Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
of turtles. Coral bleaching destroys the feeding sources of turtles. Huge rainfall can
raise ground water tables, thereby fl ooding nests of turtles (UNDP
2010
).
Deforestation and Coastal Erosion
Deforestation in the St. Martin's Island has increased at an alarming rate during the
course of last few decades. There are many forces like agricultural expansion,
collection of sand dune vegetations for fodder and fuel wood, population density
and natural disasters largely responsible for forest degradation of the island. Another
major cause of recent deforestation is the clearing of vegetation including man-
groves to make claims on land by local people (Ahmed
2011
). Though coastal
erosion is a natural process, indiscriminate vegetation losses accelerate the erosion
which led to water turbidity and sedimentation, both of which impede the coral
development and survival (Islam and Islam
2008
). A decrease in vegetation is cor-
related to the decrease of local and migratory bird species. The decline in wintering
shorebirds gulls, terns, plovers, herons, egrets, snipes, curlews etc. can be attributed
to the loss of wilderness.
Unregulated Tourism
The St. Martin's Island has been a tourist destination for many years, but with recent
developments in tourism infrastructure it has become one of Bangladesh's most
popular tourist destinations. The existing tourism industry is making a big impact
on the ecological sustainability of the area. More than 3,000 tourists arrive everyday
during peak seasons (November to February) and tend to stay overnight in such a
small island. But the fragile ecosystem on the island is not well-equipped to handle
it. Reckless construction of buildings for tourist accommodation such as hotels,
motels and restaurants has increased at a very rapid rate as a result of intensive
development in certain areas, largely trembling to the ecological balance of the area.
Corals and sea turtles are the main biodiversity of St. Martin's Island and these
are threatened due to tourism. Sea turtles come to nest on the beaches of the island
between 10.00 pm and 02.00 am. It is noted that generators of the hotels and motels
are run till midnight for tourists which is another reason for disturbing as well
decreasing the number of nesting turtles there. Snorkeling and scuba diving are the
most popular activities that tourists engaged in during their visit. These activities
have been noted to pose signifi cant threat to corals in shallow water as inexperienced
snorkelers and scuba divers tend to either crush or stand on the reefs (Moudud
2010
).
Tourists purchase or collect large quantities of coral, different species of shells, and
star fi sh which has resulted in the severe depletion of these species. The main season
for migration of wintering birds coincides with the peak tourist season of the year,
during which time large areas of preferred shoreline habitat are inundated with tourists,
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