Authors : M. Edris Alam , 2Md. Abu Taiyeb Chowdhury and 3Marshia Tashmim Akbar
Abstract: Chittagong city besets with a tremendous natural environment. Hilly areas in and around the Chittagong city make the city an environment friendly city. But recently through arbitrary hill cutting, the city becomes an environmental fragile city of Bangladesh. For this reason, the present study takes an attempt to identify the resulted problems of hill cutting in the city of Chittagong from the view local people. Especially the study focuses on spatial pattern of hill cutting areas in the city, uses of hill cutting areas and nature of uses of hill cutting soil and the nature of socio-environmental consequences arises due to hill cutting problem in the city. No hills in the city are found to be untouched from hill cutter. This hill cutting habituate is causing loss of scenic beauty of the city of Chittagong. Different areas of the city are facing various environmental hazards due to unplanned hill cutting. Soil erosion, drainage congestions and change of biodiversity and climatic conditions are the most common environmental perils caused by hill cutting. The study also shows that wetland in and around the city of Chittagong has been filling up in the last couple of years. Hundred years old ponds in the city were also been filled up by hill cutting soil. The study recommending enforcing existing laws effectively to stop hill cutting in the city.
M. Edris Alam , 2Md. Abu Taiyeb Chowdhury and 3Marshia Tashmim Akbar , 2005. Aspects of Socio-Environmental Problems Resulting from Hill Cutting in the City of Chittagong, Bangladesh: Local People`s Perspectives . Pakistan Journal of Social Sciences, 3: 1048-1052.