AL demands scrapping Chevron deal on Lawachhara survey
Friday, 6 June 2008
Awami League leaders Thursday demanded that the government cancel its agreement with the US oil-company Chevron on seismic survey at the Lawachhara national forest in Moulvibazar, reports UNB.
They said the government should take a prompt decision as the eco-sensitive Lawachhara forest already has been harmed greatly by the three-dimensional seismic survey of the foreign company.
'Lots of birds and other species, including Ulluk (hoolock gibbon) have reportedly deserted the forest after Chevron's seismic survey. Now it is for the government to decide whether it will let Chevron destroy the forest or stop it,' AL presidium-member and former forest and environment minister Syeda Sajeda Chowdhury said.
She was addressing a seminar on environmental threats in Bangladesh arranged by the AL sub-committee on environment at the city's Engineers Institution in the morning.
Another presidium member, Abdur Razzak, leaders Subed Ali Bhuiyan, Advocate Rahmat Ali and Abdul Mannan, among others, also addressed the seminar with veteran politician MA Mannan in the chair.
Dr Subrata Kumar Saha of Dhaka University's Geology Department presented a keynote paper at the seminar.
Abdur Razzak in his speech described the last AL government's various initiatives towards preserving the ecological balance of the country and said the present government should be more careful about protecting the country's environment.
Chevron continued the seismic survey from January to June this year despite protests from locals and various institutions and organisations.
The Lawachhara rainforest is home to 300 out of 600 bird species of the country. There is no other forest in the country where such a large number of birds live in close proximity. Due to the seismic survey the breeding of wild animals will be hampered.
As a result, most of the wildlife species, including seasonal birds, will be extinct. No compensation can overcome the problem.
There are plants of 167 species, 4 species of amphibious animals, 6 species of reptiles, 20 species of breast-sucker animals, and 246 species of birds.
Of the wildlife in this forest, there are spiders of over a hundred species, different species of monkey, wild chicken, crab, fishing cat, nearly extinguished animals like gibbon, blackface monkey, mirage, modest monkey, white tiger, short-tail monkey, squirrel, snake, butter-fly, different warms and insects, wild pig, lizard, marten, civet etc.
They said the government should take a prompt decision as the eco-sensitive Lawachhara forest already has been harmed greatly by the three-dimensional seismic survey of the foreign company.
'Lots of birds and other species, including Ulluk (hoolock gibbon) have reportedly deserted the forest after Chevron's seismic survey. Now it is for the government to decide whether it will let Chevron destroy the forest or stop it,' AL presidium-member and former forest and environment minister Syeda Sajeda Chowdhury said.
She was addressing a seminar on environmental threats in Bangladesh arranged by the AL sub-committee on environment at the city's Engineers Institution in the morning.
Another presidium member, Abdur Razzak, leaders Subed Ali Bhuiyan, Advocate Rahmat Ali and Abdul Mannan, among others, also addressed the seminar with veteran politician MA Mannan in the chair.
Dr Subrata Kumar Saha of Dhaka University's Geology Department presented a keynote paper at the seminar.
Abdur Razzak in his speech described the last AL government's various initiatives towards preserving the ecological balance of the country and said the present government should be more careful about protecting the country's environment.
Chevron continued the seismic survey from January to June this year despite protests from locals and various institutions and organisations.
The Lawachhara rainforest is home to 300 out of 600 bird species of the country. There is no other forest in the country where such a large number of birds live in close proximity. Due to the seismic survey the breeding of wild animals will be hampered.
As a result, most of the wildlife species, including seasonal birds, will be extinct. No compensation can overcome the problem.
There are plants of 167 species, 4 species of amphibious animals, 6 species of reptiles, 20 species of breast-sucker animals, and 246 species of birds.
Of the wildlife in this forest, there are spiders of over a hundred species, different species of monkey, wild chicken, crab, fishing cat, nearly extinguished animals like gibbon, blackface monkey, mirage, modest monkey, white tiger, short-tail monkey, squirrel, snake, butter-fly, different warms and insects, wild pig, lizard, marten, civet etc.