Community-based responses to flood and river erosion hazards in the active Ganges floodplain of Bangladesh

Community-based responses to flood and river erosion hazards in the active Ganges floodplain of Bangladesh

18

Mohammad N. Islam Pabna University of Science and Technology, Pabna, Bangladesh

18.1

Introduction

Bangladesh is located in one of the largest floodplain and delta areas in the world, formed mainly by three mighty rivers: the Ganges (2510 km), the Brahmaputra (2900 km), and the Meghna (946 km). The Ganges
Brahmaputra
Meghna (GBM) catchment area includes parts of India, Nepal, Bhutan, and China (Tibet) as well as Bangladesh, and occupies an area of 1.76 million km2. Bangladesh is situated at the end of the GBM river system, occupying approximately 7.5% of this catchment area (Brammar, 2004). It is also located at the foot of the highest mountain range in the world, the Himalayas, which is also the highest precipitation zone in the world. The rainfall is caused by the influence of the southwest monsoon. Cherapunji, where the world’s highest rainfall was recorded, is located a few kilometers northeast of the Bangladesh border (Fig. 18.1). During the monsoon season the amount of water entering into Bangladesh from upstream is greater than the capacity of the rivers to discharge into the sea resulting in an annual inundation of approximately one-third of the country. The flood impacts are cumulative and the effects are magnified at the local level especially in the active Ganges floodplain area. According to the IPCC Special Report (2007) on the Regional Impacts of Climate Change, there would be drastic changes in rainfall patterns in the warmer climate and Bangladesh may experience 5%
6% increase of rainfall by 2030, which may create frequent high and prolonged floods. Devastating flood occurred in Ganges
Padma floodplain in 1987, 1988, 1998, 2004, and 2007. The flood in 1998 was the long-lasting and most devastating in the last 100 years. In total, 53 of the 64 districts of Bangladesh were affected by the flood with different magnitude and around 50% of the country was under water at maximum depth of 3 m for a period of maximum 67 days. The severest flood occurred along the main river courses and the situation was particularly serious in a wide stretch in the overall area of confluence of the three major rivers (Hofer and Messerli, 2006). The risks and damages from flood and riverbank erosion hazards are much higher for such char-dwellers in Bangladesh. According to Barkat et al. (2007), Science and Technology in Disaster Risk Reduction in Asia. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-812711-7.00018-3 © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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Figure 18.1 The Ganges
Brahmaputra
Meghna (GBM) river basin. Source: Modified by the author based on Mirza, 2002. Global warming and changes in the probability of occurrence of floods in Bangladesh and implications, Global Environ. Change. 12 (2), 127
138.

poverty and vulnerability are highly geographically concentrated in the chars than the plain land areas. Nevertheless, no conscious effort was taken in the past aiming at true development of life and livelihood of the char-people, who have always remained excluded from the main stream. However, the flood and river erosion hazards remain hazards without becoming disaster if vulnerability is reduced through some preparations and actions. The excess of water occurs during the monsoon because of the widespread flood, which damages char settlements, agricultural crops, dwelling assets, infrastructures, and communication networks. Seasonal flood hazards reduced livelihood opportunities, household income, and employment of the char-dwellers. Farm-based wage laborers and farmers were seriously affected from seasonal flood hazards. The char-communities are engaged in a constant fight for survival with flood and riverbank erosion hazards. These have given them a great deal of knowledge to fight against recurrent floods and river erosion hazards. In the process the char-people are facing various asset damages, economic losses, and social insecurity. How to reduce such damages, losses and insecurity is a big challenge for these vulnerable communities. This leads to a gap in the conduct of in-depth research on community-based responses to flood and river erosion hazards in the multihazardprone active Ganges floodplain of Bangladesh. The Hyogo Framework for Action 2005
15 also gave emphasis on how to assess local disaster risks and to build a culture of safety and resilience, and strengthen disaster preparedness for effective response at all levels (UNISDR, 2005). Based on the author’s recent field survey in the active Ganges floodplain agro-ecological zone (AEZ)-10 char areas, the major

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purposes of this paper are to assess risk and vulnerabilities of recurrent flood and river erosion hazards and their responses to reduce loss and damages by the active floodplain communities in Bangladesh.

18.2

Methodology and data collection

The study is mainly based on primary data that have been collected from various sources and various ways. Field visits and surveys were conducted by the author at various time periods during the monsoon (July to September) and the dry season (February to April) in 2009, 2010, and 2011. The target people of primary data collection were 100% households of three types of char-land villages who were the victims of flood, river erosion, and dwelling displacement. With the help of semistructured Interview Schedule 242 household head interviews [85 households from Saral Khar Kandi (SKK) village, 72 households from Eakub Matbarer Kandi (EMK) village, and 85 households from Kalu Beparir Kandi (KBK) village] were conducted to collect quantitative data. In addition, different tools of participatory rural appraisal (PRA), including focus group discussions (FGD), observation, and a number of issue-based case studies were performed in order to collect qualitative data and information regarding flood and river erosion hazards, dwelling displacement process, and different factors of migration for the char-dwellers. Hydrological data were collected from Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) and erosion related data were collected from Center for Environmental and Geographical Information Services (CEGIS). All the available data and information collected were compiled and analyzed through MS Excel and PASW (Predictive Analytics Software). Based on the analyses of data and information, conclusions were made.

18.3

Profile of the study locations in the active Ganges floodplain area

The active Ganges floodplain comprises young alluvial islands and riverbank formations (chars) within and adjoining the Ganges and Arial Khan River channels. The chars are liable to change in outline and relief each flood season due to bank erosion and new alluvial deposition. They vary from smooth to irregular in relief, with local differences in elevation of between 2 and 5 m, but less near the Meghna estuary (Brammer, 2012). Especially in the active Ganges floodplain area, the soil type is calcareous alluvium (nonsaline), where sand is 8%, loam is 80%, and clay is 12%. For these reasons, the fertile char-lands provide an opportunity for the poorest communities and their subsistence agro
based livelihood. Approximately 10 million people live in close proximity to the three major rivers in the country: the Padma, the Meghna, and the Jamuna (Baqee, 1998). The fluvial dynamics and hydro-morphological characteristics of char-lands are quite different from those of the bank line and other floodplain areas in Bangladesh. The severity of damage

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caused by flooding and the risk and vulnerability as a result of flooding are much higher in riverine char-land residents compared with other parts of the country. In addition, riverbank erosion is another common natural disaster in Bangladesh in general and for char-dwellers in particular. The Irrigation Support Project for Asia and the Near East (ISPAN, 1993) has defined three types of chars: Island Char (Duba Char, this is a local term for an island char that is located in the mid-river channel and is surrounded by water year-round), Attached Char (Kuler Char, this is a local term for an attached char that is located adjacent to the bank and is accessible without crossing the main channel but by crossing a small channel with shallow water in the dry season), and Unprotected Bank Line (this is part of riverine floodplain land that does not have any embankment or flood protection works). Island chars are defined as land that can be reached from the mainland by crossing a main channel. Attached chars are located adjacent to the bank and are therefore accessible without crossing the main channel but by crossing a small channel with shallow water in the dry season. Some mainland that adjoins the main rivers is also at risk of bank erosion and is just as flood-prone as the chars. These areas are also included in this study as unprotected bank line areas. These riverine islands and attached bars are known as char-lands. They created new opportunities for the poorest and the most vulnerable communities in Bangladesh to establish settlements and pursue agricultural activities. Zanjira Upazila in Shariatpur district on the right bank of the river Padma, 78 km away from Dhaka, was selected as the research site (Fig. 18.2). The upazila occupies an area of 239.53 km2, including 79.93 km2 of river area. It is located between 23 160 north to 23 270 north latitude and 90 140 east to 90 260 east longitude. It belongs to the AEZ-10, the active Ganges floodplain of the mighty river Padma, which is where the Ganges and Brahmaputra (Jamuna) rivers converge. Active floodplain areas are the most affected by flood hazards and are belongs to severe flood-prone areas of the three major rivers. The study villages were located in the char-land of between two water stations, Maowa and Sureshwar downstream reach which typically experienced severe flood and riverbank erosion. Taking into consideration the flood and erosion experience and vulnerability, the author finally selected one village from each type of char-land from Kunderchar Union; Saral Khar Kandi (island char village), EMK (attached char village), and KBK (unprotected bank line village) has presented in Fig. 18.3. The Water Resources Planning Organization (WARPO) land classification system is based on the depth of inundation of the lands during average floods. There are 38.97% lands of F2 type (inundation of 0.9
1.8 m) and 16.81% lands of F3 type (inundation depth . 1.8m) in Shariatpur district (LGED, 2007). The study villages of the Padma riverine char-lands are of F2- and F3-type lands. Shariatpur district has several important rivers, including the Padma, the Meghna, the Kirtinasha, the Palong, the Padma-branch river, Choto Padma, etc. In addition, there are numerous khals, beels, baors, and ponds in the district that render high-potential water availability. The Padma river receives the combined flow of the two main rivers of the country, the Ganges and the Jamuna. These rivers are major contributors to the

Figure 18.2 Map of the study area under active Ganges floodplain in Bangladesh. Source: GIS Map prepared by the author in 2012.

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Figure 18.3 The mighty river Padma and its char-lands with study locations. Source: GIS Map prepared by the author based on Google Image in 2012.

annual medium to deep floods in the district. The major causes of floods in the study area are upland floods coming through the Ganges and the Brahmaputra rivers, internal rainfall, rainfall run-off from cross-boundary catchments, impeded drainage, overbank spills from rivers that are not embanked, and tidal influence. Submergence duration is prolonged if the river continues to remain high above the danger level for a long period of time. The major causes of prolonged floods are prolonged rainfall of high intensity at the upper catchments of the rivers, synchronization of the flood peaks of the Ganges
Padma and the Meghna rivers and their tributaries and distributaries, drainage impediments due to tidal effects in the Padma and the Meghna rivers and their distributaries, siltation of river beds, and public encroachment (LGED, 2007). Taking into consideration of flood and erosion experience and vulnerability, the author selected one village from each type of char-land from the Kunderchar union: SKK (island char village), EMK (attached char village), and KBK (unprotected bank line village). In the study area, the word “kandi” (Kandi refers to a village in the char-land area that was named after famous ancestors in the village.) refers to village.

18.4

Socioeconomic profile of the study villages

To get a comprehensive idea of and information regarding the different household groups and their characteristics, all households in the three study villages were classified according to the major source of income that supported their livelihood. In the study villages, the households were classified into six categories: medium

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Figure 18.4 Types of households in the three study villages. Source: Household survey by the author in 2011
12.

farmer, small farmer, service, small business, remittance from abroad, and wage labor groups. Households that are involved in farming activities directly and operate farm lands are categorized into farm households. Some individuals operate their own land and some lease or share cropping lands in different styles. According to their operating land size, they were divided into two groups: small farm households (0
100 decimals) and medium farm households (1001 decimals). The overall situations of the households in three study villages are presented in Fig. 18.4. Although the people were used to subsistence agriculture for their livelihood, this was not possible due to the frequent flood and erosion hazards. Only 36% of households practiced a farm-based livelihood. The remaining 67% of households operate no farmland and depended on different sources of income. Among the household groups, landless wage labor households (43%) were the most vulnerable group due to the lack of land, capital, and job sources in the study area. The floodplain communities had diversified livelihood strategies though they mainly depended on agriculture, sharecroppers, or wage laborers. This section of the study tried to identify the major livelihoods of flood-prone communities in different periods of the year. The char-dwellers are engaged with different types of primary and secondary livelihoods like farm-based wage labor, nonfarm wage labor, cattle and poultry rearing, fishing, horticulture, homestead gardening, small and petty business, works in garments, etc. The seasonal livelihood calendar for women in the flood-prone area is showing in Fig. 18.5. Livestock are important in nutrition and source of income for the flood-prone communities in Bangladesh. Livestock rearing played an important role in the flood-prone livelihood for multiple purposes: ploughing, threshing, and transportation of crop agriculture, supplying manure and sources of nutrition, and cash income. Livestock was especially important for the flood-prone peoples that did not have farmland to cultivate or capital to conduct small business (Islam, 2012). In particular, one of the advantages in the island char was the availability of spacious

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Season al livelihood calender for the char-dwellers in the study area Months

Livelihoods

(Eng.) Months (Bengali)

Jan

Feb

Mag

Mar Fal

Apr Cha

May Boi

Jun Joi

Jul Asr

Aug Sra

Sep Vad

Oct Ash

Nov Kar

Dec Agh

Po

Wage labor (Nonfarm) Wage labor (farm) Poultry rearing Cattle rearing Farming Fishing Garments worker Horticulture Small & petty business Homestead gardening

Figure 18.5 Seasonal livelihood calendar for the char-dwellers. Source: Prepared by the Author based on PRA findings.

uncultivated land, which provided people with a good opportunity to rear livestock. So, livestock rearing can be an important alternative job, given their very little land to cultivate, and limited access to capital for doing small business. The seasonal livelihood calendar shows that cattle and poultry rearing are practiced in all the year-round. Fishing, horticulture, homestead gardening, and work in garments are seasonal livelihood options for the flood-prone communities in different time frames in a year. Apart these many marginal female household members are involved in farm-based wage labor in Rabi and Kharif-1 crop production during November to May and some ultra-poor female household members are involved in wage labor in the garments and some local government development works like KABIKHA (work for food) program in the flood-prone study areas. In the riverine flood-prone area, riverbank erosion increased the percentage of landless people and contributed to the excess supply of agricultural wage labor, which caused severe underemployment and resulted in further impoverishment (Islam et al., 2006). Due to recurrent flood and erosion hazards, char-dwellers depend on multiple sources of income according to the seasonality and their ability. The major sources of household incomes are agriculture, livestock rearing, fishing, services, small trading, petty business, foreign remittance, farm and nonfarm wage labor, etc. Fig. 18.6 shows average annual income of different household groups. It is of note that the income of farmers was high not because of their high agricultural income (even if livestock income is included the share of agricultural income to total income was 41% for the small farmers and 66% for the medium farmers) but

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51,600 242,600 72,600 86,300 53,600 97,000 19

KBK

67,900 63,700 EMK

Wage labor Foreign remittance Small business

0 0

Service

68,900 103,900

Small farmer

55,100 97,300 SKK

64,800 83,600 102,500 85,500

Medium farmer

Figure 18.6 Average annual incomes in BDT of different household groups. Source: Household survey by the author in 2011
12.

because of the high income from remittance, wage labor, and small business. In contrast, the poorest groups were wage laborers, followed by service and small business. Compared to KBK village, income disparity among the households was low. The study revealed that 74% of the annual budget of a char household is used for food, 5% for health treatment and medicine, 5% for child education, and the remaining 16% for others in the study villages overall. House repairs, fuel oil purchase, homestead maintenance, clothing for family members, tube-well maintenance, communication costs, and social festivals are classified as “other” expenditures. In SKK village, the average household annual expenditures are 51900 BDT (BDT— Bangladeshi currency name: Taka) for food, 2500 BDT for treatment and medicine, 1000 BDT for child education, and 9900 BDT for others.

18.5

Community-based responses to flood hazards

Due to the frequent floods and its devastating impact, people in char areas become accustomed to “living with floods” through innovations of their own mechanism that enable them to survive despite flood hazards. Kunderchar union of the Zajira upazila, located on the Padma river, is one of the most adversely affected flood and river-bank erosion areas nearly every year. In addition to erosion hazards, their continuous coping with flood and survival against these odds have made the lifestyle of these people very different than that in other areas of Bangladesh. Community-based responses to flood hazards of char-dwellers are wide ranging and are based on their own skills and resources as well as their experiences. Among the diverse responding strategies, this study attempts to examine what kind of

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measures people take to protect their homesteads, houses, and other physical structures, and how they manage drinking water, sanitation, and daily necessities. Furthermore, it scrutinizes the strategies taken by the char-dwellers to protect their movable and immovable assets.

18.5.1 Responses in household physical structures As all of the affected homesteads in the study villages were made of mud, the most common measure taken for homesteads was to raise their height using a borrow-pit and by ditching mud above annual flood levels to prepare (Photos 18.1 and 18.2). To prevent wave battering and erosion, the char-dwellers planted trees and catkin

Photo 18.1 A typical house in the study area. Source: Photos taken by the author during field visits in 2011.

Photo 18.2 A flood vulnerable house. Source: Photos taken by the author during field visits in 2011.

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Photo 18.3 Three major types of houses in the active Ganges floodplain area. Source: Photos taken by the author during field visits in 2011
12.

Tin sheet house

KBK

Bamboo fence house

0%

39

33

28 20%

15

21

64

SKK

8

34

58

EMK

Thatch house

40%

60%

80%

100%

Figure 18.7 Types of houses in the study villages. Source: Household survey by the author in 2011
12.

grass around their homesteads to prevent erosion and to secure the soil. A few people also made temporary fences with bamboo, jute-stick, and water hyacinth. As mud plinth is most severely affected by flooding, there are no alternatives to protect the plinth in order to save the structure from collapsing except for building a fence made of jute-stick, water hyacinth, and crop residue around the mud plinth. Photo 18.3 presents the types of houses in different villages, the composition was as follows: 28% tin sheet, 33% bamboo fence, and 39% thatch houses in SKK village; 64% tin sheet, 21% bamboo fence, and 15% thatch houses in EMK village; and 58% tin sheet, 34% bamboo fence, and 8% thatch houses in KBK village (Fig. 18.7). It is evident that most of the island char-dwellers (SKK village) live in fragile houses. A large disparity was observed among the occupational groups in each village. Households that relied on remittance from abroad and salaries had a tendency to live in tin-sheet houses. In contrast, wage laborers tended to live in thatch houses. During a flood, to prevent house damage due to strong wind, another widely employed measure to support the house structure involves tying ropes around them and linking the main joints using bamboo poles. Additional support called fika (fika

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is a traditional technique used to support a weak house structure using bamboo and jute-rope to protect it from strong wind and wave-battering hazards) (extra poles that are strongly secured) was also used by setting bamboo poles diagonally to support the dwelling units. Before the monsoon season, the char-people build fika in the weak points (especially the front and back side) of house structures. Fika are commonly used to support the main weight-bearing poles. As long as flood currents are not threatening the main structure, the sidewalls can be supported by fika. When the flood and its current rise, the sidewalls are removed to reduce the threat of house structures from collapsing. The study also revealed that brick and wooden platform houses fare better than earthen plinth houses. The household survey revealed that there were 78.8%, 93.1%, and 84.7% of households living in mudfloored plinth houses in SKK, EMK, and KBK villages, respectively. Most of the wage labor
based households live in mud-floored houses. They can repair and raise the earthen plinth by themselves for free. The study revealed that houses with wooden platforms are more popular then houses with mud floors in terms of inundation depth, duration of peak flood, and house location. The plinths of all dwelling houses in SKK and EMK villages were submerged during the catastrophic floods in 1988, 1998, 2004, and 2007. During such floods, all homesteads in EMK and SKK villages became fully unusable. The char-dwellers made machan (Machan is a raised temporary platform made of bamboo. It is used in multipurpose activities at the household level.) (raised platforms) inside their houses as temporary shelter. They placed two chokis (choki is a large and high movable wooden bed, on which meals are also served) (cots) beside one another to keep the bedding and other belongings above water level and stayed there for as long as you could enter through the door. Machans can also be made by assembling bamboo poles and tying them with rope—they can rise with the increasing flood water level. In the case of increasing flood water level, a wooden or bamboo false ceiling is usually used as a temporary shelter. One side of the roof is kept open and used as an entrance to allow people to live on the roof-top (for tin-sheet strong roofs). The study found that 28% of households from SKK village, 64% of households from EMK village, and 58% of households from KBK village had false ceilings that were used to store important belongings. When the water level exceeded the false ceiling, the entire structure is usually damaged and the last resort in times of extreme flooding is to temporarily shift household members to safer places. Despite the extreme living conditions, the char-dwellers do not leave their houses. They try to stay as long as possible in their homes during the high floods.

18.5.2 Responses in livestock rearing During floods, livestock and poultry require measures to ensure that they have safe shelters. Poultry cages are usually kept on machan (raised bamboo platforms) or rooftops for a certain amount of time during high floods (Photo 18.4). To keep livestock during the peak flood, floating machans are made from layers of straw, and water hyacinth is placed over a horizontal structure made of bamboo with banana trunk underneath. Since the structure is made of straw and other leafy materials, it

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Photo 18.4 Flood-proof poultry cage. Source: Photos taken by the author during field visits in 2011
12.

Photo 18.5 Jakon in a flood-affected cow-shed. Source: Photos taken by the author during field visits in 2011
12.

provides animals with fodder at the same time. Jakon (Jakon is a local technique used to raise the floor and roof of livestock sheds with the flood level) is a popular coping strategy in which the floor and the roof of the cow-shed is raised along with the water level (Photo 18.5). This strategy employs water hyacinth, grass, bamboo poles, and jute ropes. When the water level becomes too high, EMK and KBK village char-dwellers shift their animals to higher ground, mainly on roads and relatives’ houses in safer places. Due to a lack of nearby flood shelters, flood-free land, and poor communication and transportation systems, SKK and EMK char-dwellers have no way to shift their livestock during peak flood times. They are obliged to sell their livestock for a cheap price during times of peak flooding.

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18.5.3 Responses in water and sanitation system Problems related to water supply, sanitation, and health become acute during times of flood. People have to take measures to manage water and handle sanitation and health problems. The indigenous knowledge of people helps them to survive and cope with the adverse situation of floods. In SKK and EMK villages, the majority of tube-wells and sanitary latrines were submerged during floods and people took some measures to protect and keep them fully or partially usable. In the study villages, very few hand tube-wells functioned during the flood. In SKK village, only a few households increased their tube-well height using a 1.0-m-long spare pipe. After the flood, they removed the spare pipes from the raised tub-wells. Other households who do not have this ability collect drinking water from others and store it in plastic containers. In other parts of the island and attached char-villages where there is no capacity to collect drinking water from tube-wells, fitkiri (fitkiri is the Bengali name for Al2SO4, which is used as a water-purifying chemical) (Al2SO4) is used to purify flood water for drinking purposes. In normal situations, all char-dwellers use hand tube-wells as sources of water for drinking purposes. During floods, hand tube-wells and other safe water sources became submerged and, as a result, safe water becomes scarce (Photo 18.6). Human and animal excreta, rubbish, and contaminated soil mix with floodwaterpolluted surface and ground water. People are not able to boil water to decontaminate it due to a shortage of dry cooking areas and fuel. During floods, 85% and 97% of households used flood water for household use and cooking purposes in SKK and EMK villages, respectively. In response to recurrent flood hazards, very few house-owners have 1 m extra pipe, which has connected by the support of bamboo as a raised neck of hand tube-well and finally it becomes flood proofing. Sanitation facilities are always vulnerable to flooding. In char-land areas, the toilet is usually located in a corner that is lower than the ground level of the homestead. During floods, the toilet becomes more exposed, submerged sooner, and

Photo 18.6 Tube-well facing flood risk. Source: Photos taken by the author during field visits in 2011
12.

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Photo 18.7 Toilet facing flood risk. Source: Photos taken by the author during field visits in 2011
12.

unusable (Photo 18.7). As a result, the toilet structures become damaged and poor char-dwellers cannot take mitigation measures. In SKK and EMK villages, the majority of ring-slab sanitary latrines were submerged during the flood and people took measures to protect and keep them fully or partially usable by raising the toilet pan and making temporary bamboo bridges to reach the toilet. In cases when toilets became unusable and people could not take any structural measures, temporary hanging latrines were constructed. These consisted of raising the base of toilets or placing them in an upward location supported by bamboo or a tree. The rest of the char-dwellers had to use either other people’s latrines or urinate and defecate in the open on boats or floats.

18.5.4 Responses in cooking and fuel stock capacity The char-women usually use mud stoves (chula) (Chula is a kind of stove that is made of mud. Portable chula is used for cooking during the flood season.), which are fixed to their homes for cooking (Photo 18.8). As homestead kitchens become submerged during floods, the char-women make portable mud stoves (chula) as a form of flood preparedness and store them in the false ceiling or in a safe place so that they can be used for cooking during a flood (Photo 18.9). When the regular kitchen becomes submerged, the char-dwellers cook on the temporary raised platforms or on a boat using portable mud stoves. Almost all villagers use stock fuel, such as dry wood, jute sticks, husks, cow-dung cakes, straws, dry leaves, branches of trees, crop residue, or agricultural wastes collected at harvesting time. During floods, char-dwellers often face acute fuel crises. Char-dwellers with enough space in their house and kitchen ceiling store fuel there. Some char-dwellers build a raised bamboo platform and store fuel with plastic covers (Photo 18.10). A few char-dwellers in EMK village have big trees and they store their fuel in tree

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Photo 18.8 Usual cooking place. Source: Photos taken by the author during field visits in 2011
12.

Photo 18.9 Storing mud stoves. Source: Photos taken by the author during field visits in 2011
12.

branches (Photo 18.11). As many households are involved in livestock rearing, they store dry cow dung as fuel for the flood season.

18.5.5 Homestead gardening During the monsoon season, the homestead garden is an important source of household food and nutrition. A flood-free homestead is a suitable place for homestead gardening, though many productions that can meet their food demand. The chardwellers raise the height of the vegetable plant roots up to 1 m by raising the earth (Photo 18.12). Though it is a good adaptation practice, very few households in EMK village employ it. Vegetables are also planted on rooftops, trees, and artificial platforms made of bamboo so that they can grow during the flood season (Photo 18.13). Such type of vegetable production can meet their food demand in

Community-based responses to flood and river erosion hazards

Photo 18.10 Fuel stock on a machan with rain protection. Source: Photos taken by the author during field visits in 2011
12.

Photo 18.11 Fuel stock in a tree. Source: Photos taken by the author during field visits in 2011
12.

Photo 18.12 Flood-proofing vegetable roots. Source: Photos taken by the author during field visits in 2011
12.

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Photo 18.13 Vegetables in a homestead area. Source: Photos taken by the author during field visits in 2011
12.

the lean season. The char-dwellers raise the height of the vegetable plant roots up to 1 m by raising the earth (Photo 18.12). Though it is a good adaptation practice, very few households in EMK village employ it. Vegetables are also planted on rooftops, trees, and artificial platforms made of bamboo so that they can grow during the flood season (Photo 18.13).

18.6

Community-based responses to river erosion hazards

The char-livelihood is fully dependent on the complex erosion and accretion cycle of char-land. Every year during the flood season, char-lands are inundated and partly or fully washed away, whereas new land appears in other places. The residents try to stay in their homes as long as possible during high floods, but when erosion strikes them, they have to dismantle them and move to another char that has not been as affected by erosion as their previous one. However, when largescale erosion occurs and the entire char-land washes away, villagers have to migrate to totally different places. Although the char-dwellers always remain alert for such large-scale erosion, the decision to move is still forced upon them quite suddenly and often with very little time for physical preparation. The present study on settlement migration has been undertaken on three riverine char-villages, all of which have experienced erosion and settlement migration several times. Because there are no published records, erosion history
related data were collected from the elderly villagers. The data collected in regard to erosion history comprises information from the massive erosion period, starting from 1968 and going all the way to 2008, though some of the respondents have only heard of erosion experiences from their ancestors. The major erosion-affected years were 1968, 1976, 1996, 1998, and 2006 for SKK village; 1968, 1969, 1976, and 1988 for EMK village; and 1968, 1986, 1987, 1997, 1998, and 2007 for KBK village.

Frequency

Community-based responses to flood and river erosion hazards

18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0

319

17.14

9.91 8.45

8.16 6.15 4.24

SKK

EMK Erosion experience

KBK

Displacement experience

Figure 18.8 Average experience of erosion and dwelling displacement (1968
2007). Source: Prepared by the author based on field survey, 2011
12.

All of the char households of the three study villages have suffered from riverbank erosion hazards several times. The households of the three study villages recorded erosion-induced displacement of dwellings from 6 to 22 times and erosion from 3 to 10 times over the last 40 years. Fig. 18.8 shows the average frequency of erosion and dwelling displacement experienced by the villagers of the three study villages. The average frequency of erosion and dwelling displacement in the island char-village (SKK), for example, was 8.45 times and 17.14 times during a 40-year time period between 1968 and 2008. This means that, on average, the village faced large-scale erosion once every 5 years (40/8.45 5 4.73), and in each erosion disaster, they were obliged to migrate two times (17.14/8.45 5 2.03) on average. The highest frequency of erosion and dwelling displacement was experienced by SKK village, followed by KBK village and then EMK village. The village locations, socioeconomic profile, and livelihood strategies of the three study villages are quite different from one another. As all of the surveyed households of the three study villages have experienced erosion more than four times, land ownership is often insignificant. To determine the exact scenario, the village households were categorized into six groups according to their major sources of annual income. In consideration of the previous erosion and migration experiences of the three study villages, the following preparedness and responses will be taken by the char-dwellers during the next large-scale erosion.

18.6.1 Responses to reduce loss from immovable assets As a coping strategy, EMK village char-dwellers will cut down big trees and sell them, or convert them to timber to meet their upcoming house reconstruction demands. Branches of trees and bamboo will be used for fuel in the next hazardous situation. SKK and KBK villages have no big trees. Farming households will harvest their mature crops if it is profitable. Sometimes crop harvesting is not

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profitable due to labor costs and time constraints. Due to the financial crisis, victims sometimes sell their eroded or erosion-prone land to the village moneylenders (mohajon) or interested people in the same village on the basis of land documents only for a very cheap price. They try to catch fish from their ponds and ditches to reduce financial loss. The above-mentioned loss recovery mitigation measures depend on the nature and type of erosion. Finally, they will incur loss of immovable assets due to large-scale erosion. The study reveals that the frequency of erosion and displacement has a negative impact on immovable assets such as homestead area, farming land, trees, etc. As a result, erosion-experienced char-dwellers do not show interest in investing in immovable assets.

18.6.2 Responses to sale of nonproductive movable assets The sale of property and personal belongings is a common phenomenon among erosion-affected households trying to make a living under challenging conditions. During the migration and relocation of settlements, victims require money very badly. In this situation, the sale of livestock and jewelry is important. In the case of household goods, livestock, and trees, the amount of money received for the sale is usually lower than the normal market price. Compared to other study villages, the people of the island char-village are more interested in livestock rearing. Among the three study villages, the farming household groups are rich in movable assets, such as tin-sheet houses, bamboo fence houses, cows, goats, poultry, etc., which they can sell in case of an emergency. The farming and foreign remittance households of SKK and EMK villages sell their additional less important movable assets to reduce loss and make money as an emergency response to erosion-induced migration.

18.6.3 Usage of low-cost local house construction materials Generally, three types of houses are commonly used in char-lands: tin-sheet house, bamboo fence house, and thatch house. Wooden platform tin-sheet housing is quite expensive and is very useful for flood-erosion prone areas. It often requires the help of a carpenter for dismantling and reconstruction, which is very difficult to arrange in an emergency situation during an erosion disaster. To avoid this problem, many char-dwellers, especially SKK villagers who have faced displacement many times, build wood-floor bamboo fence houses that are easier to construct and dismantle and are also made with cheaper materials. Bamboo and jute sticks are available in char-land and they are widely used for making fences, poles, platforms, roofs, etc. In SKK village, 39% of households live in thatch houses and 18% of households have wooden platforms. Only 28% of households have tin-sheet houses. To avoid excessive cost and effort, the displacees also build two-roofed fence-less wooden temporary platforms, which are locally called Bangpower (Bangpower is a temporary housing structure without a fence that is used during resettlement stages of riverbank erosion hazards). These low-cost temporary structures are used during the temporary and intermediate migration stages for a few months.

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18.6.4 Dwelling dismantling and necessary tools Carpentry and dwelling dismantling tools are badly needed for emergency response during erosion hazards. Household-based individual migration victims may get support from their relatives, although this is rare. For remedial measures of house dismantling and reconstruction, the island char-dwellers avoid building tin-sheet houses. They prefer to build thatch houses and bamboo fence houses by employing local low-cost materials so that they can easily dismantle and reconstruct their homes. This is why tools like hammers, spades, hand saws, claw hammers, screwdrivers, etc., are highly demanded by the char-dwellers (Photos 18.14 and 18.15). They keep these types of house construction tools according to their capacity for dismantling and rebuilding physical structures.

Photo 18.14 House reconstruction stage. Source: Photos taken by the author during field visits in 2011
12.

Photo 18.15 Necessary tools. Source: Photos taken by the author during field visits in 2011
12.

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18.6.5 Early preparedness for dwelling shifting During the house dismantling and shifting stages, skilled manpower, labor force, tools, and big engine boats are highly demanded. With the help of neighbors and relatives, the displacees move with their dwelling materials and belongings and store them in their newly migrated location. In the community approach to village migration, the community leaders try to manage the emergency situation in a collective manner. They organize house dismantling teams composed of young and energetic villagers and engage them in dismantling dwellings one after another according to the severity of damage. The community leaders hire several big engine boats and make arrangements with them to transport all of the dismantled dwellings to the new place.

18.6.6 Planning for settlement relocation and alternative livelihood options Riverbank erosion and settlement displacement affect the char-dwellers to such an extent that many of the displacees find themselves with no land and shelter. Elahi (1991) estimated that approximately 1 million people are directly affected each year by riverbank erosion in Bangladesh and that most of them end up as landless displacees. The riverbank erosion
induced migration practiced by the char-dwellers is not the same as that practiced by the unprotected mainland people. The erosion victims are generally left with few options to manage the physical movement of dwelling structures and belongings, including livestock. There are no systematic support mechanisms from government or nongovernment agencies (Abrar and Azad, 2004). In this study the char-livelihood depends on diverse sources of income as a survival strategy, although 60% of households in SKK village and 54% of households in KBK village are dependent on wage labor. In addition to farm-based wage labor, they are also involved in nonfarm wage labor, seasonal fishing, livestock rearing, rickshaw-van pulling, and various other occupations. Settlement relocation in the char-land is a common phenomenon for the chardwellers of Bangladesh. The victims are forced to migrate and settle in new places. The present study also found similar results for the erosion victims. After facing devastating erosion hazards, some move to safer zones on the mainland while others settle on natural levees of disaster-prone islands and attached char areas. The decision regarding the relocation site depends on many factors, such as the individual’s attitude, economic condition, social relationship, education, etc. The island char village (SKK) is located in one of the most vulnerable zones, where the population has faced erosion 8.45 times, which has led to settlement displacement 17.14 times over the last 40 years (Fig. 18.8). The unprotected bank line village is located in a safer zone, where transportation, education, and communication facilities are better than those in the island and attached char-villages. By taking these factors into consideration, the foreign remittance, small trading, and service household groups usually plan to move to safer zones in hopes of purchasing or renting a piece of land. However, the farming household groups try to shift to a newly accreted char, where

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they can find an opportunity to rent or lease agricultural land as a sharecropper. The wage labor
based households do not have a choice in regard to relocation as their destination depends on where they can survive by getting wage labor
based income.

18.7

Conclusions

The people of the riverine floodplain and char-lands are the most vulnerable to flood and erosion disasters in Bangladesh. The interaction between the rapidly increasing population, the intensification of agricultural production, and the scale and dynamics of the river system makes floodplain management in Bangladesh a critical issue. Recurrent flood and erosion disasters are not new for the char-dwellers who have been living in these multihazard-prone areas for a long time. The flood hazard remains hazardous but does not become disastrous if vulnerability is reduced through preparation and action. Due to increasing pressure for land, its vulnerability, and the demand constraints that are inherent to agricultural products, farming alone is not capable of providing sufficient employment for the flood and riverbank erosion
prone people of active Ganges floodplain in Bangladesh. Combining nonfarm skills and farming skills is alternative options to deal with recurrent flood and riverbank erosion. There is significant occupational change among erosion-experienced households after migration. Farm dependency gradually decreases with the increase in erosion experience. It was found that people in safer areas are more involved in salaried jobs, small trading, and other nonfarm activities, whereas people in vulnerable areas are more involved in agriculture, seasonal fishing, and livestock rearing. The study reveals that with an increase in erosion experience, the char-dwellers lose more of their land and become marginal farmers. As they do not have any other skills, they engage in agricultural labor or switch to seasonal fishing or small trading. To reduce their risks and the amount of damage, they attempt to cope with these natural hazards despite the fact that they have very limited adaptive capacity. They have devised their own methods for protecting themselves and their livelihoods. These low-cost local resource-based coping methods and technologies are based on their own skills and resources, as well as their experiences. In Bangladesh, the existing erosion prediction project operated by CEGIS and river water danger level forecasting by the Flood Forecasting Warning Center (FFWC) are not considering the floodplain riverine char-lands, even though more than 10 million people live in this active floodplain area. Ministry of Water Resources and BWDB of GoB should run this river erosion prediction program and revised the flood danger level immediately to consider this active floodplain area in Bangladesh. Local institutional support is highly demanded during and posterosion disaster. In this regard, multistakeholders like UP Chairman and Members, Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO), Project Implementation Officer (PIO) and other upazila-level officers, local police stations, and other government and nongovernment organizations should provide

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systematic assistance and support to the river erosion displacees in different stages of their migration. In this situation, early warning information of flood and river erosion hazards should disseminate in easy and communicable way so that the local community may take necessary preparedness steps to reduce loss and damage. Apart from these, scaling up the local resource-based low-cost adaptation technologies is highly needed. In this regard the Disaster Management Bureau (DMB) and the respective Upazila Disaster Management Committee (UzDMC) may play a vital role to enhance these activities.

References Abrar, C.R., Azad, S.N., 2004. Coping With Displacement: Riverbank Erosion in North-West Bangladesh. North Bengal Institute: Refugee and Migratory Movements Research Unit, RDRS Bangladesh, Dhaka. Baqee, A., 1998. Peopling in the Land of Allah Jane, Power, Peopling and Environment: The Case of Char Lands of Bangladesh. The University Press Limited, Dhaka. Barkat, A., Proshanta, K.R., Khan, M.S., 2007. Charland in Bangladesh: Political Economy of Ignored Resource. Pathak Shamabesh, Dhaka. Brammer, H., 2004. Can Bangladesh be Protected from Floods? The University Press Limited, Dhaka. Brammer, H., 2012. The Physical Geography of Bangladesh. The University Press Limited, Dhaka. Elahi, K.M., 1991. Impacts of Riverbank Erosion and Flood in Bangladesh: An Introduction: Riverbank Erosion, Flood and Population Displacement in Bangladesh. River Erosion Impact Study (REIS), Jahangirnagar University, p. 10. Hofer, T., Messerli, B., 2006. Floods in Bangladesh: History, Dynamics and Rethinking the Role of the Himalayas. United Nations University Press, Tokyo. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. (2007). The Regional Impacts of Climate Change: An Assessment of Vulnerability, IPCC Special Report. Irrigation Support Project for Asia and the Near East (ISPAN), 1993. Charland Study Overview: Summary Report. The Flood Plan Coordination Organization, Dhaka. Islam, M.N., 2012. Flood risks for the char community on the Ganges-Padma floodplain in Bangladesh. Int. J. Environ. 2 (2), 106
116. Islam, M.N., Islam, M.Z., Akter, S.T., 2006. Bank erosion hazards of the Padma river at Zanjira—socioeconomic impacts. Indian J. Power River Valley Develop. 56 (3&4), 123
130. Local Government Engineering Department. 2007. Shariatpur District Water Resources Assessment, Second Small Scale Water Resources Development Sector Project, Dhaka. Mirza, Q.M.M., 2002. Global warming and changes in the probability of occurrence of floods in Bangladesh and implications. Global Environ. Change. 12 (2), 127
138. UNISDR. (2005). In: Hyogo Framework for Action 2005
2015: Building Resilience of Nations and Communities to Disasters. World Conference on Disaster Reduction, 18
22 January 2005, Kobe, Hyogo, Japan.

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Further reading Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. (2001). Third Assessment Report: Climate Change 2001, Working Group II: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability, ,http://www. grida.no/publications/other/ipcc_tar/. (accessed 27.07.11).