Kutubdia Erosion: Bangladesh Island Faces Extinction as Deficient Sea Walls Fail Residents
Residents of Kutubdia Island in the Cox’s Bazar district are facing an existential crisis as decades of neglected infrastructure and rising tides threaten to erase their homes from the map. In the coastal village of Romaipara, roughly 400 families are living in constant fear as a crumbling, colonial-era earthen embankment fails to hold back the encroaching sea. With the barrier effectively failing, high tides are frequently inundating residential areas and devouring precious farmland, forcing families into a desperate cycle of displacement.
The crisis is not confined to Romaipara. Across the island, local inhabitants describe a state of perpetual anxiety, exacerbated by the fact that past attempts to secure the coast have been little more than temporary, piecemeal repairs. For long-term residents, the loss is both physical and emotional. Elderly villagers recount moving their homes multiple times over the last decade, only to watch each new structure succumb to the tide. The destruction of local landmarks, such as the century-old Baitush Sharif cemetery, underscores the severity of the land loss that continues to accelerate along the southern and western coastlines.
Local officials and residents alike have long demanded a permanent, engineered coastal defense system similar to those seen in other parts of the country. Currently, the responsibility for managing the crisis falls to the Water Development Board, which acknowledges that while repairs are underway in several sections, new breaches continue to emerge. Sub-divisional engineer Md. Atiqul Islam confirmed that efforts are focused on ten vulnerable sections, with plans to address five additional breaches pending funding.
The human toll of this geography is profound. According to former upazila chairman Monjur Alam Sikdar, the relentless erosion has driven at least 40,000 residents to abandon the island over the past three decades. Environmental advocates warn that the loss of natural protective barriers, such as mangrove forests, to aquaculture and salt production has made the island increasingly susceptible to catastrophe. Activist Abul Kashem of the Bangladesh Poribesh Andolon (BAPA) noted that if a cyclone of the magnitude seen in 1991 were to strike today, the lack of both man-made and natural defenses would likely result in mass casualties.
The scientific outlook is equally grim. Research published in the Bangladesh Journal of Scientific Research indicates that Kutubdia has lost roughly 66 percent of its landmass over the past five decades. Satellite analysis reveals a steady, rhythmic retreat of the shoreline that experts fear could lead to the complete disappearance of the island within the next 70 years. Rezaul Karim Chowdhury, head of the Coast Foundation, characterizes the situation as an internationally recognized climate disaster, arguing that only a combination of permanent, high-quality infrastructure and the restoration of natural ecosystems can secure the island’s future.
