Water Scarcity-Induced Change in Vegetation Cover Along Teesta River Catchments in Bangladesh

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Water Scarcity-Induced Change in Vegetation Cover Along Teesta River Catchments in Bangladesh Department of Physical Geography and Quaternary Geology Water scarcity-induced change in vegetation cover along Teesta River catchments in Bangladesh NDVI, Tasseled Cap and System dynamics analysis Md. Azizur Rahman Master’s thesis NKA 69 Physical Geography and Quaternary Geology, 45 2013 Credits Preface This Master’s thesis is Md. Azizur Rahman’s degree project in Physical Geography and Quaternary Geology at the Department of Physical Geography and Quaternary Geology, Stockholm University. The Master’s thesis comprises 45 credits (one and a half term of full- time studies). Supervisors have been Göran Alm and Lucas Dawson at the Department of Physical Geography and Quaternary Geology, Stockholm University. Examiner has been Ian Brown at the Department of Physical Geography and Quaternary Geology, Stockholm University. The author is responsible for the contents of this thesis. Stockholm, 7 March 2013 Lars-Ove Westerberg Director of studies Water scarcity-induced change in vegetation cover along Teesta River catchments in Bangladesh: NDVI, Tasseled Cap and System dynamics analysis Abstract:....................................................................................................................................iii Abstract:....................................................................................................................................iii Introduction................................................................................................................................1 1.1 Background of the problem: ............................................................................................2 1.2 Aim of the study: .............................................................................................................4 1.3 Overview of the study area: .............................................................................................4 1.3.1 Teesta River profile: .................................................................................................6 Literature review........................................................................................................................8 2.1 Water scarcity: .................................................................................................................8 2.2 Water Scarcity and Bangladesh: ......................................................................................8 2.3 Land use and land cover change:.....................................................................................9 2.4 Relation between water scarcity and land use and land cover change: ...........................9 2.5 GIS and modeling: .........................................................................................................10 2.6 System dynamics and GIS: ............................................................................................12 2.7 Convenient techniques of draught /water scarcity measurements:................................13 2.8 Previous studies in the study area:.................................................................................15 Methods and material...............................................................................................................16 3.1 Methodical Overview: ...................................................................................................16 3.1.1 Data collection: .......................................................................................................16 3.1.2 Literature studies:....................................................................................................16 3.1.3 Data analysis methods: ...........................................................................................16 3.1.4 Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI): ................................................18 3.1.5 Tasseled Cap:..........................................................................................................18 3.1.6 System modeling and integration with vegetation cover change data:...................20 3.1.7 Reporting: ...............................................................................................................20 3.2 Materials: .......................................................................................................................20 Results......................................................................................................................................23 4.1 Results for NDVI change:..............................................................................................23 4.2 Tasseled Cap analysis results:........................................................................................26 4.3 System dynamic analysis result: ....................................................................................30 4.3.1 The population change over time:...........................................................................32 4.3.2 Water demand and supply in upstream and downstream catchments: ...................32 Discussion................................................................................................................................35 5.1 Spatial changes of vegetation: .......................................................................................35 5.1.1 Vegetation cover changes inside and outside TBP:................................................35 5.1.2 Vegetation cover changes between farmland and natural harvesting area: ............36 5.1.3 Vegetation cover changes following type of the soil:.............................................37 5.2 Temporal changes of vegetation:...................................................................................37 5.2.1 Vegetation cover changes due to rainfall and temperature changes:......................37 5.2.2 Vegetation cover changes due to Floods events during study period:....................38 5.2.3 Vegetation Cover Change due to Rapid Population Growth:.................................38 5.2.4 Water availability in Teesta River and vegetation cover changes:.........................39 Limitation.................................................................................................................................40 Conclusion ...............................................................................................................................42 Appendix..................................................................................................................................43 References................................................................................................................................52 i Md. Azizur Rahman List of Table Table 1 Catchments Area of Teesta river (in sq. km) ................................................................4 Table 2 Comparison between Gajoldoba & Dalia barrage and related irrigation projects........6 Table 3 Major Tributaries of Teesta River ................................................................................7 Table 4 Different drought Index comparison (Chang et al., 2010)..........................................14 Table 5 Tasseled cap coefficients for Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM)..................................19 Table 6 Tasseled cap coefficients for Landsat 7 ETM+ ..........................................................19 Table 7 Satellite data used in the current study .......................................................................21 Table 8 Band specification for TM..........................................................................................21 Table 9 Band specification for ETM+ .....................................................................................21 Table 10 Land cover classification relatively to NDVI values................................................24 Table 11 Overview of satellites/sensors useful for monitoring water scarcity........................40 List of figure Figure 1 Location map of the study area ...............................................………………………5 Figure 2 A flow chart showing the various stages of a modelling process (Liu, 2009) ..........10 Figure 3 Architecture of spatial system dynamics approach…………………………………12 Figure 4 Schematic diagram for data analysis .....................................................................…17 Figure 5 NDVI comparison between 1989-2010……………………………………….........23 Figure 6 NDVI statistics comparison ‘between’ 1989-2010…………………………………24 Figure 7 Land cover classification relatively to NDVI values and changes over time………25 Figure 8 Land cover classes relatively to NDVI value change over time……………............26 Figure 9 Tasseled cap composite map and change over time………………………………..27 Figure 10 Wetness comparisons between 1989-2010………………………………………..28 Figure 11 Comparison between NDVI and Tasseled cap greenness component…………….29 Figure 12 Causal Loop Diagram (CLD) for the study…………………………………….....31 Figure 13 The Population change in upstream and downstream catchments………………...32 Figure 14 Water demands and water available in upstream and downstream catchments over time…………………………………………………………………………………………...33 Figure 15 Availability of water in downstream related to the Teesta River water outtake proportion in upstream.....................................................................................................34 Figure 16 NDVI comparisons between inside and outside TBP………………………..........36 Figure 17 Comparisons between farmland and natural harvested samples
Recommended publications
  • Rivers of Peace: Restructuring India Bangladesh Relations
    C-306 Montana, Lokhandwala Complex, Andheri West Mumbai 400053, India E-mail: [email protected] Project Leaders: Sundeep Waslekar, Ilmas Futehally Project Coordinator: Anumita Raj Research Team: Sahiba Trivedi, Aneesha Kumar, Diana Philip, Esha Singh Creative Head: Preeti Rathi Motwani All rights are reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilised in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without prior permission from the publisher. Copyright © Strategic Foresight Group 2013 ISBN 978-81-88262-19-9 Design and production by MadderRed Printed at Mail Order Solutions India Pvt. Ltd., Mumbai, India PREFACE At the superficial level, relations between India and Bangladesh seem to be sailing through troubled waters. The failure to sign the Teesta River Agreement is apparently the most visible example of the failure of reason in the relations between the two countries. What is apparent is often not real. Behind the cacophony of critics, the Governments of the two countries have been working diligently to establish sound foundation for constructive relationship between the two countries. There is a positive momentum. There are also difficulties, but they are surmountable. The reason why the Teesta River Agreement has not been signed is that seasonal variations reduce the flow of the river to less than 1 BCM per month during the lean season. This creates difficulties for the mainly agrarian and poor population of the northern districts of West Bengal province in India and the north-western districts of Bangladesh. There is temptation to argue for maximum allocation of the water flow to secure access to water in the lean season.
    [Show full text]
  • Water Resources
    Chapter 3 WATER RESOURCES In Sikkim, the role of water resources in the environment is paramount. It is recognized that water is a scarce and precious natural resource to be planned, developed and conserved in an integrated and environmentally sound basis. In doing so, the preservation of the quality of environment and the ecological balance are also of prime consideration. The Teesta is the major river system in the state. THE TEESTA and ITS TRIBUTARIES Teesta river originates as Chhombo Chhu from a glacial lake Khangchung Chho at an elevation of 5,280 m in the northeastern corner of the state. The glacial lake lies at the snout of the Teesta Khangse glacier descending from Pauhunri peak (7,056 m) in north western direction. Teesta Khangse glacier and Chho Lhamo are also considered as the source of Teesta river by many authors. Along its traverse from its origin to the plains, the river receives drainage from a number of tributaries on either side of its course. The tributaries on the eastern flank are shorter in course but larger in number whereas the tributaries on the western flank are much longer with larger drainage areas, consequently contributing much more amount of discharge to the main Teesta river. Furthermore, right-bank tributaries drain heavily glaciated areas with large snow-fields. The left bank tributaries, on the other hand, originate from semi-permanent and much smaller snow-fields as compared to right bank tributaries. The major tributaries of Teesta river are listed below. For better understanding of Teesta river system, it has been divided into a number of river sub-systems which are described in the succeeding paragraphs.
    [Show full text]
  • Ganga As Perceived by Some Ganga Lovers Mother Ganga's Rights Are Our Rights
    Ganga as Perceived by Some Ganga Lovers Mother Ganga’s Rights Are Our Rights Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswati Nearly 500 million people depend every day on the Ganga and Her tributaries for life itself. Like the most loving of mothers, She has served us, nourished us and enabled us to grow as a people, without hesitation, without discrimination, without vacation for millennia. Regardless of what we have done to Her, the Ganga continues in Her steady fl ow, providing the waters that offer nourishment, livelihoods, faith and hope: the waters that represents the very life-blood of our nation. If one may think of the planet Earth as a body, its trees would be its lungs, its rivers would be its veins, and the Ganga would be its very soul. For pilgrims, Her course is a lure: From Gaumukh, where she emerges like a beacon of hope from icy glaciers, to the Prayag of Allahabad, where Mother Ganga stretches out Her glorious hands to become one with the Yamuna and Saraswati Rivers, to Ganga Sagar, where She fi nally merges with the ocean in a tender embrace. As all oceans unite together, Ganga’s reach stretches far beyond national borders. All are Her children. For perhaps a billion people, Mother Ganga is a living goddess who can elevate the soul to blissful union with the Divine. She provides benediction for infants, hope for worshipful adults, and the promise of liberation for the dying and deceased. Every year, millions come to bathe in Ganga’s waters as a holy act of worship: closing their eyes in deep prayer as they reverently enter the waters equated with Divinity itself.
    [Show full text]
  • Assessment of the Impact and Management of Flood
    Imperial Journal of Interdisciplinary Research (IJIR) Vol-3, Issue-4, 2017 ISSN: 2454-1362, http://www.onlinejournal.in Assessment of the Impact and Management of Flood, Drought and River Bank Erosion: A Case Study of Char Land Peoples of Gangachara Upazila, Rangpur District, Bangladesh Shakibul Islam Lecturer, Department of Disaster Management, Begum Rokeya University, Rangpur, Bangladesh Abstract: Bangladesh, due to its geo-physical for the improvement this community in terms of position and socio-economic context, is highly these events. prone to regular natural hazards and the impacts of climate change. Environmental impacts on Key Words: Climate change, Flood, Drought, agriculture damage a large quantity of crop River Bank Erosion, Adaptation, Vulnerability. production. The damages become severe in river side char areas, because these areas are very 1. INTRODUCTION vulnerable to flood and riverbank erosion during monsoon and very arid condition during dry Bangladesh experiences several natural hazards season. Riverine char lands, among other each year owing to its geological location, ecosystems of the country, are considered as topography, weather and climate. Recurrent hotspots for climatic hazards. An integrated flooding, drought, cyclones, river bank erosions, approach which combines traditional knowledge earthquakes, etc. are very common in this country with innovative strategies has been adopted to (Ali, 1996). Third world countries like Bangladesh address current vulnerability while building are the most frequent victims of natural disasters, adaptive capacity to face new and dynamic many of which have a major negative impact on the challenges. The process involves four inter-related society (Torry et al., 1979). Peoples of Bangladesh strategies: promotion of climate-resilient livelihood are directly or indirectly affected by natural strategies, disaster risk reduction strategies, extreme events.
    [Show full text]
  • Water Resource Competition in the Brahmaputra River Basin: China, India, and Bangladesh Nilanthi Samaranayake, Satu Limaye, and Joel Wuthnow
    Water Resource Competition in the Brahmaputra River Basin: China, India, and Bangladesh Nilanthi Samaranayake, Satu Limaye, and Joel Wuthnow May 2016 Distribution unlimited This document represents the best opinion of CNA at the time of issue. Distribution Distribution unlimited. Specific authority contracting number: 14-106755-000-INP. For questions or comments about this study, contact Nilanthi Samaranayake at [email protected] Cover Photography: Brahmaputra River, India: people crossing the Brahmaputra River at six in the morning. Credit: Encyclopædia Britannica ImageQuest, "Brahmaputra River, India," Maria Stenzel / National Geographic Society / Universal Images Group Rights Managed / For Education Use Only, http://quest.eb.com/search/137_3139899/1/137_3139899/cite. Approved by: May 2016 Ken E Gause, Director International Affairs Group Center for Strategic Studies Copyright © 2016 CNA Abstract The Brahmaputra River originates in China and runs through India and Bangladesh. China and India have fought a war over contested territory through which the river flows, and Bangladesh faces human security pressures in this basin that will be magnified by upstream river practices. Controversial dam-building activities and water diversion plans could threaten regional stability; yet, no bilateral or multilateral water management accord exists in the Brahmaputra basin. This project, sponsored by the MacArthur Foundation, provides greater understanding of the equities and drivers fueling water insecurity in the Brahmaputra River basin. After conducting research in Dhaka, New Delhi, and Beijing, CNA offers recommendations for key stakeholders to consider at the subnational, bilateral, and multilateral levels to increase cooperation in the basin. These findings lay the foundation for policymakers in China, India, and Bangladesh to discuss steps that help manage and resolve Brahmaputra resource competition, thereby strengthening regional security.
    [Show full text]
  • Bangladesh – Impact of Anticipatory Action
    Bangladesh Impact of Anticipatory Action Striking before the floods to protect agricultural livelihoods Efficient humanitarian assistance requires anticipation. For FAO, this means harnessing risk information systems to act faster and avert acute hunger. QU Dongyu FAO Director-General Bangladesh Impact of Anticipatory Action Striking before the floods to protect agricultural livelihoods Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Dhaka, 2021 REQUIRED CITATION FAO. 2021. Bangladesh – Impact of Anticipatory Action. Striking before the floods to protect agricultural livelihoods. Dhaka. The designations employed and the presentation of material in this information product do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) concerning the legal or development status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. Dashed lines on maps represent approximate border lines for which there may not yet be full agreement. The mention of specific companies or products of manufacturers, whether or not these have been patented, does not imply that these have been endorsed or recommended by FAO in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned. ©FAO, 2021 Some rights reserved. This work is made available under the Creative Commons Attribution- NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 IGO licence (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO; https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/igo/legalcode/legalcode). Under the terms of this licence, this work may be copied, redistributed and adapted for non-commercial purposes, provided that the work is appropriately cited.
    [Show full text]
  • Teesta: a Death Story Sumana Roy
    Teesta: A Death Story Sumana Roy Since the beginning of the new millennium, I have been watching the Teesta River’s slow death. It is the story of this river that I want to trace: its origin in Tso Lhamo, the history and the myths surrounding it, the geopolitical ecosystems it has nurtured, the riverine cultures that it has nourished, the literature and films around it, and now, of course, its obituaries that come in the form of oral and visual narratives every day. I shall trace the origin of the river; the various environments—both social and natural—that it has fostered; the politics of governmentality surrounding it; the ravages of that strange beast called “eco-tourism” centered around the Teesta and its effect on forest life and human habitat; the difficulties about water sharing and flooding between India and its neighboring countries (particularly Bangladesh) that have been generated time and again; the literature of Teesta-life in Bangla, Nepali, and Rajbangshi, and the films and music that it has birthed. Tracing its history not only from Hindu and Buddhist myths and folktales but also from travel narratives by Chinese men and nineteenth and early twentieth century maps, surveys, stories, and historical accounts by European travelers, I eventually come to government and nongovernment records of the deteriorating health of the river in post-Independence India. I shall also deal with hitherto unpublished records of the disastrous flooding of the Teesta in 1968, an event whose impact is still felt in the district of Jalpaiguri in West Bengal. Along with these are records of first person narratives, particularly in the Bangla language (and occasionally in Rajbangshi), from the early twentieth century through 1968 to the present day, these are rich accounts on how changes in the Teesta and the dam at Jaldhaka, one of the most visible attempts at taming the river, affected the life and ways of people in lower Sikkim and Jalpaiguri, as well as in Bangladesh.
    [Show full text]
  • 9. Impact Assessment
    Government of The People’s Republic of Bangladesh Ministry of Water Resources Public Disclosure Authorized Bangladesh Water Development Board Public Disclosure Authorized Public Disclosure Authorized Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) (Draft Final) Volume I (Main Text) Public Disclosure Authorized River Bank Improvement Program (RBIP) February 2015 Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of River Bank Improvement Program (RBIP) List of Acronyms ADB Asian Development Bank AEZ Agro ecological zone APHA American Public Health Association BCCSAP Bangladesh Climate Change Strategy and Action Plan BDT Bangladesh Taka BMD Bangladesh Meteorological Department BOD Biological oxygen demand BRE Brahmaputra Right-bank Embankment BSM Brahmaputra system model BWDB Bangladesh Water Development Board CC Cement concrete CIIA Cumulative and Induced Impact Assessment CoP Conference of the Parties CPUE Catch per unit effort CSC Construction supervision consultants DAE Department of Agricultural Extension DC Deputy Commissioner DEM Digital elevation model DFL Design flood level DG Director General DO Dissolved oxygen DoE Department of Environment DoF Department of Fisheries DPP Development Project Proforma DTW Deep tube well EA Environmental assessment ECA Environmental Conservation Act ECC Environmental Clearance Certificate ECoP Environmental Code of Practice ECR Environment Conservation Rules EHS Environment, health, and safety EIA Environmental Impact Assessment Bangladesh Water Development Board ii Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of River Bank
    [Show full text]
  • Brahmaputra Basin, Eastern India
    Geoinformatics for Inter B asin Water Transfer Assessment: A study in parts of Ganga – Brahmaputra Basin, Eastern India Niladri Gupta March, 2008 Course Title: Geo-Information Science and Earth Observation for Environmental Modelling and Management Level: Master of Science (Msc) Course Duration: September 2006 - March 2008 Consortium partners: University of Southampton (UK) Lund University (Sweden) University of Warsaw (Poland) International Institute for Geo-Information Science and Earth Observation (ITC) (The Netherlands) GEM thesis number : 2006-20 Geoinformatics for inter basin water transfer assessment: A study in parts of Ganga – Brahmaputra basin, Eastern India by Niladri Gupta Thesis submitted to the International Institute for Geo-information Science and Earth Observation in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Geo-information Science and Earth Observation for Environmental Modelling and Management Thesis Assessment Board Chairman: Dr. Ir. C.A.J.M. (Kees) de Bie External Examiner: Dr. Ir. C.M.M. (Chris) Mannaerts Internal Examiner: Prof. Petter Pilesjö Supervisor: Mr. Ulrik Martensson Supervisor: Dr. B.H.P. (Ben) Maathuis International Institute for Geo-Information Science and Earth Observation Enschede, The Netherlands Disclaimer This document describes work undertaken as part of a programme of study at the International Institute for Geo-information Science and Earth Observation. All views and opinions expressed therein remain the sole responsibility of the author, and do not necessarily represent those of the institute. Abstract Fresh water availability and demand is unequally distributed over time and space. Availability of fresh water has more or less remained constant despite natural temporal fluctuation (Gupta and Zaag, 2007); the demand for clean water is ever increasing.
    [Show full text]
  • Assessment of Hydromorphological Conditions of Upper and Lower Dams of River Teesta in Sikkim
    Journal of Spatial Hydrology Volume 15 Number 2 Article 1 2019 Assessment of hydromorphological conditions of upper and lower dams of river Teesta in Sikkim Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/josh BYU ScholarsArchive Citation (2019) "Assessment of hydromorphological conditions of upper and lower dams of river Teesta in Sikkim," Journal of Spatial Hydrology: Vol. 15 : No. 2 , Article 1. Available at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/josh/vol15/iss2/1 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Journals at BYU ScholarsArchive. It has been accepted for inclusion in Journal of Spatial Hydrology by an authorized editor of BYU ScholarsArchive. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. Journal of Spatial Hydrology Vol.15, No.2 Fall 2019 Assessment of hydromorphological conditions of upper and lower dams of river Teesta in Sikkim Deepak Sharma1, Ishwarjit Elangbam Singh2, Kalosona Paul3 & Somnath Mukherjee4 1 Doctoral Fellow, Department of Geography, Sikkim University, Gangtok, Sikkim 2Assistant Professor, Department of Geography, Sikkim University, Gangtok, Sikkim 3Assistant Professor, Department of Geography, Sidho-Kanho-Birsha University, Purulia, West Bengal 4Assistant Professor, Department of Geography, Bankura Christian College, Bankura, West Bengal Abstract River is a main source of fresh water. Although since past river water and basin morphology both have affected and changed by some natural and human induced activities. Human civilization since time immemorial has been rooted close to river basin. Changing morphology of a river channel has done also by natural causes. The hydromorphological state of a river system replicates its habitat quality and relies on a variety of both physical and human features.
    [Show full text]
  • Teesta Basin Case Study Anumita Raj Strategic Foresight Group
    Teesta Basin Case Study Anumita Raj Strategic Foresight Group The Teesta River is shared by India and Bangladesh. It is a tributary of the Brahmaputra River and falls under the Brahmaputra sub-basin in the Eastern Himalayan region. The river begins its journey in the glacial mountains of the Northeast Indian state of Sikkim. It subsequently enters Bangladesh, flowing through Jalpaiguri and then the Rangpur Division. In Bangladesh, the Teesta joins the Brahmaputra at Fulcherry. India and Bangladesh share a total of 54 rivers between them. Of these, only the Ganges and Brahmaputra have a higher annual runoff than the Teesta. The Teesta River has an average annual runoff of 60 billion cubic metres (BCM). 90% of the river’s flow occurs during the monsoon or wet season i.e. between June and September. The importance of the flow and seasonal variation of this river is felt during the lean season (October to April/May) when the average flow is about 500 million cubic metres (MCM) per month. Nearly 30 million people reside in the Teesta River basin. The population density in the river basin is high and is growing at a fast pace. The population mostly resides in rural areas (around 78%) but is urbanizing at a rapid rate. Poverty is high in both the Indian and Bangladeshi part of the basin. The basin is primarily agrarian. Crops grown include rice, wheat and maize with other supplementary crops like rubber and tea. Other economic sectors are tourism and small-scale industries dependent on agricultural raw materials. The Teesta River’s joint management falls under the India-Bangladesh Joint Rivers Commission (JRC).
    [Show full text]
  • Teesta River
    Teesta River Bangladesh is a riverine country and Kurigram is a district where more than 16 rivers are criss- crossed. Even mighty Brahmaputra and flashy Teesta & Dharla rivers have flown through this district. So severe and flashy flood with a high scale of erosion is a common phenomenon near bank area of these rivers. Moreover sandy soil of the bank highly enhances the erosion. Not only that various small and high char forms at about the middle of the rivers for which river flow becomes one sided to the bank. That’s why these rivers flow with a higher thrust to the bank and its surrounded area. As a result each and every year thousands acre of paddy fields, homesteads, schools, college, mosque, local market engulfed into river. People of those localities are being poor to poorer by losing their valuable assets that washed out into the river. Especially sudden rise in water level in Teesta on 7 to 10th October 2009 caused a huge destruction to the erosion prone area at different places. Teesta river arises from the Cho Lhamu Lake at an average height of 5,330 metres (17,500 feet) above mean sea level in the majestic Himalayas. Teesta River merges with the rivulets, which arise in the Thangu, Yumthang and Donkia-La ranges. It then traverses the Rangpo town where it forms a boundary line between Sikkim and West Bengal up to Teesta Bazaar. It is at the Teesta suspension Bridge where the river meets the main tributary Rangeet River. At this level, the river changes its direction and flows southwards in West Bengal.
    [Show full text]