Because of its geography, Bangladesh is one of the world's most climate-vulnerable countries, facing devastating storms, cyclones and floods every year. The Sundarbans always acts as a saviour in disasters, but the forest itself is damaged and countless wild animals die, harming the ecosystem. There are no effective measures for the safety of wildlife in disasters.

According to the Forest Department, the carcasses of 138 wild animals, including four wild boar, were recovered from the Sundarbans after the latest cyclone, Remal. Eighteen live deer and a python were also rescued, given first aid and released into the forest. It is feared that many more animals were swept away by the high tidal surge.

The Forest Department says that although 12 cyclones have hit the Sundarbans in the last 17 years, so many animals had never died before. After Cyclone Sidr in 2007, the carcasses of 40 deer, a tiger and a whale were found. During Aila in 2009, three deer and a wild boar died. There is no real record of animal deaths in the Sundarbans from disasters between 2013 and 2019. After Cyclone Yaas in 2021, the carcasses of four deer were found.

Flash floods from upstream hit the Sylhet, Sunamganj and Chattogram regions almost every year. These areas have some forest. Although there is no accurate data on wildlife deaths or damage in floods, snakes, other reptiles and birds suffer heavily, and plant diversity is also threatened.

People working in environmental and biodiversity conservation say disasters are increasing because of climate change, and the Sundarbans is suffering most. Wildlife in the forests of Sylhet and Chattogram is also being harmed. Climate change is causing a range of crises for these animals, from food sources to habitat and breeding.

Ecology and biodiversity conservation researcher Pavel Partha told Jago News: "When we prepare for disasters, it is only for people, not for any animal, not even for the country's livestock. We do nothing for the Sundarbans or its animals, which give up their lives to save ours."

"Cyclones, lack of rain and drought are creating crises for wildlife food sources, habitat and breeding," Pavel Partha said. "The relevant departments in our country have no research on this. After Cyclone Aila, the damage to wildlife and plants in the Sundarbans from Mahasen, Fani and Bulbul was somewhat lower, but the impact of the latest, Remal, was terrible for wildlife. Deer, wild boar, birds and beehives in particular were washed away. There is no count of how many chicks and bird eggs were lost."

Adnan Azad, director of the Deep Ecology and Conservation Foundation, said: "It is not just the Sundarbans. The Sylhet-Chattogram region also has green forest and wildlife sanctuaries. No one has kept track of how many wild animals are dying from the hill torrents in Sunamganj. Climate change has created different crises for wildlife in different regions, including Sylhet, Chattogram and the haor areas."

The Forest Department says some steps have been taken to protect wildlife. According to the department, a total of 12 tiger killas (raised mounds) are being built, three in each of the Sundarbans' Chandpai, Sharankhola, Khulna and Satkhira ranges. There are also 115 ponds in the Sundarbans as freshwater reservoirs: 35 small ponds for animals and 80 for both people and animals. Some of the ponds, however, were flooded with salt water by Cyclone Remal's tidal surge.

Nur Alam, a member of the Save the Sundarbans movement and joint general secretary of the Bangladesh Poribesh Andolon (BAPA), said: "Many projects have been undertaken to protect the Sundarbans. But the latest Remal showed that the projects were not done properly. The ponds that were dug are near the forest offices, for the convenience of the forest offices. There are also allegations of corruption in these projects."

"If the banks of the ponds were higher, the wildlife would not have suffered so much. I think the government should have a research cell. If the projects are carried out without corruption, it will be easier for animals to cope with disasters."

Voluntary organisations working with wildlife have offered advice on protecting animals. Adnan Azad of the Deep Ecology and Conservation Foundation told Jago News: "Disaster management in Bangladesh has always been weak, and the wildlife sector is even weaker. At one time the Forest Department's main aim was that saving trees would save the forest. Now they are starting to understand that to save the forest they must save wildlife too."

"How much animals benefit us is not visible in daily life. We must protect wildlife for our own needs. They have built some mounds in the Sundarbans called tiger mounds, made only for tigers. How many tigers are there in the Sundarbans? But where is anything for other animals? What has been done for wild boar, deer, porcupines? Projects are not being planned with these in mind."

Shahriar Caesar, chief executive of the Creative Conservation Alliance, told Jago News: "Some wildlife species are on the verge of being lost, and they suffer extreme damage in the forests during disasters. From the mugger crocodile to turtle species such as the large kaita, the kachhim and the yellow hill turtle, they are critically endangered. Sambar deer, monkeys, the Himalayan striped squirrel and the black bear are also becoming endangered. If even one or two of these die, their population will fall. It is very urgent to take steps to conserve them."

Saying wildlife must be included in disaster management planning, Pavel Partha said: "Forests and wildlife must be part of disaster management. There must be a plan for how they will be protected before and after disasters. A national plan must be adopted and adequate allocation for animals kept in the national budget. Animals and birds must be included in disaster management. Not just mounds: the Sundarbans should be divided into ranging zones according to where the animals live."

He said there must be enough fresh water in the Sundarbans and a way to drain salt water very quickly after a surge. "Not just the Sundarbans, every forest must have freshwater ponds that store rainwater so the animals stay well. And no invasive trees that harm animals should be planted inside natural forests, only native ones."

Mihir Kumar Do, chief conservator of forests for the Khulna region of the Forest Department, told Jago News: "Because of climate change, cyclones are now becoming more intense and lasting longer. They are hitting the Sundarbans much harder, so wildlife is naturally in danger. We have tried to see how to create safe shelter for them in disasters."

He said the Forest Department built 12 earthen killas this year. "After Remal we saw that many wild animals took shelter there. The space is limited, but we need some earthen killas or mounds in the coastal area of the Sundarbans. Steps have been taken this time to raise the height of the pond banks so that animals do not face a shortage of fresh water."

Amir Hossain, chief conservator of forests at the Forest Department, told Jago News: "I think nature must be allowed to stay as nature. Building shelters for them would be interfering with nature. Because we are climate-vulnerable, our losses are greater."

"We have built some killas and ponds in the Sundarbans," he added. "But I think these shelters have disadvantages as well as benefits for the animals. They give an opportunity to those involved in stealing or smuggling wildlife, because it is easier for them to hunt animals at the shelters. Since the risk is now rising, we are taking steps."

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.