Ronan Kelly
Retired 2020
Shimla warmer by one deg celsius
Rajesh Deol
Over 300 scientists, academics, policy makers, representatives of international and industrial bodies deliberated on the Himalayan glaciers.
It is emerging as a ‘Himalayan’ challenge to stem the tide of climate change that threatens to wipe the very nomenclature, ‘abode of snow’, from the mighty ranges.
The ‘Third Pole’ that the Himalayan mountain range - the largest in the world - is called due to its vast glacial cover spreading over 33,000 square km, is steadily shrinking at the edge spreading panic from Kabul to Beijing. If dire warnings from the scientists were to be believed, the onslaught of global warming could denude the majestic Himalayan peaks of its snow-cap and the mighty glaciers might just disappear as early as in next 40 years.
Such an event would be catastrophic for more than 2.6 billion people who thrive on water and natural resources from the ten mighty rivers which are fed by the huge Himalayan glacial reservoir.
That this projection falls short of unanimity among the scientific community is the only consolation. There is less contestation, though, to the fact that human-induced climate change is real and the Himalayan eco-system faces urgent environmental challenges. At a simplistic level, consider the popular hill destinations of Mussourie and Shimla, which are getting perceptibly hotter during summers and snowfall is becoming a rarity. Once blooming, apple orchards in their vicinity are recording ever receding yields. Shimla is now warmer by one degree Celsius while far-away Gangtok’s mean temperature has shown an increase from 0.9 degree Celsius to 2 degree Celsius over the past decades.
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http://www.deccanherald.com/content/33549/shimla-warmer-one-deg-celsius.html
Rajesh Deol
Over 300 scientists, academics, policy makers, representatives of international and industrial bodies deliberated on the Himalayan glaciers.
It is emerging as a ‘Himalayan’ challenge to stem the tide of climate change that threatens to wipe the very nomenclature, ‘abode of snow’, from the mighty ranges.
The ‘Third Pole’ that the Himalayan mountain range - the largest in the world - is called due to its vast glacial cover spreading over 33,000 square km, is steadily shrinking at the edge spreading panic from Kabul to Beijing. If dire warnings from the scientists were to be believed, the onslaught of global warming could denude the majestic Himalayan peaks of its snow-cap and the mighty glaciers might just disappear as early as in next 40 years.
Such an event would be catastrophic for more than 2.6 billion people who thrive on water and natural resources from the ten mighty rivers which are fed by the huge Himalayan glacial reservoir.
That this projection falls short of unanimity among the scientific community is the only consolation. There is less contestation, though, to the fact that human-induced climate change is real and the Himalayan eco-system faces urgent environmental challenges. At a simplistic level, consider the popular hill destinations of Mussourie and Shimla, which are getting perceptibly hotter during summers and snowfall is becoming a rarity. Once blooming, apple orchards in their vicinity are recording ever receding yields. Shimla is now warmer by one degree Celsius while far-away Gangtok’s mean temperature has shown an increase from 0.9 degree Celsius to 2 degree Celsius over the past decades.
...
http://www.deccanherald.com/content/33549/shimla-warmer-one-deg-celsius.html