An Assignment

On
“Water Scarcity of Bangladesh”
Course Tittle: Watershed and Wetland Management
Course Code: SWE-3103

Submitted To:
S.M. Shahriar Zaman
Lecturer
Soil, Water and Environment Discipline
Khulna University
Khulna-9208

Submitted By:
Sushmita Saha
Student ID-211306
3rd Year, 1st Term.
Soil, Water and Environment Discipline
Khulna University
Khulna-9208

Date of Submission-15th April,2024

 Contents

1. Water scarcity
2. Water scarcity in Bangladesh
3. Causes of water scarcity in Bangladesh
4. Effects of water scarcity in Bangladesh
5. Solutions of water scarcity in Bangladesh
6. Conclusion
Water scarcity

Water is life because plants, animals, human begins, and any other living organisms cannot
live without water. Water is needed to ensure food security, feed livestock, take up industrial
production and to conserve the biodiversity and environment. So, water scarcity has great
impact on environment and living organisms in the earth.

Water scarcity is defined as a water deficiency or lack of safe water supplies. Water scarcity
is a major global challenge for human begins in today's modernised world. It involves water
stress, water shortage and water crisis. It currently affects around 2.8 billion people around
the world, on all continents, at least one month out of every year and more than 1.2 billion
people lack the access to clean drinking water.

Figure-1: Surface water scarcity.

Figure-2: Drinking water scarcity.

Water scarcity in Bangladesh

Water scarcity in Bangladesh, particularly concerning both ground water and drinking water
refers to the insufficient availability or access to safe and clean water resource for the
population.

The WHO estimates that 97% of the people of Bangladesh have access to water and only
40% have proper sanitation. With a staggering 60% of the population that has to endure
unsafe drinking water, the nation is in danger. The sources of water in Bangladesh are rivers
and groundwater. Bangladesh has 57 transboundary rivers. The great rivers (Brahmaputra,
Meghna, and Ganges) all originated in other countries and the eventually gets to Bangladesh
is greatly limited by the booming population of China and India.

Causes of water scarcity in Bangladesh

Water scarcity is caused by various factors including.

1.Over extraction of groundwater:

Due to rapid urbanisation and industrialization there’s been a significant increase in the
extraction of groundwater for various purposes, leading to depletion of aquifer and lowering
of the water table.

2.Climate change:
Bangladesh is vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, such as irregular rainfall pattern,
increased salinity intrusion in coastal areas, droughts. These factors affects both surface water
availability and groundwater recharge rates.

3.Population growth:
Bangladesh has a high density of population. Which puts immense pressure on water
resources. The growing population exacerbates the demand for drinking, sanitation,
agriculture and industrial use.

4.Pollution:
Pollution, especially water pollution, is a major cause of water scarcity as it leads to the
contamination of water sources and emergence of harmful contaminants. Due to agricultural
runoff, improper disposal of waste, industrial discharge, renders water unfit for consumption.
Pollution reduces the availability of safe drinking water. Polluted water could not use in
agricultural purposes.

5.Deforestation and land use change:

Deforestation and conversion of wetland areas for agricultural purposes reduce water
retention capacity which leading to decrease the availability of water.

Overall, a combination of factors including over extraction of groundwater, climate change,

population growth, pollution, deforestation, and land use change contribute to the problem of
water scarcity.
Effects of water scarcity in Bangladesh

Water scarcity in Bangladesh has multifaceted adverse effects including domestic water
demand, agriculture, fisheries, groundwater, forestry, environment, public health.

Domestic water demand:

Domestic water demand includes water for drinking, cooking, washing and other household
functions. So, the scarcity of clean water makes difficult to meet the basic needs.

Public health: Limited access ot water forces people to use contaminated water.
Contaminated water is the source of diseases like diarrhoea, cholera, typhoid, and other types
of water borne diseases.

Agriculture: The production of crops will reduce for lack of water. Due to the lack of
irrigation water food security and farmers income will be reduced.

Environment: For the scarcity of water, the river flows also decreased and wetlands has
little amount of water. So, the aquatic ecosystem hampers the scarcity of water. Overuse of
groundwater can cause the land surface to sink, increasing vulnerability to flood.

Forestry: Trees need water for photosynthesis and other viral processes. With less water,
trees growth slower, impacting timber production and overall forest health.

Fisheries: Many fish species rely on freshwater ecosystems such as rivers, wetlands, and
estuaries. Reduced water flow and drying up these areas shrinks fish habitats.

Solutions of water scarcity in Bangladesh

Water scarcity in Bangladesh is a significant issue. It is exacerbated by the factors of

population growth, climate change, and industrialization. While some human activities
exacerbated the water scarcity humans has also developed technologies to better acquire or
conserve freshwater. Solutions to addressing water scarcity include construction of dams and
reservoirs, rainwater harvesting, desalination of ocean water, water reuse, water conservation.

1.Construction of dams and reservoirs:

Reservoirs that form behind dams in rivers collect water during wet seasons and store it for
use during the dry spells. They can also be used for urban supplies. Other benefits of dams
and reservoirs are hydroelectricity, flood control, and recreation.
 Figure- 3: A dam on a river.
2. Rainwater harvesting:
Rainwater harvesting involves catching and storing rainwater before it reaches the ground.
Bangladesh is blessed with ample rain. The average rainfall of Bangladesh is 2200 mm, 75%
of it occurred between May to September. Dhaka WASA have shown that rainwater is free
from arsenic contamination and physical, chemical and bacterial characteristics of harvested
water represent a suitable and acceptable means of portable water.

Figure- 4: Rainwater harvesting.

3. Desalination:
The southern part of Bangladesh contains the sea Bay of Bengal. So, the water is saline near
the sea. This water is also unsuitable for irrigation. One method that can actually increase the
freshwater on earth is desalination, which involves removing dissolved salts and minerals
from sea water or saline groundwater.
There are several ways to desalinate seawater including boiling, filtration, electrodialysis and
reverse osmosis.

Figure- 5: Desalination plant.

4. Water reuse:
Water reuse refers to reusing water for appropriate purposes such as agriculture, municipal
water supply, industrial purposes, and environmental restoration. Water rescue can cover at
large scale. For example: wastewater from sewage system is regularly treated to an extent,
but it can be treated to further to produce potable water and then pumped into depleted
aquifers. This water is safe to drink water.

Figure- 6: Flowchart of water reuse

5. Water conversation:
Water conservation refers to using less water and using it efficiently. Around the home
conservation can involve both waters saving technology and behavioural decisions. Exam of
water saving technologies include high efficiency clothes washers and low flow showers and
toilets. The plants which take up little amount of water are produced in our country for
conservation of water.

Water scarcity is a pressing issue in Bangladesh. Some factors increases the scarcity of water
such as overgrowth of population, climate change, and inadequate infrastructure. Possible
solution may involve better management practices, investment in infrastructure and
community involvement to ensure sustainable water access for all.
References

1.https://www.worldvision.com.au/global-water-crisis-facts#:~:text=Water%20scarcity%20is
%20defined%20as,access%20to%20clean%20drinking%20water

2.https://images.app.goo.gl/AhZF5nR3jzpbjSdh6

3.https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fimage.slidesharecdn.com
%2Fwaterscarcity1-140331125932-phpapp01%2F85%2Fwater-scarcity-3-320.jpg%3Fcb
%3D1665814318&tbnid=-xNzWD83yLN-zM&vet=1&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F
%2Fwww.slideshare.net%2FSyedQuadri7%2Fwater-scarcity1-
32950700&docid=XpMPVamidQmMbM&w=320&h=240&hl=en-GB&source=sh%2Fx
%2Fim%2Fm5%2F4&kgs=49d15bca725dff9a&shem=abme%2Ctrie

4.https://typeset.io/questions/what-are-the-causes-of-water-scarcity-3iwb6xi7xk

5.https://bio.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Ecology/
Environmental_Science_(Ha_and_Schleiger)/04%3A_Humans_and_the_Environment/
4.02%3A_Water_Resources/4.2.03%3A_Water_Scarcity_and_Solutions

6.https://www.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/content/350583/rainwater-harvesting-
bangladesh/#:~:text=Rainwater%20Harvesting%2D%20Bangladesh-,Rain%20Water
%20Harvesting,arsenic%20affected%20areas%20in%20Bangladesh

7.https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/water-scarcity-sustainable-management#:~:text=Water
%20scarcity%20occurs%20when%20demand,and%20social%20and%20economic
%20inequalities