The Culture of Impunity and Our Endangered Environment

Bangladesh stands at the vanguard of climate vulnerability, facing a grim reality of river erosion, cyclonic surges, and rising salinity. Yet, alongside these natural hazards, anthropogenic pollution and environmental degradation are pushing the nation toward an irreversible ecocide. Our rivers are choking, forests are disappearing, and the air is increasingly toxic. This crisis stems from a pervasive social tendency to prioritize shortsighted personal or corporate profits over the collective public interest. Standing in 2026, we confront a stark paradox: Bangladesh possesses an impressive arsenal of environmental laws on paper, but the reality on the ground is defined by blatant and systematic non-compliance. This deeply entrenched culture of impunity is forcing our ecosystems to pay the ultimate price.

Statutorily, Bangladesh has constructed a robust legal fortress to preserve its ecosystems. Article 18A of our Constitution explicitly mandates the State to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard wetlands, forests, and biodiversity for present and future citizens. Our foundational legislative tools include the Bangladesh Environment Conservation Act, 1995 (amended in 2010) and the specialized Environment Court Act, 2010, designed for the expedited adjudication of ecological offenses. To maintain ecological equilibrium, the legislature enacted the Bangladesh Biodiversity Act, 2017, the Forest Act, 1927, and declared rivers as ‘living entities’ under the National River Protection Commission Act, 2013. Furthermore, industrial emissions and public health are governed by the Brick Manufacturing and Brick Kiln Establishment (Control) Act, 2013 (amended in 2019), the Water Supply and Sewerage Authority Act, 1996, and the Smoking and Tobacco Products Usage (Control) Act, 2005. These are bolstered by modern frameworks like the Environment Conservation Rules, 2023, the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2021, and the Air Pollution (Control) Rules, 2022.

The critical flaw, therefore, lies not in a scarcity of legislation, but in selective enforcement. Law in this context behaves like a paper tiger roaring at marginalized transgressors while turning a blind eye to influential quarters. Consequently, the Sundarbans face severe industrial pollution, while the forest reserves of Gazipur, Tangail, and the Chittagong Hill Tracts are continuously devoured by commercial real estate and tourism projects. Even judicial directives from the High Court Division are frequently bypassed to fell century-old trees in metropolitan areas under the guise of ‘urbanization.’ While the law stipulates planting at least two saplings for every tree felled, the ledger of restoration remains blank.

The pinnacle of this lawlessness is the execution of mega-projects without obtaining mandatory Environmental Clearance Certificates or conducting rigorous Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs). Because the statutory fines for environmental degradation are negligible compared to corporate profit margins, breaking the law has simply become a cost of doing business. In the landmark Dr. Mohiuddin Farooque v. Bangladesh case, the Supreme Court ruled that a healthy environment is an integral component of the ‘Right to Life.’ Yet, in some of the world’s most polluted cities, our citizens are denied this fundamental right daily.

At this critical juncture, we must decide our legacy: do we leave behind a suffocating concrete jungle or a sustainable, green Bangladesh? Activating the Environment Courts with full autonomy, insulating the Department of Environment from political and bureaucratic meddling, and ensuring exemplary punitive actions against powerful polluters are no longer optional they are immediate necessities. True development does not demand the slaughter of nature; it requires its preservation. Nature does not negotiate with human legislation; it retaliates through climate extremes. If we fail to enforce the rule of law today, no legal shield will save us from the wrath of an imbalanced ecosystem tomorrow.