BARCLAYS BANK is facing a formal complaint over its financial links to a coal-fired power station near the Sundarbans, the world's largest mangrove forest and home to millions of people in Bangladesh and India.
Three complainants from the region have submitted a case to the UK government's Office for Responsible Business Conduct, reported the Guardian. They alleged that the British bank breached international guidelines by underwriting companies involved in the emission-heavy Maitree super thermal power project, also known as the Rampal power plant.
The coal-fired station sits near the Sundarbans, a UNESCO world heritage site made up of more than 100 tiny islands across a river delta that supports hundreds of species, including the Bengal tiger.
Pollution concerns raised
Sharif Jamil, an environmental campaigner based in Dhaka and one of the complainants, said heavy-metal pollution from the plant was entering the Sundarbans through its rivers and canals.
"The Rampal power plant is right on the bank of the Pasur River, which is the lifeline of the Sundarbans," he said. "The health of the forest is in trouble."
A study last November found elevated levels of mercury and arsenic in water samples from the Sundarbans, with the highest concentrations in the Pasur River. Researchers said the plant posed "a significant environmental threat due to emissions from coal combustion and increased navigation traffic".
Bank's financial ties detailed
The claimants alleged that Barclays failed to carry out sufficient due diligence on environmental and human rights risks before providing financial services to organisations connected to the project.
Barclays underwrote debt for India's state-owned NTPC Ltd, one of the joint-venture partners behind the plant, according to King's Legal Clinic, which is assisting the complainants. It also underwrote bond issues for the Export-Import Bank of India between 2016 and 2019, which provided a loan for the Rampal project.
The complainants argued that emissions from the plant will worsen global heating, rising sea levels and extreme weather in a region already vulnerable to the climate crisis. Mangroves act as a natural barrier against cyclones.
UNESCO warning and opposition
The plant faced sustained opposition during planning and construction, including concerns raised by UNESCO in a 2016 report, which found that "air and water pollution have a high likelihood to irreversibly damage" the World Heritage property. Some banks, including in France, refused to support the project.
Jamil said Barclays' standing meant it had a duty to consider the consequences of financing. "The greater your reputation, the greater your responsibility to behave responsibly towards the planet and its people," he said.
He also called for more funding to go towards renewable energy. "Bangladesh has sunlight throughout the year," he said. "Why should we expand fossil fuels when there is enormous potential to produce electricity from renewable energy?"
Other complainants and next steps
The other complainants include Animesh Mandal, a farmer and politician, and the Dakshinbanga Matsyajibi Forum, a trade union representing fish workers in West Bengal. They are assisted by King's Human Rights and Environment Clinic at King's College London.
Sue Willman, a solicitor at the clinic, said: "We hope to persuade banks and financial institutions to think again before financing oil and coal developments that are contributing to that crisis."
The Office for Responsible Business Conduct will assess whether to consider the complaint. Barclays and BIFPCL, the holding company for the project, declined to comment.
Shanu SP Hinduja AMG 
