevant DFOs and CFs to report char land

availability for raising plantations in their respective divisions and circles respectively.

Mr. AKM Shamsuddin of the CREL project asked as to whether the CEGIS has adequate

tools. He wanted to know the latest trend of coastal erosion as compared to 1994 when

coastal land erosion was more in comparison to that of the land accretion. Engr. Md. Waji

Ullah at this stage informed that at present he does not have the latest information, but the

CEGIS is currently working on the coastal char lands.

Mr. Syed Ali, DFO, Habiganj (Wildlife and Nature Conservation) informed that BFD has

capability for coastal char land afforestation but face resistance from local people and elites who claim ownership to newly accreted char lands when the field staffs go for plantations.

The CCF responded by saying that competing coastal land uses need to be analyzed in the

context of emerging socio-economic and migration issues, and not only as a problem

created by local people.

Dr. Sunil Kundu, Conservator of Forests, Khulna Circle said that plantation management

requires digital mapping prepared after demarcation and pillar posting. He further opined that

for establishing successful plantations we should consider both edaphic and climate factors.

For example, compaction of land may hinder successful plantation raising in coastal areas.

Similarly coastal fisheries including shrimp cultivation, and land leasing are important factors

while analyzing sustainability of coastal plantations.

The CCF recognized that, compaction of coastal soils is an issue, as is the issue of

mangrove plantations buried under soils. He informed that, new plantations help to trap


Coastal Areas

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sediments, and that mound and dyke plantations are also good options in coastal areas. The

CCF at this stage invited Mr. Ishtiaq Uddin Ahmad, IUCN Country Director, who made a

number of suggestions as discussed below.

Mr. Ahmad appreciated the presentation but noted the absence of PP slides on climate

resilient species and participatory afforestation mechanism. He mentioned that mitigating

coastal storms, surges and other hazards is an important objective of coastal afforestation

developed in past as inexpensive Greenbelt or Green wall by BFD successfully. Many of

these plantations have over the period developed natural forest structure. He agreed with Dr.

Kundu and emphasized assessing land suitability for raising coastal plantations.

He also informed that under the Second Forestry Project a report was prepared on relevant

factors and land suitability for coastal plantations. The report may be searched and used for

assessing species-site suitability in identified char lands. Depending upon a char land

development stage (mud flat, land inhabited by Uri grass, sand land, etc.) different species

may be planted.

The IUCN Country Director informed that so far community benefits have not been

considered in coastal plantations. Given the BFD’s emphasis on participatory forestry,

community benefits, especially in terms of fish, crab, golpata, eco-tourism and other

ecosystem services, may be considered while designing and implementing coastal

afforestation programs on newly accreted char lands. Responding to an earlier question on

raising eucalyptus and acacia plantations, he opined that no tree, animal or bird is bad as all

living beings have some use or other. He informed that only 5% of total bird population

depends on tree fruits as food.

At this stage the CCF invited the Chief Guest for delivering his valuable speech.


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5. Address by the Chief Guest

Professor Dr. Nishat recollected his childhood experiences when he observed the

development and accretion of Suborna Char, which over the period has developed as

Nijhum Dwip, covering two Thanas presently. He distinguished char land accretion and char

land reclamation – while accretion refers to new land formation, char land reclamation is

about making the land, which is already available, as usable for human habitation and other

use.

He informed the participants that the country’s rivers flow to the Bay of Bengal in westward

direction due to the Swatch-of-No-Ground (900+ meter deep under-sea canyon), whereas

the rivers from the Indian states of West Bengal and Odisha flow in eastward direction. The

Swatch-of-No-Ground is a submarine canyon located at a distance less than 40 km from the

rim of the western Sundarbans mangrove forests and incising approximately 130 km inside

the continental shelf in a northeast direction.

Engineering approaches can be used for accelerating accretion of char lands. For instance,

he mentioned, China built embankments to accelerate accretion of charlands, followed by

raising sugar cane plantations to help expedite reclamation. On the other hand in the

Netherlands, small polders were developed with proper drainage system as reclaimed lands

are generally at the level below sea level.

He mentioned about a Land Reclamation Project implemented in Bangladesh with support

from the Netherlands. Professor Nishat opined that char land reclamation through afforestation for sediment trapping by raising ecological succession species has a number of

advantages. Such plantations will act as Coastal Greenbelts to help address climate change

mitigation and adaptation issues. He suggested not to grant leases of afforested lands as it

is now possible to provide community benefits, particularly through REDD+ mechanism,

without harvesting trees.

Professor Nishat acknowledged the need of physical interventions in land accretion by

employing appropriate land accretion models, but cautioned about adverse impacts of

engineering interventions. According to him, continuous monitoring and adaptations are

needed in view of dynamic coastal environment. In addition, good coordination among the

relevant agencies including the Land Ministry, BFD and Water Development Board is

essential. He cited an instance where a DCR (Duplicate Carbon Receipt) was issued by the

revenue department for leasing out a new accreted piece of char land which hampered the

soil sedimentation process. He suggested that accreted lands should be with BFD but an

inter-disciplinary approach need to be followed. He suggested to plant tree species that

develop thin stems.

He further informed that by following the applicable rules and regulation newly accreted

lands can be brought under the jurisdiction of Bangladesh Forest Department to develop

plantations for a stipulated period of 20 years. This time period is needed for reclamation

and land maturity for human settlement through mangrove afforestation. It is envisaged that

a part of reclamed char land may be handed over to the land ministry after retaining

afforested land as shelterbelt for mitigating climate change.

Professor Nishat opined that instead of allowing visitors/people to stay in St. Martin Island,

one day trips can be organized with Teknaf as a base camp/destination. He further

mentioned about advantages of coastal vegetation including mangroves as breeding ground

for fisheries, keora fruits for pickle making, and sandy areas suitable for turtles. Finally, he


Coastal Areas

14

advised BFD to document the char land accretion and reclamation process under the

CRPARP so that the World can understand about the pioneering of char land afforestation

works being done under the CRPARP with financial support provided under the BCCRF.


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6. Conclusion

Afforestation on coastal char lands has successfully been pioneered by BFD and there are

countless benefits including char land accretion and reclamation. However, local community

participation should be ensured wherever possible by following the Social Forestry Rules.

Climate resilient livelihood opportunities should be explored by adopting a community-based

and conservation-linked approach. A Charland Afforestation Plan can be developed by

following a participatory approach. The afforestation program is consistent with the GOB’s

Vision 2012 and Vision 2041, Bangladesh Delta Plan (under preparation) and upcoming

Seventh Five Year Plan.

Finally, the CCF expressed his gratefulness to the Chief Guest and the participants for giving

valuable inputs, suggestions and comments. He also thanked the CEGIS team for an

informative and valuable presentation which will help formulate a coastal charland

afforestation plan.The CCF then summarized the outcomes of the seminar and ended the

same with a vote of thanks to all the participants.

APPENDIX


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Appendix-1: Slides of the presentation

IDENTIFICATION and ASSESSMENT of POTENTIAL ACCRETED CHAR LANDS for

PLANTATION in COASTAL AREAS

Engr. Md. Waji UllahExecutive DirectorCEGIS

25 June, 2015Ban Bhaban, Agargaon, Dhaka

Slide-1

OutlinePresentation Objective and Rationale

Forest Resources and its Distribution

Forest and Land Management for Sustainable Development

Coastal Zone Overview

Coastal Land Use, Delta Shifting and Land Accretion

Methods to Accelerate Land Deposition

Benefits of Afforestation

Existing Acts, Policies and Rules

Forestry plantation in Coastal Belt

Land Accretion Process by Afforestation

Future Follow-ups and Concluding Remarks

Slide-2


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Presentation Objective and RationaleOBJECTIVE

Identify and Assess potential char lands for plantation and cluster multi-level opinions to find out the process, issues and solutions for afforestationin newly accreted char lands

RATIONALE

GoB has the vision to become a middle income country by 2021; and developed country by 2041, and it needs new lands for development

Bangladesh is a land hungry country to support its population pressure, socio-economic and livelihood development, and ecosystem needs

The major rivers and estuaries carry huge flow and sediments, creating scope for potential land accretion

Forest development is a challenge as presently, around 13% of the country is covered by forest, against an international standard of 25%

Forestry has potential to adapt/ mitigate climate change consequences; the Sundarbans can annually sink 56 MT carbon worth BDT 150 billion

Slide-3

Forest Resources and its Distribution in Bangladesh

Forest typesArea (m.ha)

% of country’s area

Hill Forests 0.67 4.65

Mangrove Forest

0.60 4.09

Plain land shalforests

0.12 0.83

Coastal afforestation

0.18 1.24

Unclassified state forests

0.73 5.08

Homestead forest

0.77 5.03

Slide-4


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19

Forest and Land Management for Sustainable Development

Sustainable Development

Manages Forestry

Manages Land

Enhances Agricultural

Conserves Ecosystem

Improves Human CapitalEnhances Natural Capital

Develops Social CapitalProtects Physical Capital

Contributes to Financial Capital

Opportunity for EmploymentIncreases IncomeReduces Poverty

Enriched Forestry through

plantation in newly accreted

Lands

H

S N

P F

Environment

Asset Pentagon

About 14 million people’s livelihood directly or indirectly dependent on forestry

ADP allocation for forestry in 6th FYP (2011-2015) around 3310 million BDT

Forest and related services comprise around 1.4% of national GDP (2014)

Slide-5

Source of fuel, timber

Facilitate Land Accretion

habitats of fish

Habitats for wildlife

Human food and shelter

Eco tourism

Medicine

Source of Seeds

Services of Forest

Many more…

Slide-6


Coastal Areas

20

Coastal Zone of Bangladesh

Covers 19 coastal districts (153 Upazilas), comprises 32% area and 28% population of Bangladesh.

12 districts (51 Upazilas) are exposed to 710 km coastline, and vulnerable to natural calamities

Afforestation initiatives started in 1966 after devastating cyclonic storms.

Land is mainly used by agriculture, water, forests, settlements, ghers, salt pan, ship-breaking yards etc.

2014

2014 Area ( sq.km)

461381918 44686812421617156225212

LANDUSE

Slide-7

Fluvial dominated

Tide & wave dominated

Wa

ve

& l

ong-s

hore

pro

cess

dom

ina

ted

BANGLADESH

INDIA

Nature and Cause of Delta Shifting and Land

Accretion

POTENTIAL ACCRETED CHAR LANDS

Slide-8


Coastal Areas

21

Over the last century, the fluvial dominated central coast along Meghna estuary experienced severe dynamism, leading accretion of more lands

Delta Shifting and Land Accretion (Fluvial Dominated)

Reynold Map Map Based on Arial Photo

Slide-9

109 ton sediment/yearDelta Shifting and

Land Accretion (Fluvial Dominated)

Delta has progressed about 50 km towards the sea

Net accretion was 1700 km2

from 1943 to 2008

Year

Net Accretion

Rate(km2 /yr)

Remark

1773 –1943

4.5Assam

earthquake (1950)

contributed to huge

sediment flow

1943 –1973

40

1973 -2008

16

Slide-10


Coastal Areas

22

Methods to Accelerate Land Deposition

The land accretion process in coastal areas can be facilitated and guided by,

Engineering Interventions

Cross Dams

River Channelization

River Training Works

Polderization

Biological Interventions

Tidal River Management

Coarse Infilling

AFFORESTATION

Slide-11

Benefits of Afforestation

Many more…

Accelerate land accretion by depositing sediments, and also enrich national forest coverage

Safeguard cyclones and storm surges, increase carbon sinking, improve watershed management and harness other benefits

Cope with highly dynamic coastal biodiversity, provide wood and non-wood forest products and services

Conserve habitat and biodiversity, manage wildlife and aquatic resources, create fish spawning ground, eco-tourism etc.

Cost-effective way to improve land accretion, create employment opportunities and improve socio-economic and livelihood condition

Slide-12


Coastal Areas

23

Forest plantation in Coastal Belt

Keora plantation on newly accreted char

Partially submerged Keora plantation (remain 4~6 months under water)

Silvo-pisciculture

Silvo-horticulture Agroforestry in embankment at Barisal

Homestead Forestry

Slide-13

New Forest-Fruit-Fishery (FFF) model based Integrated Farming

Forest plantation in Coastal Belt (Cont’d)

Implementation of FFF model at Bhola, under the project ‘Community based Adaptation to Climate Change through Coastal Afforestation in Bangladesh’

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Relevant Acts, Policies, Plans and Rules

1. Forest Act, 1927 (amended

2010)

2. Bangladesh’s National

Environment Policy, 1992

3. Forestry Master Plan (by ADB),

1993

4. National Forestry Policy,

1994

5. Bangladesh Environment

Conservation Act 1995 (amended

2010)

6. National Agriculture Policy

1999

7. Land use policy, 2001

8. National Biodiversity

Strategy and Action Plan, 2004

9. Social Forestry Rules, 2004

(Modified up to May, 2011)

10. Coastal zone policy 2005

11. Coastal Development

Strategy, 2006

12. National Disaster

Management Policy, 2008

13. National Adaptation

Program for Action (revised in 2009).

14. Bangladesh Climate Change

Strategy and Action Plan, 2009

15. Bangladesh Wildlife

(Conservation and Security) Act, 2012

16. Brick Burning (Control)

(Amendment) Act, 2013

17. Integrated Coastal Zone

Management Plan

18. Bangladesh Delta Plan (ongoing)

19. National Plan of Action (ongoing)

20. National Strategy for Accelerated

Poverty Reduction-II (ongoing)

Slide-15

Forestry Master Plan, 1993 Objectives

Enhance environment preservation and conservation.

Introduce rational forestland use.

Increase public participation and benefit from the forest.

Create forests on marginal and private lands.

Setup institutional strengthening.

Improve management practices.

Improve efficient resource utilization.

Slide-16


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2. River systems management

18. Regional cooperation

6. Climate change

5. Disaster management

1. Water resources

7. Land resources management

9. Agriculture and food security

10. Fisheries and livestock

11. Ecological settings

12. Forest and biodiversity

3. Coastal polder issues

13. Environmental pollution

8. Urbanization and settlement

15. Socio-economic &

demographic condition

4. Health, water supply & Sanitation

16. Sustainable Transportation Infrastructure

14. Growth of population and management

19. Information and knowledge management

17. Institutional arrangements

BDP-2100 Thematic Areas GoB recently initiated a 100 year adaptive and holistic Bangladesh Delta Plan-2100 (BDP-2100) to address 19 different thematic areas, which provides emphasis on forestry and land resources management.

Slide-17

GoB Vision-2021

By 2021 the livelihoods of the nation’s population will be self-sustaining through development that ensures a healthy environment (including forest resources development) and the welfare of future generations.

Relevant General Targets

Achieve 20% tree cover of land surface

Restore and protect ecologically healthy native forests

Minimize conversion of agricultural land, have sufficient flows in the wetlands, support diverse aquatic life.

Less than 29% population below upper poverty line by 2015, achieving national food security

Improve quality of life for bottom 50% rural people

No extinctions, enhance globally and nationally threatened species

Reduce economic losses from current levels.

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Major Issues and Challenges of Accretion and Afforestation

ISSUES:

Storm surge, cyclones and erosion, carbon sequestration

Habitat and biodiversity loss

Rapid urbanization, encroachment and deforestation

Migration of land less people, change of livelihoods

Unplanned industrialization and growth of salt pans and ghers

Transfer of forest land

Increased use of pesticides and fertilizers, soil fertility depletion and land degradation

CHALLENGES:

Adaptation/ mitigation against CC and hazards

Maintain ecosystem balance

Stabilize newly accreted land areas

Integrated land zoning and land use optimization

Resolving conflicts among land-water users

Leasing of coastal lands

Protect lands from pollution and degradation

Slide-19

Land Accretion Process by Afforestation

1. Identification and assessment of mudflat; species

selection

2. Dispersal or systematic plantation

3. Gap filling with seeds or seedlings

4. Enrich plantation with other species

5. Accelerate land deposition by

engineering and biological

interventions

6. Monitoring and Evaluation

Plantation will accelerate land accretion, which will be stabilized in around 20 years

Hand over 50% stabilized land to Ministry of Land for non-forestry use and the remaining 50% occupied by the Forest department. (Prime Minister Office Order)

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STEP1: Mudflat Identification, Assessment & Species Selectiona) Mudflat assessment using RS, physical survey and assessment

b) Assessment and demarcation using GIS-RS based tools and groundtruthing

c) Select species for plantation, which survive prolonged tidal inundation.

STEP2: Systematic Plantationa) Preparation of nursery site, seed collection, seed treatment and sowing

b) Production of seedling and transportation of seedlings to planting site.

a) Planting non-mangrove species to enrich forestry (sandy char land)

b) Take care of transitional zones to cope with the environmental conditions

STEP4: Enrich plantation with other species

a) Gap filling with seeds or seedlings in two successive year

b) Plantation raising and management by local people’s involvement.

STEP3: Gap filling

Slide-21

Polderization

STEP5: Accelerate Land deposition by Engineering and Biological interventions

River Channelization and Training Works

a) Land Accretion can be accelerated with engineering interventions such asriver channelization and training works, polderization, cross dams, tidalriver management etc.

Tidal River Management Cross-Dams

a) Monitoring and evaluation of plantation for proper outcome and improveforest resources, and protect the area from anthropogenic pressure.

STEP6: Monitoring and Evaluation

Slide-22


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Land Accretion and Mangrove Succession Process

HTL

MTL

Year

Elev

ati

on

Emergence of mud flat

Uri-grass

Small Mangrove

Medium mangrove

Mangrove Forest

Settlement

654

3

2

1

Mean Elevation and Time varies with spatial location, sedimentation rates and tide circulation

Time required for land development at different locations

Succession Process varies from 12 to 22 years

Outfall of Tetulia ChannelMean Tidal Range: 2 m

Time for char land development: 22 yrs

Shabazpur ChannelMean Tidal Range: 2 m


South of NoakhaliMean Tidal Range: 3 m


Urir CharMean Tidal Range: 6 m


Slide-23

Tools and Innovations for Assessing Charland and Afforestation

Application of Remote Sensing and GIS based tools

Identification of Potential Accreted Char Lands for Plantation

Coastal Afforestation Mapping and Monitoring

Forest cover Mapping, Updating and Monitoring

Agroforestry mapping

Biomass estimation

Mapping Forest Health in the form of nutrient and moisture deficiencies

Modelling for Sea Level Rise, River Bathymetry and Saltwater Intrusion

Crop/ Plant Suitability Assessment Modelling

Slide-24


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Assessment of Potential Char Lands

Almost 40 identified and established char lands with potential for coastal afforestation

Mangrove Forest (ha)

Mud Flat (ha)

Urri Grass (ha)

Land (ha)Sand (ha)

Total Area (ha)

26,816 20,316 166 98,541 494 146,332

Slide-25

Assessing the un-identified Potential Char LandsAlmost 75 unidentified char lands have potential for coastal afforestation

Mangrove Forest (ha)

Mud Flat (ha)

Urri Grass (ha)

Land (ha)Sand (ha)

Total Area (ha)

4,478 10,099 9 7,314 289 22,189

Slide-26


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SIDR Damage assessment using NDVI, Satellite Aqua, 20th

November 2007 (Resolution 250 m)

Forest Area Affected by cyclone SIDR

21% Of total Sundarbans is affected

ZoneArea

(sq. km)Area

(sq. km)Production Loss (MT)

High 1 (50 km zone) 6,500 3,800 402,000

High 2 (100 km zone) 5,500 3,300 300,000

Low 1 (50 km zone) 4,100 2,500 74,000

Low 2 (100 km zone) 1,600 1,000 14,500

Monitoring and Assessment of Damaged Forestry

Slide-27

Monitoring and Evaluation of newly Accreted Char Lands

Land use, 2005Land use, 2014 Legend

Water

Bagda

Mangrove Forest

Mud Flat

Urri grass

Land

Forest

Salt pan

Sand

Char NameArea (sq.km) of Mangrove Forest

2005 2014

Char Daal 9.42 3.3

Char Basson 5.73 9.24

Char Nizam 1.26 1.8

Slide-28


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Monitoring and Evaluation of Land Use Development

Mud flat

Urir grass Mangrove

Settlement

Urir Char

Slide-29

Modelling for SLR, Bathymetry and Saltwater Intrusion

Assessment of river bathymetry using hydrodynamic modeling (Delft-3D)

This can also simulate CC induced sea level rise, and saltwater intrusion

Slide-30


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Crop/ Plant Suitability Modeling

Crop/ Plant suitability models (CSAM and SOLARIS) can predict long term suitability of selected species given the tidal influence

CSAM: Crop Suitability Assessment Model

SOLARIS: Soil and Land Resource Information System

Sundarbans

Slide-31

Future Follow-ups

1Preparing an Integrated Master Plan to ensure sustainable forest resources development and management

2Create sustainable and visionary Land Zoning mandates

3Develop Guideline for stabilization and protection of newly accreted or char lands

4Co-management for Biodiversity Conservation and Forestry

5Revise and update forest Policy with existing national vision

6Involve participation from all sectors and stakeholders and inter-Agency collaboration

Slide-32


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Existing Climate Resilient Participatory Afforestationand Reforestation Project (CRPARP)

PROJECT OBJECTIVE

To reduce forest degradation and increase forest coverage through participatory planning/ monitoring; and contribute in building long-term climate resilience of selected communities in coastal and hilly areas.

Capacity Development for Forest Resource Planning and Management

Project Management

Alternative Livelihoods to Support Forest Communities

Afforestation and Reforestation Program

Component 1

Component 2

Component 3

Component 4

Slide-33

Mound Plantation, Chittagong

Snapshots of CRPARP

Community consultation, Chittagong

Mangrove Plantation, Chittagong

Core Zone Nursury, Cox’s Bazar

Slide-34


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Concluding RemarksAn integrated master plan for forestry (and link up with BDP-2100) is essential to achieve the country’s sectoral targets for vision 2021 and 2041

Char land afforestation has countless benefits including land accretion; Subarna char, Nijhum Dwip under Noakhali are best examples

Exploring and harnessing new knowledge, innovations, tools and techniques, and use Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) model are important

Local participation and Knowledge-Government-Business (KGB) interactions to be ensured for integrated forest development and management

Livelihood and CC resilience can be increased by adopting community-based solutions regarding coastal afforestation

Slide-35

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Appendix-2: Seminar date and schedule


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Appendix-3: List of participants


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