The Stream, March 28: Sea Level Rise Threatens 17 Percent of Land in Bangladesh

Climate Change
Bangladesh is likely to be one of the countries hardest hit by global climate change as rising seas, erosion and intense storms threaten its low-lying river deltas, The New York Times reported. A major problem is saltwater intrusion up freshwater rivers, which makes some farm fields unusable.

Some countries, including Britain, are discounting a finding about the economic costs of climate change that will be included in a new report from the International Panel on Climate Change, the Guardian reported. The finding, which estimates climate losses at 0.2 to 2 percent of income, was proposed by an economist and author of the report who withdrew from its writing after disagreeing with other authors.

U.S. Clean Water
An investigation into coal ash spills by North Carolina’s Duke Energy found photographs taken in early March that show a crack in a dam holding back coal ash at another of the company’s sites, the Guardian reported. State regulators had no knowledge of the crack until the company reported it on March 20, despite inspectors being at the site twice earlier in the month.

A decision by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to explicitly include intermittent streams and wetlands under Clean Water Act protections has the business community in an “uproar” and will face funding difficulties, according to the House Appropriations Chairman, Hal Rogers, The Wall Street Journal reported. The EPA has argued that small streams and wetlands are critical for downstream water quality, and therefore merit protection.

The Stream is a daily digest spotting global water trends. To get more water news, follow Circle of Blue on Twitter and sign up for our newsletter.

Codi Kozacek

A news correspondent for Circle of Blue based out of Hawaii. She writes The Stream, Circle of Blue’s daily digest of international water news trends. Her interests include food security, ecology and the Great Lakes.
Contact Codi Kozacek