Glaciers, Glacier Retreat,
for a living planet A NO V E R V I E WO FGlaciers,glacierretreat,and its subsequent impactsin the Nepal, India and China
A NO V E R V I E WO FGlaciers,glacierretreat,and its subsequent impactsin the Nepal, India and China
WWFFirst published: 2005Reprinted: 2006Coordinated by:Sandeep Chamling RaiClimate Change OfficerWWF Nepal ProgramEditorial support:Trishna GurungCommunications OfficerAREAS and Tiger ProgrammesWWF InternationalThis overview report is the product of a regional level project "Himalayan Glaciers and River Project" initiated by WWFNepal Program, WWF India and WWF China Program.This report was compiled by Joe Thomas K and Sandeep Chamling Rai based on the following country reports:Nepal'Nepalese Glaciers, Glacier Retreat and its Impact to the Broader Perspective of Nepal'Dr. Arun. B. Shrestha, Hydrologist-Engineers, Snow and Glaciers Hydrology Unit, Department of Hydrology andMeteorology (DHM)/Ministry of Science and Technology, Kathmandu, Nepal.India'Status review of possible Impacts of Climate Change on Himalayan Glaciers, Glaciers retreat and its subsequentimpacts on fresh water regime'Dr. Rajesh Kumar, HIGHICE-India Glacier Research group, SES, JNU, New DelhiChina'An Overview of Glaciers, Retreating Glaciers, and Their Impact in the Tibetan Plateau'Yongping Shen, Cold and Arid Regions Environmental and Engineering Research Institute (CAREERI), ChineseAcademy of Sciences (CAS), Lanzhou 730000, China WWF Nepal Program, 2006ISBN: 999 46-837-2-1
AN OVERVIEW OF GLACIERS, GLACIER RETREAT,AND SUBSEQUENT IMPACTS IN THE NEPAL, INDIA AND CHINAForewordClimate change is real and happening now.The planet is already experiencing its impacts on biodiversity, freshwater resources and locallivelihoods. Using current climate change trends, by 2100, the average global temperature mayrise by 1.4 - 5.8 C according to the Third Assessment Report from the Intergovernmental Panel onClimate Change (IPCC, 2001). This is certain disaster for fragile ecosystems like glaciers.Seventy percent of the worlds freshwater is frozen in glaciers. Glacier melt buffers otherecosystems against climate variability. Very often it provides the only source of water for humansand biodiversity during dry seasons. Freshwater is already a limited resource for much of theplanet, and in the next three decades, the population growth is likely to far exceed any potentialincrease in available water.The Himalayas have the largest concentration of glaciers outside the polar caps. With glaciercoverage of 33,000 km2, the region is aptly called the "Water Tower of Asia" as it provides around8.6 X 106 m3 of water annually (Dyurgerov and Maier, 1997). These Himalayan glaciers feed sevenof Asia's great rivers: the Ganga, Indus, Brahmaputra, Salween, Mekong, Yangtze and Huang Ho.It ensures a year round water supply to millions of people.Climate change has impacted the glacial ecosystem tremendously. Sixty-seven percent of glaciersare retreating at a startling rate in the Himalayas and the major causal factor has been identifiedas climate change (Ageta and Kadota, 1992; Yamada et al., 1996; Fushinmi, 2000). Glacial meltwill affect freshwater flows with dramatic adverse effects on biodiversity, and people andlivelihoods, with a possible long-term implication on regional food security.WWF sees the impacts of climate change on glaciers and its subsequent impact on freshwater asa major issue, not just in the national context but also at a regional, transboundary level. The WWFoffices in Nepal, India and China are taking the initiative to develop a regional collaboration totackle climate change impacts in the glacial ecosystem and address adaptation measures. Thisreport is the outcome of a regional collaboration of the three countries, providing an overview ofclimate impacts on glaciers with a focus on key areas that needs future intervention.We hope this will highlight the issue of climate change and galvanize policy makers to take actionto ensure a living planet for future generations.Dr Chandra Prasad GurungCountry RepresentativeWWF Nepal ProgramRavi SinghSecretary General and CEOWWF IndiaJim HarknessCountry RepresentativeWWF China Program
WWFAcknowledgementsAn Overview of Glaicer, Glaciers Retreat and its Subsequent Impacts in Nepal, India and China isan overview of the regional Himalayan Glaciers and River Project initiated by WWF Nepal Program,WWF India and WWF China Program to foster regional collaboration, formulate a coordinationstrategy to tackle climate change impacts on glaciers, and address mitigation and adaptationoptions.Among the many people who made invaluable contributions to this report, I would especially like tothank Dr Arun Shrestha, Hydrologist-Engineer, Department of Hydrology and Meteorology Ministry of Environment, Science and Technology/His Majesty Government of Nepal, Dr RajeshKumar, HIGHICE - India Glacier Research Group, Jawaharlal Nehru University, and ProfessorYonping Shen, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) for the country status reports.For sharing their technical expertise, I am indebted to Jennifer Morgan, Director - WWF ClimateChange Programme, Dr Lara Hansen, Chief Scientist - Climate Change Programme, Liam Salter,Coordinator - WWF Asia Pacific Climate and Energy Programme, Michael Case, ResearchScientist Climate Change Programme, and Dr Michael Prentice, Institute for the Study of Earth,Ocean and Space at the University of New Hampshire, USA.I am grateful to Dr Chandra Prasad Gurung, Country Representative and Anil Manandhar,Conservation Programme Director, at WWF Nepal Programme for their support.Significant coordination and support in the preparation was unstintingly provided by Dr PrakashRao, Coordinator, and Samrat Sengupta, Senior Policy Officer, Climate Change and EnergyProgramme at WWF India, Dr Lin Gan, Climate Change Officer and Qiao Liming, ProgrammeAssociates of the Energy and Climate Programme, WWF China Program.Contributions and comments from Martin Hiller, Communication Manager - WWF International,Trishna Gurung, Communications Officer - AREAS and Tiger Program, WWF International, SangitaSingh Shrestha, Communications Officer, and Aarati Gurung, Climate Change Campaign Officerfrom WWF Nepal Program also shaped this report.Last but not the least, I am extremely grateful to Pieter Stemerding, Manager - InternationalProjects, WWF Netherlands, for recognizing the need for a report that presents a regionaloverview of climate change impacts in Nepal, China and India, and providing us with the resourcesto bring it to completion.Sandeep Chamling RaiCoordinator - Himalayan Glacier and River ProjectWWF Nepal Program
AN OVERVIEW OF GLACIERS, GLACIER RETREAT,AND SUBSEQUENT IMPACTS IN THE NEPAL, INDIA AND CHINALists of FiguresFigure 1:Figure 2:Figure 3:Figure 4:Figure 5:Figure 6:Figure 7:Figure 8:Figure 9:Figure 10:Figure 11:Figure12:Figure 13:Figure 14:Figure 15:Figure 16:Figure 17:Figure 18:Figure 19:Figure 20:Figure 21:Figure 22:Figure 23:Figure 24:Figure 25:Figure 26:Figure 27:Figure 28:Figure 29:Figure 30:Figure 31:Cross-section of Nepal's topographyPrecipitation in NepalMajor drainage basins of NepalSpatial distribution of annual average maximum temperature trends in Nepal(1977 to 1994)Comparison between temperature trends in Kathmandu, All-Nepal and GloballyTime series of precipitation in NepalChanges in temperature and precipitation for SERES scenario B2Map showing locations of different areas of glacier studyRetreat of AX010 glacierLongitudinal profile of Khumbu Glaciera: Fluctuation of nine different points on the terminus of Yala Glacierb: Terminus retreat and surface lowering of Yala Glacier during different periodsLirung Glacier in a. 1985 and b. 2002Annual mean temperature trend in Kyangjing, Langtang station (3,900m)Terminus position changes of Rika Samba GlacierDischarge data of selected rivers (1996)The footage of Dig Tsho GLOFThe footage of Imja Tsho in 2004Growth of Tsho Rolpa from the late 1950s to 1997Glacier distribution along the Himalayan arcRetreat of the Gangotri Glacier (Garhwal Himalayas)snout during the last 220 yearsThe drainage map of Dokriani basinSynoptic view of the Dokriani glacierDrainage map of Bagirathi River, Garhwal HimalayasDistribution of glaciers in the Tibetan PlateauPamirs KnotGlaciers and four peaks higher than 8,000 m in the KarakorumMidui Glacier in southeast Tibet in a mosoonal maritime glacierThe Puruogangri Ice Field in the Northern Tibetan PlateauBoundaries of glaciers change in the A'nyêmaqên MountainsVariation in distribution of ecological systems in source of the Yellow River andYangtze River during 1986-2000 (Wang Genxu et al., 2004)Swamp Meadow decreased pattern in the Yangtze River 34363840414346515557
WWFLists of TableTable 1:Table 2:Table 3:Table 4:Table 5:Table 6:Table7Table 8:Table 9:Discharge Date of Major Rivers of NepalRegional Annual Average Maximum Temperature Trends for the period 1977- 94( C per year).GCM Estimates for temperature and precipitation changes in NepalList of GLOF events recorded in Nepal.A status of the glacier inventory of Indus BasinA status of the glacier inventory of Ganga-Brahmaputra basinsRetreats of Important Glaciers in the HimalayasGlacier Resources in the Himalayas (after Dahe Qin et al., 1999)Recent variations in the Qilian Mountains (After Liu Chaohai et al., 1999)Glacier variations in the western Qilian Mts during 1956-1990 (Liu Shiyin et al., 2002)Glacier area change in the source of the Yangtze River (after Anxin Lu et al., 2002)Glacier length change in the source of the Yangtze River (after Anxin Lu et al., 2002)Variation of some typical glaciers in the Chinese monsoonal temperate glacierregion since the Little Ice Age (He Yuanqing et al, 2003)Table 14: Advancing or retreating of glaciers in the High Asia for varying periods(After Yao Tandong et al., 2004)Table 10:Table11:Table 12:Table 13:1415182531313243454548484953
AN OVERVIEW OF GLACIERS, GLACIER RETREAT,AND SUBSEQUENT IMPACTS IN THE NEPAL, INDIA AND CHINALists of PUNFCCCUSDUSGSWECSWGHGWGMSAtmosphere-Ocean General Circulation ModelAdvance Space borne Thermal Emission and Reflection RadiometerDigital Elevation ModelDepartment of International DevelopmentDepartment of Hydrology and MeteorologyEl Nino-Southern OscillationGeneral Circulation ModelsGross Domestic ProductGeographical Information SystemGlacial Lake Outburst FloodGeological Survey of IndiaHis Majesty's Government of NepalInternational Centre for Integrated Mountain DevelopmentInternational Commission for Snow and IceIntergovernmental Panel on Climate ChangeInter-Tropical Convergence ZoneLast Glacial MaximumLittle Ice AgeMinistry of Population and EnvironmentOrganization for Economic Co-operation and DevelopmentSatellite Pour Observation de la TerreSpecial Report on Emission ScenarioThematic Mapper (Landset)United Nations Environment ProgramUnited Nations Framework Convention on Climate ChangeUnited State DollarUnited State Geology SurveyWater and Energy Commission SecretariatWorking Group on Himalayan GlaciologyWorld Glacier Monitoring Service
WWF
AN OVERVIEW OF GLACIERS, GLACIER RETREAT,AND SUBSEQUENT IMPACTS IN THE NEPAL, INDIA AND CHINAContentForewordAcknowledgementList of FiguresList of TablesAcronymsRegional Overview: Executive SummaryIntroductionA historical overviewThe present scenarioOverview of the problemRisks and associated impacts of Glacier retreatFresh water regimeGlacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs)National economic costs111234446Country Case Studies: Nepal, India and China71. Nepal: Glaciers, glacier retreat and its impacts to the broader perspectiveBackgroundGeographyClimate and atmospheric circulation over NepalHydrologyRelevance of Climate ChangeObserved climatic trends in NepalTemperaturePrecipitationClimate Change projectionsPhysical and climatological characteristicsGlaciers of NepalShorong HimalKhumbu RegionLangtang RegionDhaulagiri RegionKanchenjunga RegionImpact of glacier retreat in NepalRiver DischargeGlacier Lakes Outburst FloodsImpact of Climate Change on other sectorsFreshwater flowAgricultureBio-diversity and 42626272728
WWF2. India: Glaciers, glacier retreat and its impacts on Fresh Water RegimeIntroductionPhysical and climatological characteristicsGlacial fluctuations in the Himalayan regionImpact of Climate Change on glacier recessionImpacts of glacier retreat in IndiaUses of Freshwater292930313235353. China: glaciers, retreating glaciers and its impacts on the Tibetan PlateauIntroductionBackgroundGlacier resources and distributionMaritime type or temperate type glaciersSub-continental type or sub-polar type glaciersExtreme continental type or polar type glaciersPhysical and climatological characteristicsThe Pamirs PlateauThe KarakorumWest Kunlun MountainsQilian MountainsThe HimalayasNyaingentanglha MountainsMt. Gongga and Mt. Yulongxue in the Hengduan MountainsClimate Change and Glacier RetreatYurunkax River of the West Kunlun MountainsQilian MountainsIce Caps in the Qangtang InlandPuruogangri Ice Field in the Middle Tibetan PlateauBujiagangri in the East Tanggulha MountainsSource Region of the Yangtze RiverNorthern Slope of the Tanggula MountainsMonsoonal Temperate Glacier RegionThe Nyaingentanglha Mountains of the Southeast TibetThe HimalayasGangrigabu MountainsThe A’nyêmaqên Mountains in Sources of the Yellow RiverImpacts of Glacier Retreat on the Tibetan PlateauEffect on Water ResourcesGlacier Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs)Glacial debris flow hazardsDegradation of wetlandsLake area and river stream 4950505051535355555556ConclusionReferences5961
EXECUTIVESUMMARYREGIONAL OVERVIEWExecutive SummaryIntroductionA historical overviewClimatic changes and its impacts on thefluctuation of glaciers are a natural phenomenonthat has been occurring in the Earth's fivebillion-year-old history. In the past few decades,global climate change has had a significantimpact on the high mountain environment:snow, glaciers and permafrost are especiallysensitive to changes in atmospheric conditionsbecause of their proximity to melting conditions.In fact, changes in ice occurrences andcorresponding impacts on physical highmountain systems could be among the mostdirectly visible signals of global warming. This isalso one of the primary reasons why glacierobservations have been used for climatesystem monitoring for many years (Haeberli1990; Wood 1990).There have been at least 17 major glacialadvances (glaciations) in the last 1.6 millionyears alone (Goudie 1983). The most recent, theLast Glacial, reached its peak some 20,000 to18,000 years ago and came to an end about10,000 years ago (Goudie 1983). Glaciations arefollowed by 'interglacial' periods, during which theglacier ice retreats as a result of global warming.The interglacial typically continues for about10,000 years before the cooling or the nextglaciation begins. This cyclical activity, whichrecurs at intervals of approximately 100,000years, is generally accepted to be caused bygradual changes in the earth's rotation, tilt andorbit around the sun, which affects the amount ofsolar radiation the earth receives (Milankovitch1941 in Bradley 1985).1
EXECUTIVESUMMARYWWFGlacial cycles are punctuated by relativelyshort periods of localized cooling and warming,during which glaciers advance and retreat. Themost recent cooling episode of the presentinterglacial commonly referred to as the 'LittleIce Age' (LIA), affected parts of North America(Curry 1969), Asia (Chu Ko-Chan 1973) andEurope from about 1300 AD through to the latterhalf of the 19th century. During the LIA (15501850 AD) glaciers were much longer than today(Yamada et al. 1998). It may have been theresult of volcanic eruptions and the presence ofvolcanic ash in the atmosphere that causedcooling by reducing the amount of solarradiation reaching the earth's surface (Lamb1970). Changes to ocean currents have alsobeen suggested, as has tectonic activity,concentration of carbon dioxide in theatmosphere, and sunspot activity (Goudie1983).The present scenarioThe 20th century has been a watershed vis-à-visglacial fluctuations on a global scale. This hasbeen a period of dramatic glacier retreat inalmost all alpine regions of the globe, withaccelerated glacier and ice-fields melt in thelast two decades. The first phase of this glacierretreat was associated with emergence from theLittle Ice Age that ended in the 19th century. Itcorresponded with a warming of 0.3 C in thefirst half of the 20th century in the northernhemisphere (24 to 40 N). In the last 25 years,a second 0.3 C warming pulse has causednorthern hemisphere temperatures to rise tounprecedented levels compared to the last1,000 years. The 1990s were the warmestdecade of the millennium and 1998 the hottestyear of the millennium. In all, there was atemperature rise of close to 1 C across thecontinents.2Research shows that the glacier cover ofmountain regions worldwide has decreasedsignificantly in recent years as a result ofwarming trends. A recent comparison ofhistorical glacier data with images from theASTER (Advance Spaceborne ThermalEmission and Reflection Radiometer)instrument on NASA's TERRA satellite by theUnited States' Geological Survey revealed asignificant shrinkage of mountain glaciers in theAndes, the Himalayas, the Alps and thePyrenees over the past decade (Wessels et al.2001). These observations are consistent withpublished results from many other glacierstudies around the world that also recordedrapid glacier retreat in recent years. A study byDyurgerov and Meier (1997), who consideredthe mass balance changes of over 200mountain glaciers globally, concluded that thereduction in global glacier area amounted tobetween 6,000 and 8,000 km2 over a 30 yearperiod between 1961 and 1990.According to Haeberli and Hoelzle (2001) of theWorld Glacier Monitoring Service (WGMS), themeasurements taken over the last century"clearly reveal a general shrinkage of mountainglaciers on a global scale". They observed thatthe trend was most pronounced during the firsthalf of the 20th century and that glaciers hadstarted to grow again after about 1950.However, they claim that mountain glacierretreat has been accelerating again since the1980s at a "rate beyond the range of preindustrial variability". Based upon a number ofscientific investigations (e.g. Kuhn 1993a,Oerlemans 1994) and the IPCC (1996b) thereare forecasts that up to a quarter of the globalmountain glacier mass could disappear by 2050and up to half could be lost by 2100.
Closer to the present focus of our areas ofstudy, Himalayan glaciers have also been foundto be in a state of general retreat since 1850(Mayewski & Jeschke 1979). The Himalayanglaciers feed seven of Asia's great rivers:Ganga, Indus, Brahmaputra, Salween, Mekong,Yangtze and Huang He, and ensure a yearround water supply to billions people.The Khumbu Glacier, a popular climbing routeto the summit of Mt Everest, has retreated over5 km from where Sir Edmund Hillary andTenzing Norgay set out to conquer the world'shighest mountain in 1953. Since the mid-1970sthe average air temperature measured at 49stations of the Himalayan region rose by 1 Cwith high elevation sites warming the most(Hasnain 2000). This is twice as fast as the0.6 C average warming for the mid-latitudinalnorthern hemisphere over the same time period(IPCC 2001b), and illustrates the highsensitivity of mountain regions to climatechange (Oerlemanns et al. 2000). The DokrianiBarnak Glaicer in India retreated 20m in 1998,and the Gangotri Glacier some 30m.Overview of the problemThe New Scientist magazine carried the article"Flooded Out - Retreating glaciers spell disasterfor valley communities" in their 5 June 1999issue. It quoted Professor Syed Hasnain, thenChairman of
AN OVERVIEW OF GLACIERS, GLACIER RETREAT, AND SUBSEQUENT IMPACTS IN THE NEPAL, INDIA AND CHINA. 2. India: Glaciers, glacier retreat and its impacts on Fresh Water Regime 29 Introduction 29 Physical and climatological characteristics 30 WWF. WWF. glacier retreat AN OVERVIEW OF GLACIERS, GLACIER RETREAT, China. NEPALINDIA. NEPAL.
GLACIERS OF BHUTAN—An Overview By Shuji Iwata1 Introduction . Glacier Distribution and Types of Glaciers Glacier distribution in a region, including exact numbers and areas of glaciers, is shown by a glacier inventory. The first glacier inventory in Bhutan was compiled in 1996 by the Geological Survey of Bhutan (Division .
The Malaspina Glacier in Alaska is a classic example of this kind of glacier. A cirque glacier is a small valley glacier that is confined to the high basin (cirque) at the upper end of a mountain valley. A snowfield is a perennial mass of ice and snow too small to move like a glacier. A visitor to Glacier National Park can see many cirque glaciers
The St. Elias Mountains, which straddle the Canadian and U.S. border, are highly glacierized; ice fields and associated outlet glaciers, plateau glaciers, valley glaciers, and piedmont glaciers are common. The mix of sub-polar and cold glaciers range in area from a few km 2 to more than 1200 km 2 (Seward Glacier). At least 136 of the
glaciers of north america— glaciers of canada glaciers of the arctic islands glaciers of baffin island by john t. andrews with sections on barnes ice cap: geomorphology and thermod ynamics by gerald holdsworth late 20th cent
Most of the estimated 70,000 to 200,000 glaciers in the word today are Alpine Glaciers PIEDMONT GLACIERS. Forms when two or more valley glaciers emerge from their valleys, spread out and form a broad sheet on the lowlands at the base of a mountain. Coalescing alpine glaciers along major slope breaks. They fo
Glacier Mass Balance The purpose of this exercise is to illustrate features about glaciers mass balance and changes in glacier geometry. The glacier of interest here is South Cascade Glacier located on the crest of the North Cascade Range of Washington. It takes about 2.5 - 3 hours to drive to the nearest trailhead from Seattle.
Before 1750, Mendenhall Glacier was an advancing glacier; that is, more snow nourished the glacier than melted. At that time, it was two and one-half miles down the valley from its present position. Slightly warmer temperatures increased the rate of melt and the glacier began to recede. Today, the Mendenhall Glacier is continuing to recede slowly.
Python as his main programming language, primarily as a means for creative ends, because it is easy to read and fun to learn. J-P Stacey has been a senior developer at Torchbox Ltd since 2005, building and maintaining (among other things) Python, Django, and Drupal applications. He organizes the Oxford Geek Nights and gets involved in tuition and seminars at Torchbox. In his spare time he .
