The resettlement issues that emerged from the
Kaptai Dam project turned into a serious political
crisis in the country. It is widely accepted that it
could have been managed in a better way earlier if
there was a provision of environmental and social
impact assessment at that time. The recent devastat-
ing floods of unusual nature are also considered to
be linked with various types of poorly planned
development activities that ignored environmental
consequences.
The main environmental initiatives after inde-
pendence in 1971 were the enactment of the Water
Pollution Control Act, 1973, the Bangladesh Wild-
life (Preservation) Act, 1973 and the Environmental
Pollution Control Ordinance 1977. The United
Nations World Commission on Environment and
Development
(UNWCED,
1987)
and
its
Brundtland
Report, had a strong influence in shaping the devel-
opment and environmental activities in Bangladesh
(GOB, 1991, page 112). In the late 1980s, the
Government started to attach increased importance
to environmental issues. Creation of a separate min-
istry, the Ministry of Environment and Forest
(MOEF), in 1989 and the restructuring and expan-
sion of the Department of Environment are major
Government initiatives.
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