THE DEVELOPMENT–ENVIRONMENT NEXUS IN BANGLADESH’S RMG SECTOR: ECONOMIC GROWTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL STRESS

Bangladesh’s ready-made garment (RMG) sector has played a central role in national economic growth through export expansion, employment generation, and industrial transformation. However, rapid industrialization has also intensified environmental degradation and increased ecological vulnerability. This article examines how such rapid industrial growth has simultaneously driven economic progress and intensified environmental stress. The study is based on a systematic review of 80 peer-reviewed and institutional sources published between 2015 and 2026, supported by secondary data on production, pollution, and resource use. The findings show that textile production consumes between 1.5 and 2.5 billion liters of water daily and releases large volumes of effluent, often inadequately treated, leading to severe river pollution where biochemical oxygen demand levels reach 200–350 mg/L and dissolved oxygen drops below 1 mg/L. Air quality in industrial zones remains critically poor, with PM2.5 concentrations of 65–97 µg/m³, while the sector generates 400,000–577,000 tonnes of textile waste annually, much of it unmanaged. These patterns reveal a clear imbalance between economic advancement and environmental sustainability, driven by resource-intensive production, structural constraints, and weak compliance. The study concludes that without significant intervention, environmental degradation will pose increasing risks to public health, ecosystems, and long-term industrial competitiveness. It recommends strengthening regulatory enforcement, scaling up efficient effluent treatment and cleaner production technologies, promoting circular economy practices, and improving environmental governance across supply chains to ensure a more sustainable and resilient RMG sector.