Environmental Policy Issues and Public Health Concerns Associated with Rohingya Refugee Population in Bangladesh

Introduction: The Rohingya population in Myanmar has been adversely affected by the Citizenship Act of 1982. This Act opted out of them from the list of recognized ethnic minorities and deprived them of civil rights and public services. As a result, the Myanmar army started a massive cleaning operation in the Rohingya community where thousands of Rohingyas were killed, and 750,000 refugees fled to Bangladesh. The Government of Bangladesh is helping this migrant community to settle in Bangladesh with the support of multiple national and international nonprofit organizations. This paper aims to explain the policy challenges in accommodating the Rohingya refugees from an environmental policy and public health perspective. Methodology: In this study, the researchers collected secondary data from multiple sources, such as journal articles, websites of internationally renowned organizations, and the health record of clinics supported by OBAT Helpers, Inc., a U.S.-based nonprofit, who are providing healthcare services to the Rohingya community living in multiple camps. The collected information is summarized systematically to understand the risks to the environment and health conditions in the Rohingya refugee camps that occurred due to a lacking policy readiness and logistic unpreparedness of the government. These issues are very critical not only for the migrant population but also for the host community. Findings: Approximately 860,175 Rohingya Refugees have been placed in 34 camps located in multiple districts in Bangladesh since 2017. To accommodate this large population in Bangladesh, the government had to cut the forest and fill out water bodies. Therefore, deforestation and building houses near cliff areas cause soil erosion and create risks for marine resources. In these camps, the refugees use fuelwood and kerosene for cooking, which increases particle pollution in the air. The overpopulated camps are having issues with the inexistence of ventilation. In the past couple of years, there were several massive fire incidents where hundreds of houses were burnt, and many people were injured and dead. Besides, building new houses for the refugees sets the local biodiversity at critical risk. The Kutupalong camp blocked the only corridor for the Asian elephants and trapped them in a corner of that area. In this challenging situation, the elephants invade nearby camp areas for food. As a result, 13 people died in a human-elephant conflict. Along with the environmental issues, the health condition in these refugee camps is very critical for different age groups and sex. Unplanned water and sewerage system are also polluting the water bodies which is increasing water-borne diseases in the community. The most common diseases found in these clinics are communicable, such as upper respiratory tract infection (URTI), skin disease, cough and cold, diarrhea, chickenpox, respiratory tract infection, fever, measles/rubella, and sexually transmitted disease, and malnutrition. In the past several decades, the Government of Bangladesh has been successfully working root-level to end chronic diseases, such as diphtheria, polio, whooping cough, tetanus, tuberculosis, chickenpox, and cholera which are crucial not only for the babies but for the community. The healthcare services of OBAT Health clinics have found many cases of these chronic diseases among the Rohingya refugees which may bring new threats to public health situations in Bangladesh. The congested environment of the camps spreads communicable diseases including COVID-19. Besides, thousands of patients in the camps are diagnosed with psychological trauma and gender-based violence in multiple age groups. More healthcare facilities are needed in these camps to provide mental healthcare services and support sexually assaulted victims. Conclusion: The government of Bangladesh and multiple national and international organizations are supporting the Rohingya refugees to live with basic human rights and security in Bangladesh. However, accommodating a large number of Rohingya refugees in a very short time causes multiple environmental issues and public health concerns. Policy readiness and logistic preparedness are necessary to reduce these long-term environmental challenges and public health concerns in the refugee camps and the nearby host communities. Planned zoning of the refugee camps and forestation would minimize the harm to land, water bodies, and biodiversity. Providing renewable or clean energy would help reduce PM pollution in the air quality. In addition to that, health education, awareness for immunization and vaccination, and adequate healthcare facilities for physical and mental healthcare would help to minimize health risks in this community. All these proposed solutions require support for policy intervention at both national and international levels. It will help to minimize the risk of climate change and public health issues globally.