Why in news? The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) released its 2025 World Heritage Outlook, downgrading India’s Sundarbans National Park to a “critical” conservation status. The report warns that escalating environmental pressures are eroding the resilience of the world’s largest mangrove ecosystem.
Background
The Sundarbans span the delta of the Ganges, Brahmaputra and Meghna rivers across India and Bangladesh. Designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1987, the region supports Bengal tigers, saltwater crocodiles and hundreds of bird and fish species. It also serves as a natural barrier against cyclones and storm surges, protecting millions of people living along the Bay of Bengal.
Reasons for the downgrade
- Salinity and sea‑level rise: Upstream dams and embankments reduce freshwater flow, while rising sea levels increase salinity. This combination damages mangroves and threatens species that depend on brackish water.
- Pollution: Industrial effluents, untreated sewage and oil spills from shipping lanes contaminate waterways, harming fish and crustaceans and endangering human health.
- Climate change: More frequent and intense cyclones erode islands, inundate low‑lying forests and disrupt ecological processes. Climate change also exacerbates heat stress and alters rainfall patterns.
- Diseases and invasive species: Outbreaks of diseases in crabs and fish and the spread of invasive plants such as water hyacinth further stress the ecosystem.
Global context
The IUCN report notes that nearly half of the world’s natural World Heritage sites now have conservation outlooks of “significant concern” or “critical”. The downgrade of the Sundarbans highlights the urgency of transboundary cooperation between India and Bangladesh, stricter pollution control, sustainable fisheries management and community‑based adaptation to climate change.
Why it matters
Beyond its extraordinary biodiversity, the Sundarbans is a lifeline for millions of people. Safeguarding its mangroves is therefore both an environmental and humanitarian imperative. Effective conservation will require coordinated action across borders, investment in resilient livelihoods and stronger enforcement of environmental regulations.
Source: Down To Earth.