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International Islamic University Chittagong

Department of Economics and Banking
BSS (Hons.)
Course Code : ECON-3503
Course Title : Resource and Environmental Economics
Assignment on : Biodiversity
Submitted to : Mohammed Jashim Uddin ,
Assistant Professor, DEB, IIUC
Submitted by : Md. Mehedi Hasan
ID : EB211006
Phone Number : 01628 - 301 755
Submission Date: /02/2023
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Biodiversity

What is Biodiversity?
Biodiversity refers to the variety of living species on Earth, including plants, animals, bacteria, and fungi.
While Earth’s biodiversity is so rich that many species have yet to be discovered, many species are being
threatened with extinction due to human activities, putting the Earth’s magnificent biodiversity at risk.

Scientists are interested in how much biodiversity there is on a global scale, given that there is still so much
biodiversity to discover. They also study how many species exist in single ecosystems, such as a forest,
grassland, tundra, or lake. A single grassland can contain a wide range of species, from beetles to snakes to
antelopes. Ecosystems that host the most biodiversity tend to have ideal environmental conditions for plant
growth, like the warm and wet climate of tropical regions. Ecosystems can also contain species too small to
see with the naked eye. Looking at samples of soil or water through a microscope reveals a whole world of
bacteria and other tiny organisms.
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Some areas in the world, such as areas of Mexico, South Africa, Brazil, the southwestern United States, and
Madagascar, have more biodiversity than others. Areas with extremely high levels of biodiversity are called
hotspots. Endemic species—species that are only found in one particular location—are also found in
hotspots.

Types of Biodiversity
There are the following three different types of biodiversity:

 Genetic Biodiversity
 Species Biodiversity

 Ecological Biodiversity

Biodiversity and its types:

1. Genetic Biodiversity 2. Species Biodiversity 3. Ecological Biodiversity

Species diversity:
Species diversity refers to the variety of different types of species found in a particular area. It is the
biodiversity at the most basic level. It includes all the species ranging from plants to different
microorganisms.
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No two individuals of the same species are exactly similar. For example, humans show a lot of diversity
among themselves.

Genetic diversity:
It refers to the variations among the genetic resources of the organisms. Every individual of a particular
species differs from each other in their genetic constitution. That is why every human looks different from
each other. Similarly, there are different varieties in the same species of rice, wheat, maize, barley, etc.

Ecological diversity:
An ecosystem is a collection of living and non-living organisms and their interaction with each other.
Ecological biodiversity refers to the variations in the plant and animal species living together and connected
by food chains and food webs.

It is the diversity observed among the different ecosystems in a region. Diversity in different ecosystems like
deserts, rainforests, mangroves, etc., include ecological diversity.

Levels of Biodiversity
There are three levels at which biodiversity can be considered:

• Population: genetic diversity within the populations that constitute a species is important as it affects
evolutionary and adaptive potential of the species, and so we might measure biodiversity in terms of
the number of populations.

• Species: we might wish to measure biodiversity in terms of the numbers of distinct species in
particular locations, the extent to which a species is endemic (unique to a specific location), or in
terms of the diversity (rather than the number) of species.

• Ecosystems: in many ways, the diversity of ecosystems is the most important measure of
biodiversity; unfortunately, there is no universally agreed criterion for either defining or measuring
biodiversity at this level.

Measuring biodiversity
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Although examining counts of species is perhaps the most common method used to compare the biodiversity
of various places, in practice biodiversity is weighted differently for different species, the reason being that
some species are deemed more valuable or more interesting than others. One way this “value” or “interest”
is assessed is by examining the diversity that exists above the species level, in the genera, families, orders,
classes, and phyla to which species belong. For example, the count of animal species that live on land is
much higher than the count of those that live in the oceans because there are huge numbers of terrestrial
insect species; insects comprise many orders and families, and they constitute the largest class of arthropods,
which themselves constitute the largest animal phylum. In contrast, there are fewer animal phyla in
terrestrial environments than in the oceans. No animal phylum is restricted to the land, but brachiopods,
pogonophorans , and other animal phyla occur exclusively or predominantly in marine habitats.

Some species have no close relatives and exist alone in their genus, whereas others occur in genera made up
of hundreds of species. Given this, one can ask whether it is a species belonging to the former or latter
category that is more important. On one hand, a taxonomically distinct species—the only one in its genus or
family, for example—may be more likely to be distinct biochemically and so be a valuable source for
medicines simply because there is nothing else quite like it. On the other hand, although the only species in a
genus carries more genetic novelty, a species belonging to a large genus might possess something of the
evolutionary vitality that has led its genus to be so diverse.

More generally, areas differ in the biodiversity of species found only there. Species having relatively small
ranges are called endemic species. On remote oceanic islands, almost all the native species are endemic. The
Hawaiian Islands, for example, have about 1,000 plant species, a small number compared with those at the
same latitude in continental Central America. Almost all the Hawaiian species, however, are found only
there, whereas the species on continents may be much more widespread. Endemic species are much more
vulnerable to human activity than are more widely distributed species, because it is easier to destroy all the
habitat in a small geographic range than in a large one.

Forest and prairie are just two of a plethora of names applied to ecological assemblages defined in a variety
of ways, methods, and terms, and many ideas exist regarding what constitutes an assemblage. Technical
terms that imply different degrees to which assemblages can be divided spatially include association,
habitat, ecosystem, biome, life zone, ecoregion, landscape, or biotype. There is also no agreement on the
boundaries of assemblages—say, where the forest biome ends and the prairie biome begins. Nonetheless,
especially when these approaches are applied globally, as with the ecoregions used by the World Wide Fund
for Nature (World Wildlife Fund, WWF), they provide a useful guide to biodiversity patterns.
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Five Facts on Biodiversity

1. Researchers have estimated that there are between 3 and 30 million species on Earth, with a few studies
predicting that there may be more than 100 million species on Earth.

2. Currently we have identified only 1.7 million species, so we have a long way to go before we can come
close to figuring out exactly how many species are on Earth.

3. There is more biodiversity within tropical ecosystems than temperate or boreal ecosystems. In fact,
tropical rain forests have the most diversity.

4. The most diverse group of animals are invertebrates. Invertebrates are animals without backbones,
including insects, crustaceans, sponges, scorpions, and many other kinds of organisms.

5. Over half of all the animals already identified are invertebrates. Of these, beetles are some of the most
numerous species.

Biodiversity of Bangladesh

Bangladesh is situated in the world largest deltaic plain – the Ganges- Brahmaputra delta, in the north-
eastern part of South Asia between 20034/ and 26038/ North latitude and 88001/ and 92041/ East longitude.
The country mostly consists of flood plains with some hilly areas, with a sub-tropical monsoon climate
(Islam, 2003). In the country, about 80% of the land is low-lying and/or flooded at least during the monsoon,
makes the country the single largest flood-basin in South Asia. The majority of country’s land is formed by
river alluvium from the Ganges and the Brahmaputra and their tributaries (Sohel et al., 2015).
Geographically, the country falls near the Indo-Burma region – one of the global biodiversity hot-spot and

believed to have more than 7,000 endemic plant species (Mittermeier et al., 1998). Bangladesh, due to its
unique geophysical location and a suitable climatic condition is exceptionally endowed with a rich variety of
biodiversity (Nishat et al., 2002). Nevertheless, in last years, like most other regions of the world,
Bangladesh also went through a critical period unsuitable for country’s biodiversity and ecosystem. The
government so far along with various international conservation agencies has also been trying to improve
and manage this overwhelming situation. This chapter aims to provide an insight of the biodiversity of
Bangladesh, from ecosystem to species level, genetic diversity, and major threats to the biodiversity in the
country with key initiatives so far taken for biodiversity conservation.
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MAJOR ECOSYSTEMS OF BANGLADESH

Ecologically Bangladesh supports a diverse set of ecosystems. The country, has the world’s largest
continuous mangrove forest – The Sundarbans on its southwestern part- habitat of the world’s largest
surviving population of the Royal Bengal tiger (Panthera tigris); in its eastern part it has a large tract of
evergreen to semi-evergreen hill forests, once very rich in biodiversity but mostly degraded now; besides in
the north-eastern part there are many wetlands, locally called haors that harbor a huge number of aquatic
plants, migratory birds and freshwater fish species (Khan et al., 2007)

The forests of Bangladesh cover three major vegetation type occurring in three distinctly different
ecosystems, i.e. hill forests (evergreen to semi-evergreen); plain land Sal (Shorea robusta) forests and
mangrove forests. Although, once very rich in biodiversity during the last few decades all forest and
ecosystems of the country have been heavily degraded (Mukul et al., 2008). There have some contradictions
on the actual forest coverage of the country. Although the official forest coverage is 2.53 million ha (see
Table 1) representing nearly 17.5% of the country’s total land area, only 1.52 million ha of them are under
the jurisdiction of the Forest Department (Khan et al., 2007; FAO, 2006). In addition to that, most of the
forests of the country are geographically located only in few districts and are poorly stocked (Figure 1).
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FIGURE 1. Major forest types and distribution of wildlife in Bangladesh

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PLANT AND WILDLIFE DIVERSITY IN BANGLADESH

In Bangladesh, some 2,260 species of plant reported alone from the Chittagong Hill Tracts, which falls
between two major floristic regions of Asia (MoEF, 1993). Until now, an estimated 5,700 species of
angiosperms alone, including 68 woody legumes, 130 fibre yielding plants, 500 medicinal plants, 29
orchids, 3 gymnosperms and 1,700 pteridophytes have been recorded from the country (Firoz et al., 2004).
The country also possesses a rich faunal diversity. Bangladesh is home of about 138 mammal species, more
than 566 species of birds (passerine and non-passerine), 167 species of reptiles, 49 species of amphibians
(Figure 2; IUCN 2016). In addition to that, at least 253 species of fish (inland freshwater), 305 species of
butterflies, 305 species of shrimp/prawn, 2,493 species of insects, 362 species of mollusks, 66 species of
corals, 15 species of crabs, 19 species of mites, 164 species of algae, 4 species of echinoderms are believed
to be exist in the country (IUCN 2015 & 2000; Islam et al. 2003).

FIGURE 2. Faunal diversity of Bangladesh

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CHALLENGES AND MAJOR THREATS TO BIODIVERSITY IN

BANGLADESH

Biodiversity loss in Bangladesh is attributed to several socio-economic, bio-physical and organizational

factors (Mukul et al., 2014b & 2012a). Following are some key reasons behind the rapid biodiversity loss in
the country.

i. High population density, extreme poverty, and unemployment: Bangladesh is one of the world’s densely
populated countries with an extreme poverty and high unemployment rate. More than 85% population of the
country are living in rural areas and somehow depends on various natural resources which lead to
exploitation of plant and animal products for people’s livelihood and income (Mukul et al., 2012a). Rural
fuel consumption pattern, which is strongly concerned with degradation of natural forest area
is another important issue related to biodiversity depletion in the country (Mukul et al., 2014c).

ii. Climate change and sea level rise: Bangladesh is one of the largest victims of climate change and
associated sea level rise. The majority of the country will go under water if the water level rises by 50 cm.
The country has already experienced severe change in precipitation pattern, temperature etc. The climate
change in the country will largely impact the persistence of large living animals and the ecosystems of
which they are part (Alamgir et al., 2015).

iii. Habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation: Biodiversity conservation is strongly associated with the
intact ecosystems and natural landscape, however, transformation of
land use patterns, expansion of agricultural lands, changes in cropping pattern, introduction of high yielding
varieties, urbanization, expansion of road networks, embankments, and other manmade factors have caused
immense damage to wild habitats in all ecosystem types in the country. Following are some common reason
of habitat loss, degradation, and fragmentation

 Land use change and agricultural expansions

 Encroachment
 Shifting cultivation
 Urbanization
 Commercial shrimp cultivation in coastal areas
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iv. Illegal poaching, logging and fuel wood collection: There is a big international market (largely illegal) of
unregulated wild animals and their parts (e.g. teeth, bones, fur, ivory) mainly for their aesthetic and
medicinal value (see Mukul et al., 2012b& 2014b). Besides, illegal logging, fuelwood collection,
unsustainable harvest of non-timber forest products including medicinal plants are also responsible for the
depletion of biodiversity in the country (Mukul et al., 2010; Khan et al., 2009).

v. Environmental pollution and degradation: One of the major threats to aquatic biodiversity in Bangladesh
is pollution of soil and water. The aquatic ecosystem is the greatest victim and is polluted by toxic
agrochemicals (i.e. chemical fertilisers, insecticides) and industrial effluents that cause depletion of aquatic
and/or marine biodiversity.

vi. Invasive alien species: A large number of exotic and non-native plant species have been introduced to the
country since British colonial period for agriculture, horticulture, forestry, and fisheries (Mukul et al., 2006).
Some of the species have become escapes accidentally and having adapted to local conditions proliferated
profusely. Some species although have naturalised but many have become invasive over local flora and
fauna. Besides, replacing natural plantation with the monoculture of short rotation and fast growing species
have threatened the existence of local fauna as they have not adapted to those species (Uddin et al., 2013).

vii. Limitations in legal and policy framework: Lack of adequate institutional or administrative frameworks
and suitable policies, weak implementation of existing policies, lack of integration of sectoral activities are
other additional challenges to the biodiversity conservation in Bangladesh (Chowdhury et al., 2014; Rashid
et al., 2013). Besides, poor coordination and cross-sectoral integration, weak national information system
and inadequate knowledge on ecosystem structure and function are the vital reason for biodiversity loss in
the country.

viii. Lack of political commitments and willingness: Unfortunately, there are no dealings of biodiversity,
forestry or other relevant issues in the political campaign of the parties. In some cases, politically influential
and elite persons are found involved in environmental degradation and illegal forest activities (e.g.
encroachment).

ix. Lack of public awareness: Lack of biodiversity-related information and knowledge inevitably leads to
poor awareness and capacity for biodiversity conservation. Gaps in 9 awareness have identified at various
levels from policy makers to grass root people that sometimes even leads to misappropriation of existing
law. Besides, the lack of appropriate implementation of existing biodiversity laws and regulation are
common in the country.
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What does biodiversity mean for human health?

People depend on biodiversity in their daily lives, in ways that are not always apparent or appreciated.
Human health ultimately depends upon ecosystem products and services (such as availability of fresh water,
food and fuel sources) which are requisite for good human health and productive livelihoods. Biodiversity
loss can have significant direct human health impacts if ecosystem services are no longer adequate to meet
social needs. Indirectly, changes in ecosystem services affect livelihoods, income, local migration and, on
occasion, may even cause or exacerbate political conflict.

Additionally, biological diversity of microorganisms, flora and fauna provides extensive benefits for
biological, health, and pharmacological sciences. Significant medical and pharmacological discoveries are
made through greater understanding of the earth's biodiversity. Loss in biodiversity may limit discovery of
potential treatments for many diseases and health problems.

Nutritional impact of biodiversity

Biodiversity plays a crucial role in human nutrition through its influence on world food production, as it
ensures the sustainable productivity of soils and provides the genetic resources for all crops, livestock, and
marine species harvested for food. Access to a sufficiency of a nutritious variety of food is a fundamental
determinant of health.

Nutrition and biodiversity are linked at many levels: the ecosystem, with food production as an ecosystem
service; the species in the ecosystem and the genetic diversity within species. Nutritional composition
between foods and among varieties/cultivars/breeds of the same food can differ dramatically, affecting
micronutrient availability in the diet. Healthy local diets, with adequate average levels of nutrients intake,
necessitates maintenance of high biodiversity levels.

Intensified and enhanced food production through irrigation, use of fertilizer, plant protection (pesticides) or
the introduction of crop varieties and cropping patterns affect biodiversity, and thus impact global nutritional
status and human health. Habitat simplification, species loss and species succession often enhance
communities vulnerabilities as a function of environmental receptivity to ill health.
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Climate change, biodiversity and health

Biodiversity provides numerous ecosystem services that are crucial to human well-being at present and in
the future. Climate is an integral part of ecosystem functioning and human health is impacted directly and
indirectly by results of climatic conditions upon terrestrial and marine ecosystems. Marine biodiversity is
affected by ocean acidification related to levels of carbon in the atmosphere. Terrestrial biodiversity is
influenced by climate variability, such as extreme weather events (ie drought, flooding) that directly
influence ecosystem health and the productivity and availability of ecosystem goods and services for human
use. Longer term changes in climate affect the viability and health of ecosystems, influencing shifts in the
distribution of plants, pathogens, animals, and even human settlements.

Biodiversity's Importance
Biodiversity is extremely important to people and the health of ecosystems. Biodiversity allows us to live
healthy and happy lives. It provides us with an array of foods and materials, and it contributes to the
economy. Without a diversity of pollinators, plants, and soils, our supermarkets would have a lot less
produce.

Most medical discoveries to cure diseases and lengthen life spans were made because of research into plant
and animal biology and genetics. Every time a species goes extinct or genetic diversity is lost, we will never
know whether research would have given us a new vaccine or drug.

Biodiversity is also an important part of ecological services that make life livable on Earth. They include
everything from cleaning water and absorbing chemicals, which wetlands do, to providing oxygen for us to
breathe—one of the many things that plants do for people.

Biodiversity allows for ecosystems to adjust to disturbances like fires and floods. Genetic diversity even
prevents diseases and helps species adjust to changes in their environment.

Ecological effects
The weight of biodiversity loss is most pronounced on species whose populations are decreasing. The loss of
genes and individuals threatens the long-term survival of a species, as mates become scarce and risks from
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inbreeding rise when closely related survivors mate. The wholesale loss of populations also increases the
risk that a particular species will become extinct.

Biodiversity is critical for maintaining ecosystem health. Declining biodiversity lowers an ecosystem’s
productivity (the amount of food energy that is converted into the biomass) and lowers the quality of the
ecosystem’s services (which often include maintaining the soil, purifying water that runs through it, and
supplying food and shade, etc.).

Biodiversity loss also threatens the structure and proper functioning of the ecosystem. Although all
ecosystems are able to adapt to the stresses associated with reductions in biodiversity to some degree,
biodiversity loss reduces an ecosystem’s complexity, as roles once played by multiple interacting species or
multiple interacting individuals are played by fewer or none. As parts are lost, the ecosystem loses its ability
to recover from a disturbance (see ecological resilience). Beyond a critical point of species removal or
diminishment, the ecosystem can become destabilized and collapse. That is, it ceases to be what it was (e.g.,
a tropical forest, a temperate swamp, an Arctic meadow, etc.) and undergoes a rapid restructuring, becoming
something else (e.g., cropland, a residential subdivision or other urban ecosystem, barren wasteland, etc.).

Economic and societal effects

Biodiversity loss affects economic systems and human society. Humans rely on various plants, animals, and
other organisms for food, building materials, and medicines, and their availability as commodities is
important to many cultures. The loss of biodiversity among these critical natural resources threatens global
food security and the development of new pharmaceuticals to deal with future diseases. Simplified,
homogenized ecosystems can also represent an aesthetic loss.

Economic scarcities among common food crops may be more noticeable than biodiversity losses of
ecosystems and landscapes far from global markets. For example, Cavendish bananas are the most common
variety imported to nontropical countries, but scientists note that the variety’s lack of genetic diversity
makes it vulnerable to Tropical Race (TR) 4, a fusarium wilt fungus which blocks the flow of water and
nutrients and kills the banana plant. Experts fear that TR4 may drive the Cavendish banana to extinction
during future disease outbreaks. Some 75 percent of food crops have become extinct since 1900, largely
because of an overreliance on a handful of high-producing crop varieties. This lack of biodiversity among
crops threatens food security, because varieties may be vulnerable to disease and pests, invasive species, and
climate change. Similar trends occur in livestock production, where high-producing breeds of cattle and
poultry are favoured over lower-producing, wilder breeds.
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Solutions to biodiversity loss

Dealing with biodiversity loss is tied directly to the conservation challenges posed by the underlying drivers.
Conservation biologists note that these problems could be solved using a mix of public policy and economic
solutions assisted by continued monitoring and education. Governments, nongovernmental organizations,
and the scientific community must work together to create incentives to conserve natural habitats and protect
the species within them from unnecessary harvesting, while disincentivizing behaviour that contributes to
habitat loss and degradation. Sustainable development (economic planning that seeks to foster growth while
preserving environmental quality) must be considered when creating new farmland and human living spaces.
Laws that prevent poaching and the indiscriminate trade in wildlife must be improved and enforced.
Shipping materials at ports must be inspected for stowaway organisms.

Developing and implementing solutions for each of these causes of biodiversity loss will relieve the pressure
on species and ecosystems in their own way, but conservation biologists agree that the most effective way to
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prevent continued biodiversity loss is to protect the remaining species from overhunting and overfishing and
to keep their habitats and the ecosystems they rely on intact and secure from species invasions and land use
conversion. Efforts that monitor the status of individual species, such as the Red List of Threatened Species
from the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) and the United
States Endangered Species list remain critical tools that help decision makers prioritize conservation efforts.
In addition, a number of areas rich in unique species that could serve as priorities for habitat protection have
been identified. Such “hot spots” are regions of high endemism, meaning that the species found there are not
found anywhere else on Earth. Ecological hot spots tend to occur in tropical environments where species
richness and biodiversity are much higher than in ecosystems closer to the poles.

Biodiversity protection: how can we protect biodiversity?

Protecting biodiversity is a very complex task because most of human’s actions have a negative effect on
ecosystems by weakening them. For instance, human activities generate pollution that affects living
species. Deforestation destroys the habitat of many animals, insects, and plants.

Our agriculture favors certain productions neglecting others and leading to the destruction of certain
ecosystems like tropical forests and species like orangutans. In order to protect biodiversity, it would,
therefore, be necessary to change our economic model of consumption to minimize our impact on the
natural environment. Such changes could be, for instance:

 Limiting deforestation;
 Reducing the artificialisation of natural environments and preserve natural areas as much as possible;
 Reduce air pollution (by limiting our use of transport and our energy consumption, by switching
to renewable energies)
 Fighting global warming by creating regulations for activities that contribute to the greenhouse
effect.
 Making changes in the way industrial agriculture works and using more agroecology methods.