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A Field Level Study in Chittagong Hill Tracts
Mahzabeen Anannya — Mawlana Bhashani Science & Technology University, Bangladesh
The study tour was being conducted by the students of Environmental Resource Management ( ESRM) department of 3rd year 1st semester and supervised by our respectable teachers of our department .
Study tour is one of the major parts of gaining practical knowledge in modern education system. In fact in the field of Environmental science this kind of tour is desired one. Being a student of Environmental studies, we should have some practical field work with the theoretical knowledge. Otherwise the knowledge gap between the fact and theory will never be meet up. To fulfill this condition or objectives we took the opportunity of acquiring knowledge about existing environmental condition, forest and wildlife management by visiting different ecologically important areas in the south of Bangladesh. The study tour was conducted at Khgrachari ecotourism area, Rangamati ecotourism area, Bandarban ecotourism area, Cox’s Bazar Sea beach (The longest sea beach in the world) and Cox’s Bazar-Himchari water fall. Khgrachari, Rangamati and Bandarban are together termed Chittagong Hill Tracts. The Cox’s Bazar is nicer than any other recreational place of our country. The Chittagong Hill Tracts comprise an area of 13,295 km2 in south-eastern Bangladesh, and borders India and Myanmar (Burma). They formed a single district of Bangladesh until 1984, when they were divided into three separate districts, Khagrachari, Rangamati, and Bandarban. Topographically, the Chittagong Hill Tracts are the only very hilly area in Bangladesh. Together with Ladakh, Bhutan, and Sri Lanka, they constitute one of the few remaining abodes of Buddhism in South Asia. Bangladesh’s fledgling but troubled tourism industry is slowly luring foreign and domestic travellers, industry officials say. One of the most popular destinations this winter was this beach resort town of Cox’s Bazar on the Bay of Bengal, which drew sun-worshippers from as far away as Europe and Southeast Asia. A coastline or seashore is the area where land meets the sea or ocean. A precise line that can be called a coastline cannot be determined due to the dynamic nature of tides. The term ”coastal zone” can be used instead, which is a spatial zone where interaction of the sea and land processes occurs. Both the terms coast and coastal are often used to describe a geographic location or region; for example, New Zealand’s West Coast, or the East and West Coasts of the United States.
The coast and its adjacent areas on and off shore is an important part of a local ecosystem as the mixture of fresh water and salt water in estuaries provides many nutrients for marine life. Salt marshes and beaches also support a diversity of plants, animals, and insects crucial to the food chain.The high level of biodiversity creates a high level of biological activity, which has attracted human activity for thousands of years.
Environmental resource management is “a purposeful activity with the goal to maintain and improve the state of an environmental resource affected by human activities”. It is not, as the phrase suggests, the management of the environment as such, but rather the management of the interaction and impact of human societies on the environment. Environmental resources management aims to ensure that ecosystem services are protected and maintained for equitable use by future human generations, and also, maintain ecosystem integrity as an end in itself by taking into consideration ethical, economic, and scientific (ecological) variables. Environmental resource management tries to identify the factors that have a stake in the conflicts that may rise between meeting the needs and protecting the resources.
1.2 Participants
The study tour was being conducted by the students of ESRM department of 3rd year 1st semester and supervised by our respectable teachers of our department. On site class was conducted by the official persons of different official and unofficial department personnel like as Forestry Department. The interview session was participated by the students, local people and officers of respectable departments.
1.3 Objectives of our Field Level Study
The tentative objectives are- To get the idea regarding
The region’s uniqueness, characteristics
Legal Status and management system
Forest resource evaluation
People and its culture
Other than Fieldtrip to CHT and Cox’s Bazar…
Know the detail characteristics of different Aspects
Know about the Biodiversity and its value
To get a check list of available flora and fauna
To find out the cause behind the degradation
To get the possible strategy for conserving the forest resources
To find out the present condition of sea-beach
The study area was Chittagong Hill Tracts – Khagrachari, Rangamati and Bandarban area, Cox’s Bazar Sea beach and Cox’s Bazar- Himchari waterfalls. Location of Cox’s Bazar Sea beach: Cox’s Bazar & Teknaf Sea beach is formed by 10465 ha area of West & South coast of Teknaf Island. The Western part is covered by the Bay of Bengal and the South-east part is covered by the Naf river which has separated from Mayanmer.
