Abstract
The present study develops a composite environmental impact index (CEII) to evaluate the extent of environmental degradation in agriculture after successfully validating its flexibility, applicability and relevance as a tool. The CEII tool is then applied to empirically measure the extent of environmental impacts of High Yield Variety (HYV) rice cultivation in three districts of north-western Bangladesh for a single crop year (October, 2012-September, 2013). Results reveal that 27 to 69 per cent of the theoretical maximum level of environmental damage is created due to HYV rice cultivation with significant regional variations in the CEII scores, implying that policy interventions are required in environmentally critical areas in order to sustain agriculture in Bangladesh.
DOI
10.1016/j.jenvman.2015.10.003
Publication Date
2016-01-01
Publication Title
Journal of Environmental Management
Volume
166
Publisher
Elsevier
ISSN
0301-4797
Embargo Period
2024-11-25
Keywords
Environmental Impact Assessment, Composite Environmental Impact Index, Indicator, Agriculture, Bangladesh
First Page
84
Last Page
93
Recommended Citation
Sabiha, N., Salim, R., Rahman, S., & Rola-Rubzen, M. (2016) 'Measuring environmental sustainability in agriculture: A Composite Environmental Impact Index approach', Journal of Environmental Management, 166, pp. 84-93. Elsevier: Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2015.10.003
