ECO-Invaders: Invasive Plant Species and Their Effects at the  Root Level of Bangladesh

Written by: Ajwad Karim Shawmik
This article was originally published in the 14th edition of the Equilibrium magazine of North South University, Young Economists’ Forum

Introduction

Foreign invasive plants such as Eucalyptus, Acacia, and Lantana have become significant sources of income for non-agricultural plant growers in Bangladesh. However, their long-term effects on our ecosystem may lead to disastrous calamities such as loss of agricultural land, infertile soil, and degradation of natural biodiversity. Although they bring prosperity to the country’s economy in the short term, are they beneficial to our country in the long run?

Due to inadequate research and analysis by the government and NGOs, who have planted these trees on a massive scale as part of reforestation efforts, their poor planning structure has come to threaten Bangladesh’s environment, ecology, and economy devastatingly.

As losses of agricultural land, soil fertility degradation, and depleting biodiversity are already affecting us at the root level, many more presages are lurking in the background, arming themselves to release catastrophe upon the country and its general people. However, there is hope for reformation from this omen as the government, NGOs, and, most importantly, the people are becoming aware and taking steps towards mitigating the risks and encouraging sustainable approaches regarding reforestation and reviving the environment and economy of Bangladesh.

Understanding Invasive Plant Species in Bangladesh

When we think of foreign invasive plant species, we generally tend to assume new plants, those that we have not seen in our country previously, such as Chinese bonsai and different varieties of roses and orchids from the Netherlands. Be that as it may, foreign invasive plant species are more familiar to us than we may comprehend. Eichhornia crassipes, more commonly known as Water Hyacinth or Kachuripana, is perhaps the first widely introduced IAS (Invasive Alien Species) in Bangladesh, which was brought from Brazil during the British colonial period as an ornamental species for aesthetic purposes and value (Barua et al., 2001). Similarly, many plant species we see and interact with daily are not our native species, such as Nakphul (Lantana Camara L.) Kashful (Saccharum spontaneum L.) and Lojjaboti (Mimosa pudica L.) (Parvin, 2023).

Many invasive species brought to our country have adapted to our ecology and become naturalized. However, others have not. For example, Acacia and Eucalyptus were introduced from Australia during the 1980s because they were fast-growing, high-yielding cultivars compared to native species (Hossain, 2009). Nevertheless, they were subject to several controversies as all the species belonging to these two genera are proven to be rivals to endemic flora and fauna in the country, and are found to be environmentally unfriendly. They mostly invade forests and agricultural landscapes, but many other IAS invade forests and agricultural landscapes, wastelands, and aquatic ecosystems primarily as noxious weeds (Mukul, Khan, & Uddin, 2020).

In Northern Bangladesh, the primary source of income for the Gaibandha population was agriculture, with about 65% of land assigned to agriculture, which, during the last two decades, has been enveloped by IAS Eucalyptus, causing socio-economic and environmental losses. Considering settlement ecosystems, this alien species threatens the native biodiversity and the settlement environment. As a fast-growing, beautiful tree, Eucalyptus has several hazardous characteristics, such as high demand for water, strong absorption of nutrients, resulting in desertification, toxicity in the ground, and soil erosion. It does not support local flora and fauna either. Farmers indicated they were aware of the environmental problems associated with cultivating Eucalyptus, but the immediate economic benefits obliterated the long-term environmental issues (Emran & Mowla, 2021).

Extended Economic Effects at the Root Levels

-Fisheries and Water Resources

Eichhornia crassipes (Water Hyacinth), commonly known as Kachuripana, is now regularly seen in our waterways. As ponds and lakes become choked with them and rivers dry up or shrink, large blooms appear in river systems, often leading to the misconception that they are native and harmless to our fisheries and aquatic ecosystems. However, that is not the case. Kachuripana is responsible for the large-scale obstruction of the navigation system in inland water bodies, negatively affecting fish production and disrupting the aquatic ecosystem by reducing water and oxygen flow (Mukul, Khan, & Uddin, 2020). The invasive prominence of Kachuripana directly affects the livelihood of fishermen, who cannot catch the quantity of fish required for their sustenance due to the overbearing layer of Kachuripana, and have fewer fish to catch due to the same species present in our waterways. On top of this, it is getting increasingly expensive to clean the public and privately owned waterways and water bodies, increasing both public costs for the government and private costs for owners of privately owned water bodies, most of whom are grassroots-level fishermen.

Kachuripana also negatively impacts irrigation systems as it blocks waterways and water bodies, reducing water availability for crops; it is most harmful during dry seasons and adversely affects agriculture: this one species singlehandedly detriments fishermen and farmers, two of Bangladesh’s most common root-level professionals.

-Livelihoods and Employment

As time progresses, invasive alien species (IAS) increase exponentially in numbers and compete more aggressively with native crops for resources such as water, nutrients, and sunlight. Obstructing native crops from these essential resources for growth and development reduces their yield, ultimately forcing farmers to spend more on herbicides and insecticides and get reduced annual yields (Mukul, Khan, & Uddin, 2020). Although the government tries to help farmers through various incentives, such as giving out low or zero-interest loans to support agriculture, the livelihoods of root-level farmers in Bangladesh are degrading day by day due to increasing costs of maintenance and lower portions of crops produced. Due to rising wealth inequality, small farmers are far more affected by such difficulties than large-scale farm owners and landlords.

As the upkeep of livelihood becomes increasingly more difficult, many migrate to urban areas and other countries, especially in the Middle East, looking for alternative professions, often in informal sectors that do not contribute to the country’s GDP or GNP. Crime rates increase, and slums become overpopulated as many migrants do not find jobs or find jobs that are unable to bear living costs in urban centers.

According to the Cities Alliance (n.d.), most migrants who come to Dhaka end up in the slums, home to an estimated 3.5 million people – 40 percent of the city’s population. According to the International Organization for Migration (n.d.), some 70 percent of slum dwellers in Dhaka moved there after experiencing some environmental hardship. It is also noticeable that women are more vulnerable to such problems faced by the lower classes of the population (International Organization for Migration, n.d.).

Government and International Organizations’ Roles and Conclusion

The government is actively working towards mitigating IAS’s environmental and economic impacts in partnership with many international organizations, notably the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). According to Parvin (2023), Sanjay Kumar Bhowmik, Director of the Bangladesh National Herbarium (BNH), stated that five strategic management plans have been developed for managing identified IAS in alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These plans are expected to play a vital role in conserving national forests and forest resources. The UN and its agencies are also working towards increasing awareness regarding IAS and its detrimental effects on our economy, ecology, and environment. With everyone’s coordination, we can eradicate IAS from Bangladesh and build a better country for all.

References

Barua, S.P., Khan, M.M.H., and Reza, A.H.M.A. (2001). The status of alien invasive species in Bangladesh and their impact on the ecosystems. In: Alien Invasive Species – Report of the Workshop on Alien Invasive Species (ed. P. Balakrishna), 1–7. Colombo, Sri Lanka: IUCN Regional Biodiversity Programme of Asia.

Cities Alliance. (n.d.). Climate migration drives slum growth in Dhaka. Retrieved from https://www.citiesalliance.org/newsroom/news/urban-news/climate-migration-drives-slum-growth-dhaka

International Conference on Planning, Architecture, and Civil Engineering (ICPACE). (2021). Impact of invasive species on agriculture and water resources in Bangladesh. Retrieved from https://icpaceruet.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/ICPACE_2021_CE-025.pdf

International Organization for Migration. (n.d.). Situational analysis of migration in Bangladesh. Retrieved from https://publications.iom.int/system/files/pdf/situational_analysis_bangladesh.pdf

Mongabay. (2023, October). Bangladesh survey records invasive alien plants threatening protected forests. Retrieved from https://news.mongabay.com/2023/10/bangladesh-survey-records-invasive-alien-plants-threatening-protected-forests/

Mukul, Khan, & Uddin, (2020). Invasive alien species of Bangladesh. Preprints 2020, 2020020357. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202002.0357.v1

Hossain, M.K. (2009). Alien invasive plant species and their effects on hill forest ecosystems of Bangladesh. In: Invasive Plants and Forest Ecosystems (eds. R.K. Kohli, S. Jose, H.P. Singh, and D.R. Batish), 133–141. New York; CRC Press.