Rohingya Refugees and Their Impact on the Environment and Climate Change in Bangladesh

Abstract

Bangladesh, besieged by the Rohingya crisis, mostly since 2017, is
hosting over one million Rohingya people who fled Myanmar to escape one of
the most atrocities against humanity in the contemporary world. To shelter this
large-scale Rohingya influx, immediately, the forestland has been cut, and the
hills were levelled to build the makeshift camps, mostly in Ukhia and Teknaf
upazilas (sub-districts) of the coastal district, Cox’s Bazar, of Bangladesh.
Moreover, it is reported that the Rohingyas illegally collect huge volumes of
forest resources, for example, firewood, timber, roots, and bamboo for cooking,
making shelter, or other uses. Such anthropogenic activities destroyed the
forests and vegetation cover of this area, affecting the wildlife habitats,
biodiversity, and the total ecosystem with adverse effects on the region’s
environment and climate system as a whole. In this backdrop, the article uses
content analysis method to explain how and what changes have occurred due to
human-induced activities endangering the environment and climate related
issues in the areas under study. This paper also addresses the impact of
environmental degradation and climate change effects, and a few policy
recommendations to mitigate the problem in this area.