As the floodwaters of the Jamuna River recede, villagers return to the fertile silt-covered islands upstream from Dhaka, Bangladesh, to resume fishing and farming, particularly jute, the nation’s historic cash crop that provided the burlap for cotton bales during the US Civil War and sandbags for the trenches of World War I. With low elevation, flat terrain, and a hot, humid climate that receives 60 to 120 inches of rain during the monsoon as well as frequent typhoons, Bangladesh is one of the nations most vulnerable to climate change and rising seas. The projected 19-inch rise in sea level by 2050 could put 11 percent of the nation underwater, potentially displacing 18 million people—which would be the largest mass migration in human history.
- Filename
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- ©2017 George Steinmetz
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