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The World Environment Day and the Environmental Legislation in Bangladesh

The World Environment Day and the Environmental Legislation in Bangladesh

Environment is one of the most important factors in all countries of the world and considering it, 5 June is declared as The World Environment Day. It is evident that the ecosystem is hampered due to deforestation for modernization. It is not only about the country Bangladesh but also other countries. However, it has been observed that the environment has much been cured during the starting period of pandemic of Covid-19 as people were compelled to stay at residences and refrained from performing daily scheduled activities. It can be considered as a lesson for protecting the environment but it is not justified to completely stop citizens from getting out of their living places for all time. People must work and earn livelihood in various ways to survive and that is the reality. The fact is that there should be a balance between methods of survival and protection of the environment. This is the core reason behind the declaration of The World Environment Day. The principal focus of this day is to reimagine, recreate and restore the ecosystem.

Many countries have lots of environmental laws and policies to bring this message into reality. In Bangladesh, there are almost 200 environmental laws if counted from the British period but only some of them got highlighted at present. The following are some of those laws briefly described.

The Constitution of Bangladesh, 1972

It is known to all that the Constitution is the supreme law in Bangladesh which imposes a duty on the state to protect and safeguard its environment as well as natural resources like biodiversity, wetlands and forests for enjoyment of its citizens through Article 18A. Moreover, Article 32 of the Constitution mentions that none shall be deprived from the protection of life. So, protecting the environment is a must as it is closely linked to the lives of the people.

The Bangladesh Environment Conservation Act, 1995

The Bangladesh Environment Conservation Act, 1995 determines the fact that the Government of Bangladesh shall form a department of Environment and the Director General shall be appointed with the authority to handle all kinds of environmental issues. Furthermore, the Act contains a provision that the Government can declare any area as an Ecologically Critical Area if it appears that it would be harmful to carry out any industrial project in such an area. The Bangladesh Environment Conservation Rules 1997, governed by the Act of 1995 imposes provision to conduct an Environmental Impact Assessment as per the standard of air, water and other components of environment determined by the Rules before establishing any project in any particular area. It can be stated that The Bangladesh Environment Conservation Act, 1995 is the basis of establishing the environment department and all other systems for environment but such Act is also criticized at the same time mentioning that the Director General has excess power under the Act. Moreover, the procedure of appointment of Director General is not specifically determined by the Act.   

The Environment Court Act, 2010

The Environment Court Act, 2010 mentions that the cases regarding offences related to the environment have to be filed in the Environment Court. But a person cannot directly file such a suit. It is generally filed upon the report submitted by the concerned authority of the Department of Environment.

The Forest Act, 1927

This Act is passed for conservation of forest resources which states that the Government can declare any forest land or wasteland as forest area which is the property of the Government. In such areas, the Government retains the power to prohibit conduct of certain acts. Moreover, the Forest Settlement Officer authorized by the Government has the responsibility to take all steps to harbour the forests from harmful activities. Experts often criticise this Act saying that nothing is mentioned about the Forest Department in such Act where it is the most important authoritative body for the maintenance of forest security in the country. On the other hand, the definition of ‘Forest’ in the Act should cover wider areas. It is noticeable that the government properties are mainly highlighted in the definition but natural resources and rights of tribal people should also be taken into account. It often appears that tribal people in certain areas are losing their places to live because of constructing luxurious resorts and restaurants. Ultimately, it hampers the environment and people’s rights at the same time. So, inclusion of these factors in the definition of ‘Forest’ is a must need.  

Mega City, Divisional Town and District Town’s Municipal Areas Including Country’s All The Municipal Areas’ Playground, Open Space, Park And Natural Water Reservoir Conservation Act, 2000

This Act of 2000 can be considered as one of the suitable Acts for this modern period. The main purpose of the Act is to secure the environment of municipal areas from harmful effects of industrial development and prevent abuse of country resources. Section 5 of the Act prohibits rent, lease and handover of any area which is marked as a playfield, open space, park and natural water bodies and penalises the contravention of such provisions. Proper implementation of such Act would surely safeguard the environment.

Apart from these laws, there are also other laws and policies that are directly and indirectly connected to the environment. Special concentration must be provided in implementing all the environmental laws and policies and amendments should also be made wherever necessary. In this way, it would be possible to create a ‘Green World’. The World Environment Day should be the day of real discussion regarding environmental matters. International conferences can also be arranged virtually or physically where participants of each country would analyse provisions and highlight the loopholes of the existing environmental laws. They can also be provided with the chance to mention the execution of such provisions in reality. In this way, the countries can learn and suggest to each other.  

Nazia Amin, Lawyer and Columnist, Email: aminnazia@gmail.com   

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