Conservation of Himalayan glaciers

The flagging off of an expedition to study causes and glacier melting in the Himalayan region of Arunachal Pradesh was long overdue. The 10-day-long study to be conducted by a six-member team of scientists from the National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research is expected to generate significant data that will go a long way towards articulating measures aimed at protecting glaciers in the hill state. The establishment of a separate and dedicated mountain hazard research institute, as recommended by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Water Resources, needs to be put on the table of policymakers as soon as possible. Conservation of Himalayan glaciers in Arunachal Pradesh is critical for the availability of water and the river ecosystem of glacier-fed Kameng, Subansiri, Dibang, and Manas river basins. The expedition bears great significance in the wake of the recent Glacial Lake Outburst Flood in Sikkim, triggering catastrophe in the Teesta River basin and washing away the Chungthang dam on the river, resulting in the loss of lives and damage to infrastructure and household properties. The parliamentary panel, in its report, listed a number of gaps and deficiencies in glaciology research and monitoring of the glacial lakes and water bodies in the Himalayan region. These are: The Geological Survey of India (GSI) has not conducted specific studies on the estimated volume loss of glaciers between 1950 and 2020 and has also not projected any estimate of loss by the year 2100. There is no comprehensive information about the volume loss of glaciers in the Indian Himalayan Region. The Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Climate Change has not conducted any study or awarded any project on the warming of Himalayan glaciers. The Central Water Commission (CWC) has not issued any advisory to the local governments concerned regarding the anticipation of floods caused by avalanches or cloudburst landslides in the Himalayan region. Further, there is also no specific information available on stretches of the Himalaya where the danger of melting glaciers and consequent GLOF is most severe. The “Climate Change Risk Assessment in the Indian Himalayan Region, Arunachal Pradesh,” prepared by the State Climate Change Cell-Arunachal Pradesh, states that the analysis of temperature for the period 1980–2019 indicates a rising trend in the annual average maximum and minimum temperature in the state. It has also projected that the annual average maximum temperature in Arunachal Pradesh is likely to rise by 1.62°C and by 2.03°C by 2021–2050 in two standardised scenarios of mid-range emissions and high-end emissions, respectively. Climate change, especially changes in the hydrological cycle due to differences in precipitation patterns, leads to a shift in river runoff and consequently affects the whole ecosystem downstream, including agricultural productivity and human livelihood, it explains. The four major rivers originating in the border state outfall in the River Brahmaputra, and therefore, any change in water flow regime on account of glacier melting in Aruanchal Pradesh will have multiple consequences for the Brahmaputra River basin in Assam and downstream areas in Bangladesh. The Inter-governmental-governmentalmate Change has already sounded the alarm bell that Himalayan glaciers are receding every year due to global warming. The Parliamentary Committee insisted that, in order to have effective and seamless monitoring of Himalayan glaciers and glacier-bound risks, a comprehensive network of field stations in highly important glacier basins supplemented by integrated monitoring systems is the need of the hour. A key recommendation of the committee that needs to be acted upon urgently by the central government is to set up a single nodal agency for bringing out synergies among various government departments and ministries involved in glaciological research and monitoring to achieve desirable results. Such an agency should be entrusted with the responsibility of coordinating the activities of all the departments and agencies involved in Himalayan glacier monitoring and research work, it adds. The committee correctly observed that “fragmented research and studies by various departments, institutions, and agencies in this regard will not yield desired results or outcomes and also may not necessarily convert into actionable steps.” Glacier regions being located in remote regions, the availability of adequate funds for research work is crucial to achieving the desired outcomes. Apart from collaboration between the central and state government departments, ministries, and institutions, the international collaboration of scientists and experts is essential to achieving the gigantic scale of study of the Himalayan glaciers. More and more studies will help in the generation of an inventory of Himalayan glaciers in Arunachal Pradesh and their current status. The development of an early warning system for glacier melting based on research findings will help plan disaster response mechanisms in river basins. Building awareness among people in the region about climate change and the importance of conservation of forests and ecology and reducing carbon emissions is equally important to contribute towards limiting global temperature rise and retarding glacier melting. It is time to act fast before glacier melting reaches an irreversible stage, posing a serious threat to water security in the region.