DHAKA appears to be hurtling towards an ecological disaster as its last remaining trees and water bodies are being wiped out in the name of development. A recent Change Initiative study shows that in 44 years, the capital has lost a half its tree cover and 60 per cent of its water bodies. The research shows that green coverage fell from 21.6 per cent in 1980 to 11.6 per cent in 2024 while water bodies declined from 12.3 per cent to just 4.8 per cent. Built-up areas, meanwhile, expanded more than sevenfold, from 20.7 square kilometres to 148.8 square kilometres, replacing fields, ponds and vegetation with concrete. Temperatures are rising accordingly. In 1990, the maximum average was 36.8掳C and by 2024, it has reached 39.8掳C. Land surface temperature聽 in neighbourhoods such as Shyampur, Hazaribagh and Rampura regularly crosses 32掳C. This is viewed as the consequence of decades of flawed policies that have considered the nature as disposable.
The decline is not only stark but far below the global minimum for a healthy urban environment. The World Health Organisation recommends at least 9 square metres of tree cover and 4.5 square metres of water body space per urban resident. Dhaka fails on both counts. In Dhaka鈥檚 north, the average tree cover per person is just 4.23 square metres and in the south, it is 2.33. Per capita water body space is only 1.79 square metres in the north and a mere 0.97 square metre in the south. The study shows that areas such as Kafrul, Rampura, Bangshal, Sutrapur and Wari have virtually no trees or water body left. A 2021 study showed a 46.1 per cent decline in vegetation and an 8.8 per cent decline in water bodies in 1993鈥�2020 while built-up zones expanded by 67.4 per cent. Healthy vegetation now makes up 2 per cent of city land, down from 17 per cent in 1989. The effects are visible: heat, flash flooding, poor air quality and a loss of resilience. Zones such as Turag, Uttarkhan and Demra, where some natural cover survives, are cooler and more stable, suggesting that trees and water are no luxury in a city.
The authorities should, therefore, act decisively to stop the ecological decay. Urban policies should shift from concrete-centric development to one anchored in ecological survival. This requires built-up density limits, canal restoration, wetland protection and maintenance of WHO standards for per capita green and blue space. If Dhaka continues down this path, it will not merely be congested and chaotic, it will also be unsustainable and uninhabitable.