ENVIRONMENTAL SECURITY: IS ENVIRONMENT A SECURITY THREAT?

This article investigates the debate on environmental security, focusing on whether environmental degradation constitutes a genuine security threat. It surveys theoretical perspectives, linking environmental change to conflict, migration, and state fragility. The study examines Bangladesh’s vulnerabilities in climate change, natural disasters, and water scarcity, situating them in a broader South Asian and global security context. The article also reviews UN and regional responses to environmental risks, arguing that securitization of environmental issues is both a policy opportunity and a challenge. It concludes that environmental factors intensify insecurity but must be addressed through cooperative governance, sustainable policies, and integrated security-development strategies.

The body first traces the origins of environmental security debates, from Cold War-era military concerns to post-Cold War expansion of security concepts. Section One discusses climate-induced migration and its destabilizing effects on fragile states. Section Two analyses competition over natural resources, including transboundary rivers, fisheries, and forests. Section Three evaluates Bangladesh as a case study: cyclones, floods, and salinity intrusion and their social consequences. Section Four highlights international frameworks: UNDP’s human security, UNEP’s environmental governance, and SAARC environmental protocols. Section Five outlines policy recommendations, including disaster risk reduction, climate diplomacy, and regional cooperation. The conclusion stresses the importance of treating environmental sustainability as an inseparable part of security policy.