BSS, Rajshahi :
Integrated approach has become an urgent need to mitigate the adverse impact of climate change caused by the global warming in the region including its vast high Barind tract.
Minimizing the emission of greenhouse gas and adoption of conservation agriculture like minimum tillage, strip tillage, zero tillage, bed planting for direct seeding and resource conservation technology could be the effective means of mitigating the climate change impact.
Agricultural scientists, researchers and academics made the observations while talking to BSS separately here on Friday. Emphasis should be given to a substantial promotion of alternate wetting and drying method in rice cultivation alongside balance fertilization especially nitrogenous fertilizer.
Introduction of site specific nutrient management practice in different agricultural zone has been adjudged as effective tools in this regard.
“More field level research on global warming and integrated crop management and problems and mitigation should be promoted in the region,” said Dr Israil Hossain, Chief Scientific Officer of Bangladesh Agriculture Research Institute (BARI).
He revealed that the country’s traditional six seasons has been disappearing gradually due to climate change and adding that the summer and rainy seasons have become prolonged whereas winter season is shrinking.
Spring season has already been vanished while the autumn and dewy seasons are on the verge of vanishing.
In Bangladesh, some 93 natural disasters have occurred over the period from 1991 to 2000 incurring financial loss of US$ 590 crore in agriculture and infrastructure sectors, said Prof Dr Golam Sabbir Sattar of Geology and Mining Department of Rajshahi University.
Apart from this, he said crop yields are shrinking as a result of increased salinity due to rising water levels in the Bay of Bengal.
In coastal areas, coconut and betel nut trees do not yield half compared to the last two decades.
Near about 106,300 ha river bank has been eroded over the period from 1982 to 1992 due to climate change inducing various natural hazards especially floods, scanty rainfall coupled with prolong drought, Prof Sattar added.
Sharing his expertise Prof Dr Bidhan Chandra Das of Department of Zoology of RU opined that deforestation of mangroves and natural forests, indiscriminate construction of dam, hill cutting for human settlement and industrial development, population increasing and over exploitation of natural resources have been detected as the major causes of climate change in the country.
To face the adverse impact of the climate change, Dr Bidhan Das put forward a set of recommendations like promoting high yielding stress tolerant crop varieties, alternate profitable cropping patterns, less water requiring crops and resource conservation technology.
Some other issues like strengthening agricultural research on stress tolerant variety development, readjusting seeding time, stress escaping agronomic management, plantation on the fallow land and coastal area and implementation of environmental law and regulation could supplement the adaptive efforts.
