THE THIRD POLE
The Himalaya support nearly half of humanity “Him” means snow “alaya” means mountain. The mountains of snow have also been called the third pole, since they are the third largest body of snow on our planet after the Antarctic and Arctic. They feed the giant rivers of Asia, and support half of humanity. Major rivers originate in the Himalayas – the Ganga, Yamuna, Kosi, and Brahmaputra that flow to east and the Indus, Sutlej, Ravi, that flow to the west. These rivers flow throughout the year fed by the melting glaciers of the Himalayan region that provides a 1,200,000 million m3 annual flow to the rivers. The entire Indo-Gangetic Plain, the most fertile region in the country, that supports over 900 million people, producing a variety of crops, depends on these rivers.
The Himalayas have a very fragile ecosystem. For centuries, this ecosystem has remained delicately balanced, and has been responsible for the tremendous biodiversity of the Himalayas. However, the Himalayas have undergone major changes in the last century. Conditions range from a critical situation in the Himalayas of Sikkim, Uttarakhand, and Kashmir to a moderately serious situation in Bhutan and the eastern Himalayas.
The Himalayas is one of the world's most sensitive hotspots to global climate change, with impacts manifesting at a particularly rapid rate. A situation that is predicted to intensify in coming years, with dire and far-reaching impacts on food, water and energy security, as well as biodiversity and species loss.
The Himalayan range is amongst the most unstable of the world’s mountains and therefore inherently susceptible to natural calamities. Deforestation aggravates the ravaging effects of regular earthquakes, and induces more landslides and floods. Furthermore, the rise in temperature would be further trigger many extreme events like Glacial Lake outbursts (GLOF), when the glacial lakes swell up due to the melting snows and burst through their confines, flooding the region on the one hand, and draining itself on the other. Less snow is falling, so there is less moisture for growing crops. In village after village, we are witnessing the end of farming if snow melt on the fields was the only source of moisture. Reduced snowfall also means less snow in glaciers, and less stream flow. The shorter period of snowfall prevents the snow from turning into hard ice crystals. Therefore more of the glacier is liable to melt when the summer comes. Climate change has also led to rain, rather than snow, falling even at higher altitudes. This also accelerates the melting of glaciers. Changes in temperature and precipitation will have serious and far-reaching consequences for climate-dependent sectors, such as agriculture, water resources and health.
According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), “glaciers in the Himayalas are receding faster than in any other part of the world and if the present rate continues, the likelihood of them disappearing by the year 2035 and perhaps sooner is very high if the earth keep getting warmer at the current rate”. According to the IPCC report the total area of glaciers in the Himalaya will shrink from 1930051 square miles to 38,000 square miles by 2035.
The melting of the Himalayan glaciers goes largely unreported, even though more people are impacted.
Melting glaciers, erratic and unpredictable weather conditions, changing rainfall patterns, and increasing temperatures are impacting on the people and wildlife of the region. The changing climate and its effects on glaciers and forests and resulting water will affect the soil’s moisture and the availability of water, which is likely to have a strong impact on food production. This will increase food insecurity, particularly amongst the poor and marginalized families. The loss of bio-diversity and agro-diversity also renders these populations vulnerable and less able to cope with the rapid, expected changes.
The Himalayan region is highly dynamic, with many socioeconomic and environmental drivers of change at play, including climate change. The impacts of these changes challenge the resilience of natural and human capacities and the environment. The increased incidence of extreme weather events and magnitude of associated natural disasters, believed to be related to climate change, are exacting high economic and social costs. The Himalayan region and the downstream areas that depend on ecosystem services, including the Indo-Gangetic plain – ‘the grain basket of South Asia’ – are particularly vulnerable to these changes.
Various drivers of change, including the climate, are stressing the diverse ecosystems that make the Himalayas unique in terms of biological and cultural diversity. Adaptation calls for an understanding of how and to what extent key drivers contribute to land cover and land use dynamics, and impact critical ecosystems and their services (e.g. bio resources, high value products, crop productivity, agrobiodiversity). Furthermore, identifying opportunities to manage ecosystems sustainably, and developing valuation of ecosystem services, are key to fostering community-based adaptation and to enhance livelihoods, alleviate poverty, and avert disaster and risk...