Climate Change Perception and Adaptation Options for Agriculture in Southern Khulna of Bangladesh

Understanding perception and adaptation strategies at a community level is important for achieving sustainable adaptation options in a climate-vulnerable area. A study was conducted in two villages of Khulna district, Bangladesh, through Focus Group Discussions to capture the perceptions of the community on climate change and variability, and also to understand the current strategies to cope/adapt with the changing situation in the context of agriculture. Some future adaptation options were also presented to the community for their opinion in the light of their experiences. Findings revealed that the weather is unpredictable and variability has increased over time with no positive outlook or aspect associated with this change. Local people perceived changes in rainfall patterns, resulting in delayed rice planting, decreased yield and damaged sesame and mungbean crops due to water-logging. The extended summer periods with increasing average temperatures have resulted in decreased growth duration of crops, increased pest infestations, and decreased yields. The increased period during which river water is saline limits the scope of irrigation with river water. Communities are adapting to this changing situation by adopting high yielding salt tolerant rice varieties, introducing new crops like sesame and mungbean, and adopting rice-fish culture with tilapia, carp and prawn instead of brackish water shrimp.