TOURISTS dropping rubbish in the Sundarbans forest urged Bangladeshi officials to impose a single-use plastic ban after it caused serious damage to the ecosystem.
The Sundarbans contain the largest mangrove forest in the world.
It is home to the globally endangered and rarest species on the planet including the Royal Bengal Tiger, Ganges and Irawadi dolphins, estuarine crocodiles, Indian python, and the critically endangered endemic river terrapin (Batagur baska).
Moreover, it is the only mangrove habitat in the world where one can find the Panthera tigris tigris species.
UNESCO declared Sunderbans a World Heritage Site in 1987 and some parts of it in 1997.
Sundarbans is also home to a wide range of fauna which include 260 bird species.
An estimated 200,000 tourists visit the world heritage site each year, on top of seasonal visits by fishermen and harvesters who depend on the mangrove forest for a bountiful supply of wild honey.
Officials said that visitors bringing disposable water bottles, one-time-use plastic food plates, soft-drink bottles, and cans severely damaged the environment and biodiversity of the Sundarbans.
Environmentalists praised the government for enforcing the single-use plastic ban to protect the largest mangrove forest in the world.
Bangladesh, a country of more than 165 million people, is a picture of a very high population density.
Experts warned that the country’s rapid economic growth and urbanization took a toll on its environment, with pollution affecting people’s health and the country’s economic competitiveness.
