The Coastal Embankment Project (CEP), one of the largest engineering undertakings in Bangladesh, was commissioned in early 1960s with a view to reclaiming coastal land for enhancing agricultural production. The embankments constructed under the project are questioned for their wide-spread negative impacts on the biophysical and social environments. This research aims to articulate the role of the embankments in exposing the coastal communities to vulnerable situations. Three polders from the districts of Khulna and Satkhira were chosen for case studies. Review of project documents and in-depth interviews were adopted for data collection. Analysis of vulnerability reveals that the perspectives of vulnerability (hazards/perturbations/stressors) change over time and the elements of vulnerability (exposure, sensitivity and resilience) manifest in different ways as the embankments transform the coastal social-ecological settings. Findings also show that, despite the havocs the coastal embankments in the southwest of Bangladesh have been causing, the communities still consider them as a lifeline. The coastal embankments have brought a sense of permanence in the communities by creating a flood-free environment and by facilitating many secondary benefits. The communities’ perception of development is centred on the embankments and they believe that a stronger embankment system is vital for enhancement of their overall socio-economic development. This study is useful for understanding the vulnerability dynamics in the context of an ecologically sensitive deltaic plain for preventing development projects from becoming counterproductive.

沿海堤防项目 (CEP) 是孟加拉国最大的工程项目之一，于 1960 年代初投产，旨在开垦沿海土地以提高农业生产。根据该项目建造的堤防对生物物理和社会环境的广泛负面影响受到质疑。本研究旨在阐明堤防在使沿海社区面临脆弱情况方面的作用。来自 Khulna 和 Satkhira 地区的三个圩田被选为案例研究。数据收集采用了项目文件审查和深度访谈。脆弱性分析表​​明脆弱性的观点（危害/扰动/压力源）随着时间的推移而变化，脆弱性的要素（暴露、敏感性和弹性）以不同的方式表现出来，因为堤坝改变了沿海社会生态环境。调查结果还表明，尽管孟加拉国西南部的沿海堤防造成了严重破坏，但社区仍将其视为生命线。沿海堤防通过创造无洪水环境和促进许多次要利益，为社区带来了持久感。社区对发展的看法以堤防为中心，他们认为更强大的堤防系统对于提高其整体社会经济发展至关重要。这项研究有助于了解生态敏感的三角洲平原背景下的脆弱性动态，以防止开发项目适得其反。