Deforestation in the Teknaf Peninsula of Bangladesh

Masakazu Tani is a professor of environmental design in the Faculty of Design, Kyushu University, Japan. He also serves as a vice dean of the faculty. His research interests lie primarily in environmental anthropology and environmental design. His main research focus is on the social analysis of environmental problems in South and Southeast Asia. Professor Tani has published articles, reports, and books on the social impacts of arsenic contamination in these regions, both in Japanese and in English. He was awarded the tenth Ohkita Award in International Development Studies in 2005. Md. Abiar Rahman is a professor of agroforestry and environment in the Faculty of Agriculture, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University (BSMRAU), Bangladesh. He served as the head of the department of agroforestry and environment at BSMRAU. His research interests lie in the area of sustainable land use in relation to agroforestry and environment. His main resea rch focus is on the homestead production system and the impacts of climate change on agriculture. He has published 31 articles and supervised 14 MS students in the field of agroforestry and environment. He has attended and presented his works at 19 national and international conferences. In 2015, he was the recipient of an international award for the development of “revolutionary solutions for local food systems,” granted by the Italian Agency for Responsible and Ethic Countryside and Agriculture (AiCARE).

1. Introduction.- 2. Physiography, Forests and People in Teknaf.- 3. Impact of Betel Leaf Cultivation on Forests.- 4. Socioeconomic Status of Betel Leaf Farmers.- 5. Economic Impacts of Betel Leaf Cultivation on Farmers.- 6. Remote Sensing Characterization of Changes in Betel Leaf Cultivation through Time.- 7. Fuelwood of Teknaf Forests: Marketing, Distribution and Concomitant People.- 8. Forest Dwellers and Encroachers in Teknaf.- 9. Livelihoods of Rohingyas and their Impacts on Deforestation.- 10. Social Forestry Conditions on the Teknaf Peninsula.- 11. Actors and their Power in Social Forest Management.- 12. The Homestead as a Production System.- 13. Land use and Composition of Homestead Forests.- 14. The Influences of ethnicity and the distance of Settlements from Forests on Homestead Production Systems and Ecosystem Services.- 15. Conclusions.