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4 years ago

BD 162nd in Environmental Performance Index 2020

The country ranked 179th in 2018

File photo used for representational purpose
File photo used for representational purpose

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Bangladesh has ranked 162nd out of 180 countries in the 2020 Environmental Performance Index (EPI) that evaluates the condition of environmental health and vitality of their ecosystems.

Bangladesh was given 29.0 points in the list, securing third worst position in South Asia region, only ahead of India at 168th and Afghanistan at 178th position.

The Yale and Columbia universities in the United States prepared and launched the report recently.

The EPI explores 32 performance indicators across 11 issue categories, such as - environmental health, ecosystem vitality, ecosystem services, fisheries, climate change, and pollution emissions.

The report offers a scorecard that highlights leaders and laggards in environmental performance, and provides practical guidance for the countries that aspire to move towards a sustainable future.

According to it, among 180 nations, Bangladesh ranked 143rd in terms of environment quality, 166 for air quality, and 172 for prevalence of heavy metals.

In a positive note, Bangladesh ranked 22 for the fisheries.

The South Asian nation ranked second last or 179th, securing 29.56 points in 2018 edition of the biennial index.

In the 2020 EPI, Denmark has ranked first in the world with 82.5 points, followed by Luxembourg, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, France, Austria, Finland, Sweden, Norway and Germany in the top 10 countries.

Among Bangladesh's neighbouring countries, India ranked 168th, Pakistan 142nd, Nepal 145th, Afghanistan 178th, Sri Lanka 109th, and the Maldives 127.

Bhutan leads the region with a relatively high score of 39.3 points and the global ranking of 107th.

Now in its 22nd year, the EPI report has become the premier metrics framework for global environmental policy analysis, the report said.

It suggested that the countries lagging behind in the list must redouble national sustainability efforts along all fronts.

"Their low EPI scores indicate the need for greater attention to the spectrum of sustainability requirements, with a high-priority focus on critical issues, such as - air and water quality, biodiversity, and climate change."

Regarding the outbreak of COVID-19, the EPI report said: "Unintended consequences of the economic shutdown in many nations include a sharp drop in pollution levels and the return of wildlife".

The EPI team hopes that this unexpected glimpse of what a sustainable planet might look like from an ecological perspective - albeit at a terrible price in terms of public health and economic damage - will inspire the policy transformation, required for a sustainable future that is both economically vigorous and environmentally sound.

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