• Energy Research

Despite the significant number of fatalities and injuries, there is currently a lack of data on public knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding lightning in Bangladesh. This study aims to assess the public’s knowledge, attitude, and practices (KAP) towards lightning in the country. A total of 1641 individuals participated in an online KAP survey. Where appropriate, the Kruskal–Wallis or Mann–Whitney U test, Spearman’s rank correlation, and logistic regression models were performed. About 65% of the survey population reported frequent lightning; most (72.64%) did not receive any warning messages, and small proportions (22.12%) had lightning safety precautions. Individuals with numerous lightning experiences perceived considerably unsafe places against lightning compared to infrequent lightning experiences (p < 0.05). Respondents reported good knowledge (56.06%), positive attitudes (82.27%), and good preventive practices (72.33%). The logistic regression demonstrated that having good knowledge and positive attitudes can help people practice lightning safety. Females demonstrated better lightning attitudes and practices compared to males. In comparison to urban residents, rural residents had poor practices. In addition, individuals’ educational levels might also play a crucial role in preparing them for lightning. Overall, extensive lightning campaign activities combined with effective education are required for the behavioral changes in this lightning-vulnerable society.

La déclinaison de l'oxygène dans les océans côtiers s'est considérablement accélérée au cours des dernières décennies, à la fois en termes de gravité et d'étendue spatiale, et une telle disparition de l'oxygène conduit à des zones mortes où la vie ne peut pas survivre. Ce phénomène est principalement attribué à la pollution par les nutriments et au changement climatique en raison de l'intensification des activités anthropiques. Les concentrations moyennes statistiques annuelles d'oxygène ont montré les tendances actuelles de désoxygénation basées sur la comparaison des données (WOA_2001–2018) de 200 m sous l'eau de surface des deux premières décennies du XXIe siècle. Une perte d'oxygène significative relativement similaire de 0,5-3 ml/L a été indiquée au cours de la première décennie (2001–2009) sur l'eau des plateaux continentaux (200 m) dans les océans tropicaux et les zones des océans subtropicaux du Pacifique, de l'Atlantique et du sud de l'Inde ont progressivement commencé à chuter de leurs concentrations modérées d'oxygène 4–5 ml/L entre 2005 et 2009. Par conséquent, au cours de la prochaine décennie (2013–2018), la tendance négative à l'oxygène a persisté à une profondeur similaire dans les océans du monde, et son expansion à d'autres régions a suggéré que cette tendance à la perte d'oxygène se poursuivra à l'avenir. Il s'agit d'une menace grave qui doit être mieux connue, car la baisse des niveaux d'oxygène dans les océans côtiers pourrait avoir un large éventail d'impacts négatifs sur la vie marine, les cycles biogéochimiques, les habitats côtiers, les économies qui fonctionnent sur la mer et, en fin de compte, sur les humains. Par conséquent, il est crucial d'étudier et de mettre en pratique des alternatives de gestion afin de réduire les effets de la désoxygénation continue sur la vie marine et la fourniture de services par les écosystèmes marins. La declinación del oxígeno en los océanos costeros se ha acelerado drásticamente en las últimas décadas, tanto en términos de gravedad como de extensión espacial, y tal desaparición de oxígeno conduce a zonas muertas donde la vida no puede sobrevivir. Este fenómeno se atribuye principalmente a la contaminación de nutrientes y al cambio climático debido a la intensificación de las actividades antropogénicas. Las concentraciones medias estadísticas anuales de oxígeno mostraron las tendencias actuales de desoxigenación basadas en la comparación de datos (WOA_2001–2018) de 200 m por debajo del agua superficial de las dos primeras décadas del siglo XXI. En la primera década (2001–2009) se indicó una pérdida de oxígeno significativa relativamente similar de 0.5–3 ml/L sobre el agua de las plataformas continentales (200 m) en los océanos tropicales y las áreas del Pacífico subtropical, el Atlántico y el sur del Índico comenzaron a caer gradualmente desde sus concentraciones moderadas de oxígeno 4–5 ml/L entre 2005 y 2009. En consecuencia, en la próxima década (2013–2018), la tendencia negativa del oxígeno persistió a una profundidad similar en los océanos globales, y su expansión a más regiones sugirió que esta tendencia de pérdida de oxígeno continuará en el futuro. Esta es una amenaza grave que debe darse a conocer más ampliamente, ya que la disminución de los niveles de oxígeno en los océanos costeros podría tener una amplia gama de impactos negativos en la vida marina, los ciclos biogeoquímicos, los hábitats costeros, las economías que se ejecutan en el mar y, en última instancia, en los humanos. Por lo tanto, es crucial investigar y poner en práctica alternativas de gestión para disminuir los efectos de la desoxigenación continua en la vida marina y el suministro de servicios por parte de los ecosistemas marinos. Oxygen declination in coastal oceans has accelerated drastically in recent decades, both in terms of severity and spatial extent, and such disappearance of oxygen leads to dead zones where life can't survive. This phenomenon is mainly attributed to nutrient pollution and climate change due to intensified anthropogenic activities. The annual statistical oxygen mean concentrations showed the current deoxygenation trends based on (WOA_2001–2018) data comparison of 200 m below the surface water from the first two decades of the 21st century. A relatively similar significant oxygen loss of 0.5–3 ml/L was indicated in the first decade (2001–2009) over the water of continental shelves (200 m) in the tropical oceans and the areas of subtropical Pacific, Atlantic, and southern Indian oceans gradually started to fall from their moderate oxygen concentrations 4–5 ml/L between 2005 and 2009. Consequently, in the next decade (2013–2018), the negative oxygen trend persisted at a similar depth in the global oceans, and its expansion to more regions suggested that this trend of oxygen loss will continue in the future. This is a serious threat that has to be made more widely known since declines in oxygen levels in coastal oceans could have a wide range of negative impact on marine life, biogeochemical cycles, coastal habitats, economies that run on the sea, and ultimately humans. Therefore, it is crucial to investigate and put into practice management alternatives in order to lessen the effects of continuous deoxygenation on marine life and the supply of services by marine ecosystems. تسارع انحدار الأكسجين في المحيطات الساحلية بشكل كبير في العقود الأخيرة، سواء من حيث الشدة أو المدى المكاني، ويؤدي اختفاء الأكسجين هذا إلى مناطق ميتة حيث لا يمكن للحياة البقاء على قيد الحياة. وتعزى هذه الظاهرة بشكل رئيسي إلى تلوث المغذيات وتغير المناخ بسبب تكثيف الأنشطة البشرية. أظهرت تركيزات متوسط الأكسجين الإحصائي السنوي اتجاهات نزع الأكسجين الحالية بناءً على مقارنة بيانات (WOA _2001 -2018) لمسافة 200 متر تحت المياه السطحية من العقدين الأولين من القرن الحادي والعشرين. تمت الإشارة إلى فقدان أكسجين كبير مماثل نسبيًا قدره 0.5–3 مل/لتر في العقد الأول (2001–2009) فوق مياه الجروف القارية (200 متر) في المحيطات الاستوائية وبدأت مناطق المحيط الهادئ شبه الاستوائي والمحيط الأطلسي وجنوب المحيط الهندي في الانخفاض تدريجيًا من تركيزات الأكسجين المعتدلة 4–5 مل/لتر بين عامي 2005 و 2009. وبالتالي، في العقد التالي (2013–2018)، استمر اتجاه الأكسجين السلبي على عمق مماثل في المحيطات العالمية، ويشير توسعه إلى المزيد من المناطق إلى أن هذا الاتجاه لفقدان الأكسجين سيستمر في المستقبل. هذا تهديد خطير يجب أن يكون معروفًا على نطاق أوسع لأن الانخفاضات في مستويات الأكسجين في المحيطات الساحلية يمكن أن يكون لها مجموعة واسعة من التأثير السلبي على الحياة البحرية والدورات البيوجيوكيميائية والموائل الساحلية والاقتصادات التي تعمل على البحر، وفي نهاية المطاف البشر. لذلك، من الأهمية بمكان التحقيق في بدائل الإدارة ووضعها موضع التنفيذ من أجل تقليل آثار نزع الأكسجين المستمر على الحياة البحرية وتوريد الخدمات من قبل النظم الإيكولوجية البحرية.

Climate change is perceived to be the primary reason for the amplification of extreme climatic phenomena. Estimation of changes in extreme values under climate change thus plays an important role in disaster risk assessment and management. However, the different changes in extremes in two distinct regions: inland and coast under climate change are yet to be investigated meticulously. This study is intended to assess the changes in frequency of rainfall and temperature extremes under the impact of climate change in two distinct locations: coast and inland of Bengal delta, a region highly vulnerable to climate change. The multi-model ensemble (projections from CMIP6 framework) technique with the application of frequency analysis was employed to appraise the impact in two future time horizons. Results suggest that the inland estimate of extreme rainfall by the end of this century is barely able to exceed the coastal estimate of extreme rainfall in present conditions. The rate of increase of warm extremes is almost similar; however, with the cold extreme, the increase rate is a little higher inland than on the coast. In both regions, a greater rise in climate extremes is expected in the far future than in the near future. Overall, the coastal area is expected to be more vulnerable to flooding while the inland to drought under climate change in the Bengal delta region.

The Huai River Basin (HRB) has experienced significant climate and land use and land cover changes (LUCC) which have impacted the water cycle in recent times. However, little is understood about the impact of climate change and LUCC affecting evapotranspiration (ET). Thus, we investigate how surface ET response to climate change and LUCC in the HRB for the period from 2001 to 2014. ET and land cover types products (i.e., MOD16 and MCD12Q1, respectively) from MODerate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) were employed in this research. Water balance method and D20 pan evaporation data (Epan) as well as eddy covariance (EC) measurements were used to validate the MOD16 product, and the Theil-Sen's slope estimator and Mann-Kendall (M-K) test were adopted to estimate the magnitude and significance of ET trends. Moreover, daily meteorological data of 137 weather stations from 2001 to 2014 were also employed to explore the correlation mechanism between ET and meteorological factors. The results showed that the accuracy of MOD16 product data were convincible and could be used to estimate ET in the HRB. The higher values of ET are mainly distributed in the south and lower values in the north. ET decreased significantly in all seasons except in spring, especially in winter. The results also depicted that the land-use type in the HRB is mainly croplands, followed by forests and grasslands. Croplands area showed a decreasing trend at a rate of -176.2 km2·a-1, grasslands area presents a w-type fluctuation decreasing trend with a rate of -35.8 km2·a-1, urban/built-up area increased at a rate of 138.3 km2·a-1, water bodies area decreased gradually at a rate of -1.38 km2·a-1, wetlands area increased significantly at a rate of 43.6 km2·a-1, and barren area decreased gradually at a rate of -9.5 km2·a-1. The average annual ET is closely related to land-use types and shows a significant downward trend in general. The corresponding ET magnitude is exhibited as follows: forests>grasslands>croplands>wetlands>water bodies>urban/build-up lands>barren. Results of the study also suggest water conditions (precipitation (Pre) and relative humidity (RH) decrease) are major controlling factors in the decline of ET. Overall, the LUCC has a smaller influence on ET than climate change in the HRB. This research will provide a better insight into climate change and LUCC impacts on water resources.

An enormous amount of power is required in a rising nation like Bangladesh, where achieving economic growth without endangering the environment is a burning issue. The majority of people who live in coastal areas of Bangladesh do not have sufficient access to electricity. There are almost 40 million people living along Bangladesh's 724-km shoreline. Furthermore, it is remarkable that coastal regions have year-round winds, strong enough to generate enormous amounts of power. The viability and promise of wind energy in Bangladesh's southern regions are highlighted in this study. The places demonstrate the possibility for cheaper power production at 30 m-40 m altitudes. The rate of electricity does, however, rise with height. The main objective of this study is to analyze the prospect of wind energy in Sandwip and Kalapara coastal areas of Bangladesh. The data from 1990 to 2020 was taken from the database from the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) and NASA's NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory). These data sources were used to determine the wind power density, wind power output, energy yield, and finally estimate the CO2 emission reduction. In this paper, a novel approach to the wind energy on selected coastal area is presented and realistic calculation of energy output is carried out of the planned wind system. Finally calculated the realistic CO2 emission reduction by using this approach for a sustainable future. Estimation reveals that about 162.43 GWh of electricity can be generated annually by installing 684 wind towers on southern Kalapara (Khepupara) area and about 257.25 GWh of electricity can be generated annually by installing 1024 wind tower on the periphery of Sandwip area. So, if 1,768 wind turbines are installed on the Sandwip and Kalapara coastal region instead of burning fossil fuels, about 1,11,373.29 tons of CO2 will be prevented from being emitted annually.

Abstract Bangladesh is one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change in the world. In general, Charland (Riverine Island) communities are frequently affected by floods, riverbank erosion, and other climatic hazards, which cause many to lose their sources of livelihoods and properties and making them more vulnerable. Using survey data of 262 rural households, this study investigates the extent of livelihood vulnerability to climate change and natural hazards of the Charland communities by applying the climate change vulnerability index (CVI) (i.e. UN-IPCC vulnerability framework) and the livelihood vulnerability index (LVI) to develop context-specific interventions for building climate and livelihood resilience. The two approaches of vulnerability assessment were modified to incorporate local contexts and indigenous knowledge into 41 sub-components. The result shows that LVI and CVI values are different between Charland communities. The LVI index shows that households in Char Jotindro-Narayan (0.148) are more vulnerable than Char Kulaghat (0.139). The CVI values for Char Jotindro-Narayan (0.633) are slightly lower than for Char Kulaghat (0.639). The major vulnerability factors were identified as the social networks, food self-sufficiency, natural disasters, and climatic variability. The study also indicates that flood, riverbank erosion, unemployment, and access to communication, market, and basic service opportunities are the major biophysical and socioeconomic factors determining livelihood vulnerability. The context-specific sustainable policies and development initiatives are required to improve the adaptive capacity of Charland communities across Bangladesh and thereby building their climate and livelihood resilience.

Climate change is a significant risk multiplier and profoundly influences the transmission dynamics, geographical distribution, and resurgence of vector-borne diseases (VBDs). Bangladesh has a noticeable rise in VBDs attributed to climate change. Despite the severity of this issue, the interconnections between climate change and VBDs in Bangladesh have yet to be thoroughly explored. To address this research gap, our review meticulously examined existing literature on the relationship between climate change and VBDs in Bangladesh. Using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) approach, we identified 3849 records from SCOPUS, Web of Science, and Google Scholar databases. Ultimately, 22 research articles meeting specific criteria were included. We identified that the literature on the subject matter of this study is non-contemporaneous, with 68% of studies investing datasets before 2014, despite studies on climate change and dengue nexus having increased recently. We pinpointed Dhaka and Chittagong Hill Tracts as the dengue and malaria research hotspots, respectively. We highlighted that the 2023 dengue outbreak illustrates a possible shift in dengue-endemic areas in Bangladesh. Moreover, dengue cases surged by 317% in 2023 compared to 2019 records, with a corresponding 607% increase in mortality compared to 2022. A weak connection was observed between dengue incidents and climate drivers, including the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD). However, no compelling evidence supported an association between malaria cases, and Sea Surface Temperature (SST) in the Bay of Bengal, along with the NINO3 phenomenon. We observed minimal microclimatic and non-climatic data inclusion in selected studies. Our review holds implications for policymakers, urging the prioritization of mitigation measures such as year-round surveillance and early warning systems. Ultimately, it calls for resource allocation to empower researchers in advancing the understanding of VBD dynamics amidst changing climates.

The emerging technologies of Industry 4.0 (I4.0) are crucial to incorporating agility, sustainability, smartness, and competitiveness in the business model, enabling long-term sustainability practices in the pharmaceutical supply chain (PSC). By leveraging the latest technologies of I4.0, pharmaceutical companies can gain real-time visibility into their supply chain (SC) operations, allowing them to make data-driven decisions that improve SC performance, efficiency, resilience, and sustainability. However, to date, no research has examined the critical success factors (CSFs) that enable the pharmaceutical industry to adopt I4.0 successfully to enhance overall SC sustainability. This study, therefore, analyzed the potential CSFs for adopting I4.0 to increase all facets of sustainability in the PSC, especially from the perspective of an emerging economy like Bangladesh. Initially, sixteen CSFs were identified through a comprehensive literature review and expert validation. Later, the finalized CSFs were clustered into three relevant groups and analyzed using a Bayesian best-worst method (BWM)-based multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) framework. The study findings revealed that "sufficient investment for technological advancement", "digitalized product monitoring and traceability", and "dedicated and robust research and development (R&D) team" are the top three CSFs to adopt I4.0 in the PSC. The study’s findings can aid industrial practitioners, managers, and policymakers in creating effective action plans for efficiently adopting I4.0 in PSC to avail of its competitive benefits and ensure a sustainable future for the pharmaceutical industry.