Transformation of the coastal social-ecological system in southwest Bangladesh due to empolderment

Abstract

Initiated in the early 1960s, the Coastal Embankment Project (CEP) in Bangladesh brought more than 1.2 million hectares of low-elevation coastal land under cultivation through a complex system of embankments and drainage sluices. A significant milestone in the history of water resources management in Bangladesh, CEP catalyzed the socio-economic development of the coastal community over the following decades. However, the human intervention in the complex hydro-geo-morphological settings of the Ganges delta later manifested some challenges. As the embankments had cut off the tidal plains from the rivers, silt started depositing on the riverbeds, which eventually caused drainage congestion inside the polders. Meanwhile, significant changes in landuse occurred as saltwater shrimp farming took over traditional crop cultivation. Shrimp cultivation increased soil salinity inside the polders rendering the land unsuitable for crop cultivation. The kitchen gardens and the fruit plants that grew after the construction of the embankments disappeared from the landscape due to high soil salinity. The cyclone in 2009 badly damaged the embankments in the southwest coastal region resulting in the longstanding suffering of the people. The protected landscape became subject to tidal flooding, sweeping off the decades of development gains. This case study from Bangladesh demonstrates how physical infrastructure can significantly change the bio-physical and socio-economic landscapes in coastal settings and give rise to a new social-ecological system.