23 May, 2013

​​

The Hindu Kush Himalayan mountains provide numerous goods and services fresh water, food, energy, biodiversity, forest, and medicinal products, for all of us, and thus are an important global resource. They are the "water towers" of Asia and are vital to the 1.3 billion people living in downstream in 10 major river basins. They are the major source of water in the dry season, both surface and groundwater, and as such are critical for hydropower and food security. These services are becoming increasingly valuable to society, yet all are under threat as mountains and mountain people are undergoing rapid change due to globalization, environmental and climate change. 



Increasing evidence shows that glaciers in the region show a general trend of shrinking, thinning, and retreating, but observations of individual glaciers indicate that the annual retreat rates vary from basin to basin (Bajracharya & Shrestha, 2011). A substantial decrease in the total area of glaciers accompanied by an accelerated fragmentation of glaciers in Bhutan and Nepal has been observed (Bajracharya et al., 2010a, 2010b, 2011 and Bajracharya & Shrestha, 2011).  Continuation of this trend would lead to a reduction in the glacier ice storage, impacting the availability of water resources (Barnett et al., 2005; IPCC, 2007). This is compounded with changing patterns of snowfall, and snowmelt, and permafrost. There exists a knowledge gap in all of these areas. 



Air pollution and global warming are related to increased snow and glacier melt, more intense floods and droughts, changing ecosystems, and possibly changing monsoon patterns.  Mountain people, while incredibly resourceful, are often impoverished and not the main source of such changes. Urgent actions at the global and regional level are needed to address these changes and consequences, and to empower mountain women, men and children in their role as stewards of mountain ecosystems. This includes regional cooperation, knowledge sharing, innovative means of conserving ecosystems and diversifying livelihoods, and compensation and payment for ecosystem services. ICIMOD is taking part in launching the Ice Circle Initiative in order to generate an institutional mechanism that will respond to these needs at a global level. 



Reference 



Bajracharya, SR; Maharjan, SB; Shrestha F (2010a) Glaciers shrinking in Nepal Himalaya. www.intechopen.com/articles/show/title/glaciers-shrinking-in-nepal-himalaya (accessed 23 May 2013) Bajracharya, SR; Maharjan, SB; Shrestha, F; Khattak, GA; Wanqin, G; Junfeng, W; Shiyin, L; Xiaojun, Y (2010b) The status of glaciers in the Hindu Kush-Himalayas. Unpublished internal report for ICIMOD, Kathmandu, Nepal Bajracharya, SR; Maharjan, SB; Shrestha, F (2011) 'Glaciers shrinking in Nepal Himalaya.' In Blanco, J; Kheradmand, H (eds), Climate change: Geophysical foundations and ecological effects, pp 445-458. Rijeka, Croatia: InTech Bajracharya, SR; Shrestha, B (eds) (2011) The status of glaciers in the Hindu Kush-Himalayan region. Kathmandu: ICIMOD Barnett, TP; Adam, JC; Lettenmaier, DP (2005) 'Potential  impacts of a warming climate on water availability in snow-dominated regions.' Nature 438: 303-309. IPCC (2007) Climate Change 2007: The physical science basis, Contribution of Working Group I to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Pres.