The New Nation - Internet Edition

BSS, Rajshahi

Speakers at a seminar here yesterday underscored the need for concerted efforts of all concerned to face impact of climate change and other environmental issues.

They focused on the issues like rapid population growth and pressure on land, mushrooming of urban slums, poverty and malnutrition, natural disaster, unsustainable agriculture, water quality and arsenic pollution, deforestation, loss of biodiversity, hazards of industrialisation and vulnerability to global warming and climate change.

Ashrai and Campaign for Popular Education (CAMPE) jointly arranged the seminar styled "Impact of Climate Change and Our Duties" at the conference hall of Rajshahi Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Ashrai Director Abdus Salam explained the objectives of the seminar and how to address the effect of climate change as well as build capacities to adapt with climate change and escape from flood and drought in particular.

Some 100 persons representing various government and non-government organizations concerned, research and other professional groups attended the seminar.

They viewed that the climate change has now caused a major concern to the agriculture, environment, ecology, bio-diversity, climatic patterns and even existence of the habitation and civilization throughout the globe.

Because of its adverse impacts, they said, untimely and devastating floods, droughts, tornadoes, cyclones, massive river and coastal erosions, pest attacks in the crop fields and many other natural calamities have been causing huge damages in Bangladesh too.

Director of Center for Natural Resource and Studies Taposh Ranjan Chakraverty, Program Officer of IUCN Dr Hasib Irfanullah and Program Officer of Caritas Suklesh George Costa presented three separate keynote papers on negative impact of climate change.