Deforestation in the Teknaf Peninsula of Bangladesh : a study of political ecology

209 Pages·2018·8.577 MB·English

by  Rahman, Md. Abiar, Tani, Masakazu

Masakazu Tani · Md. Abiar Rahman
Editors
Deforestation
in the Teknaf
Peninsula of
Bangladesh
A Study of Political Ecology
Deforestation in the Teknaf Peninsula
of Bangladesh
Masakazu Tani • Md. Abiar Rahman
Editors
Deforestation in the Teknaf
Peninsula of Bangladesh
A Study of Political Ecology
Editors
Masakazu Tani Md. Abiar Rahman
Department of Environmental Design, Department of Agroforestry and
Faculty of Design Environment, Faculty of Agriculture
Kyushu University Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
Fukuoka, Fukuoka, Japan Agricultural University
Gazipur, Bangladesh
ISBN 978-981-10-5474-7 ISBN 978-981-10-5475-4 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-981-10-5475-4
Library of Congress Control Number: 2017947763
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Foreword
Deforestation and forest degradation are contributing to a slow but steady decline in
forest cover on a global scale. Approximately 10–15% of the total carbon dioxide
released into the atmosphere every year comes from deforestation and forest degra-
dation. In this volume, Drs. Tani and Rahman and their colleagues provide a com-
prehensive review of the underlying forces that are driving deforestation in the
Teknaf Peninsula in Bangladesh. They describe the deforestation taking place in the
Teknaf Peninsula as forest “degradation,” a process that takes place over time with
no major events but a constant degradation of the forest due to communities that
utilize forest land and timber and non-timber forest products to support their liveli-
hoods and eke out a living under challenging economic conditions.
Although globally forest degradation represents 25% of carbon emissions from
deforestation and degradation, in Bangladesh, as is the case in many less developed
countries, over 80% of emissions come from degradation1. The situation in the
Teknaf Peninsula in Bangladesh, as is also the case in many developing countries, is
that you have local communities encroaching on forested areas often under protec-
tion as parks, reserves, and other protected status. With few options to gain a living,
these populations often turn to the forest for their sustenance, by clearing forest to
plant crops and/or gathering and often selling forest products to meet subsistence
needs and generate income. In this volume, the authors provide a description of the
problem of forest degradation in the Teknaf Peninsula and go on to provide a well--
researched and documented account of the impact and interaction of social, cultural,
economic, and environmental factors as drivers of forest degradation.
The value of this book is its comprehensive analysis of the drivers of forest deg-
radation in the Teknaf Peninsula. Forest degradation is the result of the interplay
between a number of sociocultural, economic, and environmental factors. Therefore,
to understand and address forest degradation, it is important to explore the factors
influencing and determining the level of forest degradation. In addition, we need to
understand the impact of each factor and the aggregate impact of the suite of factors
1 Pearson et al. 2017. Greenhouse gas emissions from tropical forest degradation: an underesti-
mated source. Carbon Balance Manager (2017) 12:3. DOI 10.1186/s13021-017-0072-2
v
vi Foreword
driving forest degradation. Understanding the factors and their impact on forest
degradation facilitates our ability to come up with solutions to address those factors
and reduce degradation.
This book provides detailed information on a large array of social, cultural, eco-
nomic factors driving forest degradation in the Teknaf Peninsula and their environ-
mental impact that will be helpful in addressing the forest degradation issue there.
The methods and analysis also have value on a more general and global scale as an
example of the kind of research and analysis that is required to address forest deg-
radation and design feasible solutions to the problem. Three important contributions
of the work presented in this volume are as follows:
(1) The volume provides detailed information on the drivers of forest degradation
which will help design appropriate solutions to the problem of forest degrada-
tion in the Teknaf Peninsula.
(2) The studies provide baseline data on the drivers of forest degradation that can
be used to measure sociocultural, economic, and environmental changes in the
Teknaf over time in response to any interventions that are implemented and
will also provide a framework for monitoring those changes.
(3) The studies and the methodologies employed in this comprehensive work can
provide an example and guidance for others in their efforts to better understand
and provide solutions to forest degradation in other locations around the globe
with similar issues.
The authors should be commended for this important volume that illustrates and
provide detailed research on the complicated nature of forest degradation occurring
as a result of forests being used to support growing populations on the forest--
agricultural border through conversion to agriculture and the harvesting of timber
and non-timber forest products to support livelihoods. This comprehensive work
provides information that will be key in designing solutions to the problem on the
Teknaf Peninsula as well as a framework for researchers and practitioners working
under similar circumstances. This will be an important case to watch as the research
represented in this volume is translated into practice in our continuing struggle to
protect our remaining forest areas while supporting the livelihoods of local
communities.
University of Minnesota, USA Dr. Dean Current
April 2017
Acknowledgments
This book is based on a research project conducted since 2009 in the Teknaf
Peninsula, Bangladesh. We are grateful to many people who have helped this proj-
ect in planning, conducting, and supporting the research and publishing this book.
A special word of gratitude is due to Mr. Mohammed Delwar Hossain and Mr.
Abu Sayed Mohammed Ismail. They manage local research activities and conduct
surveys. Without their contribution, this project would not be possible.
We thank Mr. Momtaz Ahmed Chowdhury, Mr. Hassan Ahmed, and many other
local people who helped in collecting data. We appreciate the support of officials of
the Forest Department, the Department of Agricultural Extension, and local
administrations.
A number of faculty members and students from Kyushu University, Bangladesh
Agricultural University, and Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural
University helped in conducting research and collecting data. We are grateful to all
of them.
The research works were in part supported by a grant for environmental research
from the Sumitomo Foundation (Grant #093293) from 2009 to 2011, a Grant-in-Aid
for Scientific Research (Grant #24401040) by Japan Society for the Promotion of
Science (JSPS) from 2012 to 2014, and another JSPS Grant-in-Aid for Scientific
Research (Grant #15H02612) from 2015 to 2017. We are grateful for their support.
We are grateful to Professor Dr. Dean Current, Department of Forest Resources,
University of Minnesota, for writing the Preface of the book in spite his busy
schedule.
vii
Contents
Part I Introduction
1 Introduction ............................................................................................. 3
Masakazu Tani and Md. Abiar Rahman
2 Physiography, Forests, and People in Teknaf ....................................... 11
A.Z.M. Moslehuddin, Md. Abiar Rahman, S.M.A. Ullah,
M. Moriyama, and Masakazu Tani
Part II Causes of Deforestation
3 Impact of Betel Leaf Cultivation on Forests ......................................... 43
Masakazu Tani
4 Socioeconomic Status of Betel Leaf Farmers ....................................... 57
H. Tsuruta
5 Economic Impacts of Betel Leaf Cultivation on Farmers ................... 67
M. Sakamoto
6 Remote Sensing Characterization of Changes in Forest
Resources and Betel Leaf Cultivation Through Time.......................... 77
M. Sakamoto, M. Tani, and M. Moriyama
7 Fuelwood of Teknaf Forests: Marketing, Distribution,
and Concomitant People ......................................................................... 85
S.M.A. Ullah and J. Tsuchiya
8 Forest Dwellers and Encroachers in Teknaf ......................................... 101
Masakazu Tani
9 Livelihoods of Rohingyas and Their Impacts
on Deforestation ...................................................................................... 113
M.Z. Rahman
ix
x Contents
Part III Scope for Reforestation
10 Social Forestry Conditions on the Teknaf Peninsula ........................... 129
K. Asahiro
11 Actors and Their Power in Social Forest Management ....................... 143
K.K. Islam and N. Sato
12 The Homestead as a Production System ............................................... 155
Md. Abiar Rahman
13 Land Use and Composition of Homestead Forests .............................. 169
K. Asahiro
14 The Influences of Ethnicity and the Distance of Settlements
from Forests on Homestead Production Systems
and Ecosystem Services .......................................................................... 185
Md. Abiar Rahman
Part IV Conclusions
15 Conclusions .............................................................................................. 199
Masakazu Tani
Contributors
K. Asahiro Department of Environmental Design, Faculty of Design, Kyushu
University, Fukuoka, Japan
K.K.  Islam Department of Agroforestry, Faculty of Agriculture, Bangladesh
Agricultural University, Mymensingh, Bangladesh
M. Moriyama Division of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Graduate
School of Engineering, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan
A.Z.M.  Moslehuddin Department of Soil Science, Faculty of Agriculture,
Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh, Bangladesh
Md. Abiar Rahman Department of Agroforestry and Environment, Faculty of
Agriculture, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University,
Gazipur, Bangladesh
M.Z. Rahman Department of Agricultural Extension, Faculty of Agriculture,
Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh, Bangladesh
M. Sakamoto Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo,
Chiba, Japan
N. Sato Forest Policy Laboratory, Faculty of Agriculture, Kyushu University,
Fukuoka, Japan
Masakazu Tani Department of Environmental Design, Faculty of Design, Kyushu
University, Fukuoka, Japan
J. Tsuchiya Department of Environmental Design, Faculty of Design, Kyushu
University, Fukuoka, Japan
H. Tsuruta Kokusai Kogyo Co. Ltd., Tokyo, Japan
S.M.A.  Ullah Department of Agricultural Extension Education, Faculty of
Agriculture, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh, Bangladesh
xi