Great Idea, Guys! Bangladesh Building Coal Plant 14 Km From Edge Of Fast-Sinking Sundarban Islands
Over the weekend, Bangladeshi artists performed plays, sang songs, and recited poetry all in a bid to protect the Sundarbans—the world's biggest mangrove forest—from the threat of a massive coal plant. Construction is already under way on the hugely controversial Rampal coal plant, a 1,320 megawatt plant set just 14 kilometers from the edge of the Sundarbans.
"We have many alternatives to produce electricity but no alternative to Sundarbans," said Anu Muhammad at the cultural protest. A renowned economist at Jahangirnagar University, Muhammad is also the secretary of the National Committee to Protect Oil, Gas, Mineral Resources, Power and Ports, which organized the protest.
Critics of the Rampal coal plant fear that pollution from transporting and burning the coal will degrade the Sundarbans air and water. Moreover, they say that the coal plant's massive water demands—9,150 cubic meters of water every hour—could decrease water levels on the Passur River and change the delicate balance of salt and freshwater that the mangrove forest depends on.
Wildlife could be at risk as well. A biodiversity hotspots, the Sundarbans is home to hundreds of species, including a significant population of Bengal tigers (Panthera tigris tigris) as well as Ganges river dolphins (Platanista gangetica) and Irrawaddy dolphins (Orcaella brevirostris). Moreover, mangroves provide essential nurseries for many fish species.
EDIT
http://news.mongabay.com/2014/1028-hance-rampal-coal.html