Matarbari Coal Power Plant: When development undermines development

Matarbari Project. Photo: TBS

Bangladesh's progress in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals is certainly a matter of pride for us. The government is committed to successfully integrate and implement the SDG agendas into its development policies. In regards to that, the government has undertaken a couple of mega projects to meet the country's growing needs.

One of the mega projects - Matarbari Coal Power Plant - is being set up in Moheshkhali, Cox's Bazar, to secure the power needs and economic advancement of our country. The project's potential for national growth are manifold.

However, sustainable development fosters prosperity at both national and local scales. Therefore, if we analyse the project's impacts on the lifestyle of the local population, we must question how it compliments the goals of sustainable development?

Sustainable development calls for prosperity that is inclusive, and achieved without compromising the convenience of any social group, environment, or economic viability. Because all these factors share a causal relationship, any stimulation in one of these components will cause a reaction to the other elements as well.

So, if we, in our attempt to make progress, deviate from securing the social aspects of sustainability, we might be facing a breakdown of our social system in the long run.

Now let's come back to our main argument and analyse the power plant's social impacts. The Matarbari power plant has been a controversial project since its inception. Despite the criticisms on its environmental impacts, the project was sanctioned in the interest of its 1200MW power contribution to the national grid.

It is expected that besides its significant role in securing the country's power needs, the project is likely to boost the country's economic growth through advanced industrialisation.

Existing industrial capacities will expand, new industries will be established creating employment opportunities. Urbanisation of rural areas will speed up; modern amenities will be available for rural people.

But what is the ground reality?

The reality is completely different from what was planned. Establishment of the plant has resulted in losses of livelihoods, social status, and social cohesion of the local population.

Land acquisition for the project resulted in large-scale displacement and loss of traditional livelihoods, including salt cultivation and shrimp farming in Matarbari. Several reports and newspaper articles (national and international) mention that about 20,000 people dependent on shrimp and salt farming have lost their source of income.

Furthermore, absence of skill development programs created problems for the locals to find suitable alternative livelihoods. Such decline in livelihoods deviates us from the path of achieving sustainability, as it is a potential threat to intensify the poverty level of the area. Also, this will be a significant impediment to the government's efforts to uplift poverty (SDG1) from the rural regions of the country.

It is also leading to a loss of social status. Due to a lack of availability of profitable income sources and lack of required skills, the majority of the local people have turned to low paying day labourer jobs that are insufficient to support their household expenses.

Inability to manage minimum household necessities essentially implies a downgrade of their social status; affecting their way of living including self-esteem, diet, education, healthcare etc. This can be identified as a barrier in our efforts to achieve SDG 8, decent work and economic growth for everyone.

In addition, loss of land is a crucial factor contributing to the loss of social status as land symbolises social status and heritage.

On the other hand, social cohesion has been disrupted in the area. Couple of factors like land acquisition, loss of livelihoods, inequalities in job placement contributed to this development.

It began with a protest right at the beginning of the project. The locals stood up against the land acquisition process that did not compensate them enough for their loss. Moreover, displacement related issues coupled with an ineffective employment quota system have scaled up tensions between the locals and outside workers.

Even though there are job quotas for the locals in the project, they lose their chance against the skilled workers from outside. This is a problem of inequality, which holds back our progress with SDG10 that focuses on reducing inequalities. Such social distress is a clear indication of the fragility of the project's sustainability.

As mentioned in the beginning, unfavourable outcomes like these are inevitable if we fail to properly acknowledge the fundamental elements of sustainability. It is evident that in this case, the social factors have been mis-governed.

To avoid such adverse consequences, it is an imperative that we strictly act upon our sustainable development policies. It is not just about policy formulation but about owning and believing in those ideas. For that, there should be good collaboration between different stakeholders who are determined to ensure inclusive growth. Exchange of ideas and strategies between stakeholders will ensure transparency of work.

The implementing body should be committed to ensuring the local's rights in the first place.

Land acquisition should not be involuntary. Instead, adequate rehabilitation and compensation should be in place.

More importantly, to avoid loss of livelihoods and induced poverty, locals should receive proper skills training that will help them find sustainable alternative livelihoods. Proper governance is also needed to manage the quota systems to accommodate affected locals with jobs that reduce inequalities. Keeping a balance of these factors would essentially help to maintain social cohesion in the vicinity.

The government of Bangladesh has set its objectives to achieve sustainable growth for the country. However, the lack of inclusion during the development of the Matarbari plant highlights a failure in achieving the sustainable development goals overall.

So far, it has failed to meet the local's expectations with social prosperity, let alone the environmental concerns. The government should focus on designing appropriate solutions to these problems.

Sketch: TBS

Mohammad Budrudzaman is Research Assistant at Center for Sustainable Development (CSD) in University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and views of The Business Standard.