Posted on July 13, 2007 in Latest News
A significant change in the landscape of Mount Everest has been discovered by a team of experts. This team of seven who were sponsored by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) attributed the cause of this change to Global Warming, and Tourism, which is taxing the world’s highest mountain.
The team discovered that the landscape of Mount Everest has changed a lot since 1953, the year when Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay conquered the peak. It has been discovered that a series of ponds which used to exist near Island Peak, have unfortunately merged into a long lake.
The team took into account the observations of people who lived in the artic region all through their lives. Experts at Sagarmatha (Everest) national park and Thyangboche Monastery gave an account of the changing environmental conditions they had seen during their lives in the Himalayas. Their account served to support the report of the team.
Water melting from the glaciers caused a massive flood which wiped out old wooden bridges. In order to reduce possible damage from floods in future, the bridges had been replaced with higher and stronger metal. This has posed to be a serious problem for residents of the area.
UNEP scientists and experts from International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) situated in Katmandu have pinpointed 44 swollen glacial lakes in Nepal and Bhutan. Scientists predict that these lakes have reached such a condition that they could burst their banks in as little as five years.
Another factor which has taken a toll on the environment around Mount Everest is Tourism. Around 27,000 tourists visit the Mount Everest every year. The tourist population outnumbers the local Sherpa population of 3,000. Climbers have added to the woes by littering the mountain with human waste, discarded oxygen cylinders and other waste.
The factor acting as a catalyst to environmental degradation is Soil Erosion. Reason being that wood is the major source of fuel in this area, and as there is a shortage of wood the locals have resorted to overharvesting juniper and cushion shrubs. This has endangered the wildlife and has lead to erosion at higher altitudes.
“The Arctic is the early warning for the rest of the world,” said Sheila Watt-Cloutier of the Inuit Circumpolar Conference. “What happens to the planet happens first in the Arctic. Protect the Arctic and we save the planet. … We must all take what action we can to slow the pace of climate change, while there is still time.” It is therefore very essential for us to safeguard the Artic as well as the environment around us.
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