Building Resilience Fighting Back Vulnerability in the Coastal City of Khulna, Bangladesh: A Perspective of Climate-Resilient City Approach

Abstract

Extreme weather is becoming one of the fierce symptoms of rapidly changing climate era which is causing long and short term damage at different aspects of our day-to-day life. Extreme weather events like heavy rains cause sewers to overflow and may result in urban flooding a common scenario to the cities in developing countries like Bangladesh. With a current population of 1.4 million estimated to rise to 2.9 million by 2030, Khulna is more prone to urban flooding due to lower topography and sea-level rise due to climate change. This research aims to find the different aspects of climatic vulnerability and how the city is sustaining by gaining resilience and adaptation in the hostile climatic condition due to climate change and sea level rise. Different spatial analysis viz. land use-land cover mapping, flood mapping based on Digital Elevation Model, catchment delineation, hazard and risk mapping, physical vulnerability, etc. carried out to understand the climatic hazard condition and its impacts on different aspects. It is found that 0.25m and 0.50m sea level rise (SLR) leads to inundate 5% and 9% of the city where 4% and 6% are agriculture respectively within the city. Within this range, residential uses inundate 0.50% and 1% respectively. The city has 52% open field and greeneries and 14% waterbodies which can absorb 0.50m SLR accepting 1% inundation of the residential land uses. This research would help city decision-makers to make them more familiar with the climate resilience and adaptation options in relation to the growing concern of the city and choose the right decision.