Next 40 years, sand use is expected to double globally
It is dangerous. Journalism means risk. But I could not predict the event. I took a few pictures, maybe ten or twelve. Being a local, I didn’t think anyone could do that.
You can see it here. I kept this as a piece of evidence. Fifteen of them surrounded me. Ask them who brought the rope.
Watch it. Oh, Allah! He is determined. This sand is famous in the world. I thank God that I am safe in some way. Otherwise, they would kill me that day.
A journalist was beaten in Sinamganj while covering a stone-throwing, illegal sand Sand is very important as a source of people and they were killed for this.
A 35-year-old journalist was investigating a case of illegal sand mining. Sand merchants have great power, they buy the whole system. So the plan is in their pockets. Sand is not cocaine. They are not guns. That's what makes it so appealing to criminals.
This is something that has a profound effect on everything we live for. It's just a matter of how close we are or how far away we are. The question then is, globally, why not police? We have not yet received a full picture of this.
Much is unknown here. Bangladesh is the largest delta in the world. It is a creation of rivers. We take rivers as our mother. Sixty percent of Bangladeshis only get their animal protein diet from river fish.
Even today, one-third of the total travel is by waterways. But now you see sand mining taking place all over the country, in almost every river.
How many stones are on a man's head? It's unbelievable! Father, please listen. Can you tell me where the sand comes from? White sand comes from all over Bangladesh.
What is it used for?
Used for construction. Building? And white? White is also used in construction. There is a growing demand for land in Bangladesh because, with the rapid development, we have many buildings built in all parts of the country, even in rural areas. All sand mining should be regulated by law.
A miner is assigned a portion of the river for sand mining purposes. But what happens is that, in most cases, they go too far in the rented area and drain sand from uncharted portions of the river.
It is amazing to see that there is no surveillance at the local level. And it is the entire nature of the rivers that carry the weight of uncontrolled sand mines.
The sand I found here is basically river sand. So this is very fine river sand. This has been processed, therefore filtered to make it different from grain size.
And I have some fine desert sand here. When I first started working on rivers and looking at sand and gravel, I don’t think I would have thought that river sand was so important.
It has a very sharp edge to it, it is very fast because that is what is important when it comes to making concrete. In contrast to this desert sand, it is really smooth and round. That means it doesn't bond properly, so it's not very good to make concrete.
The idea of running out of sand all over the world, I think it’s hard to wrap your head around because we think about things like the Sahara Desert.
But the sand of the river, which has shrunk. There are no two ways to do it.
Each year, we aim to extract 50 billion tons of sand. We have hard evidence and measurements that show that it is issued at a higher rate than it is being filled.
Over the next 40 years, sand use is expected to double globally. I am a lawyer. I am registered with the Supreme Court of Bangladesh, and I also serve as the chief executive officer of BELA, the Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association.
The people I work for, the people I represent in legal cases, are communities affected by illegal sand mining.
When rivers overflow, they actually lead to meaningless river deaths.
It causes severe river erosion. And with the erosion of rivers, local people have lost their lives because of rivers. Their buildings, their fields, their houses, their graves, their schools are exposed by the rivers.
This could be the largest migration in human history The sand here in Bangladesh has bloodstains on it. About 60 to 70 percent of the sand you see on the market has been mined illegally.
It's completely ruined. Employee: This sand is in great demand. Reporter: Who is taking the lease agreement here Employee: You are a relative of our current mayor. Reporter: Did you know that this release is illegal? Employee: This is the process.
Sand miners bribe the whole system to look after them, to control them, especially in our part of the world. Now, illegal sand mining is widespread. All Southeast Asia and all South Asia are affected by sand mines. People make money without permission.
Corrupt politicians, corrupt bosses, and sand traders.
There is some encouragement, of course, for countries to be aware of this.
There is a real boost to development, which helps to develop their own economy. And that has greatly increased their demand for sand. Elsewhere in Asia, these rivers are ferocious.
That is what we call the mega rivers, the largest rivers in the world. And that's what we've been doing a lot of research lately. You know, it’s pretty cool, isn’t it? We see things here and there. We got it ...continue
