-Scroll.in/ The Third Pole Flash-flood warnings routed through NGOs are giving border villages precious lead-time to escape the wrath of suddenly rising rivers. In the last few weeks of June, a series of WhatsApp messages were sent from Bhutan to India to warn cross-border friends downstream of the Aai, Saralbhanga and Manas rivers about cloud-bursts, swollen rivers and possible flash floods affecting people in the Indian state of Assam. Although originating from officials,...
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Dams close to glacial lakes in Himalayas under flood threat
-IANS Hydropower projects, on Himalayan water resources, can face hazards of glacial lake outbursts that can damage its infrastructure Of the 177 hydropower projects (HPP) located close to Himalayan glaciers over a fifth - including many in India - could be under threat from floods caused by the outbursts of glacial lakes, European researchers have warned. The researchers, from various universities, have charted out a new method for locating the minimum exposure that...
More »High-level solutions-Anil K Gupta
-The Indian Express The Himalayas need special policy attention, given their strategic importance and unique vulnerabilities The fifth assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicted increased global warming, with a 1.5-2.0 degree rise in surface temperature by the end of the 21st century. This will not only make coastal regions vulnerable to sea-level rise but also make the sensitive Himalayan ecosystem more vulnerable. The increase in temperature will...
More »Satellite identifies potential danger atop Himalayas
-IANS BANGALORE: A satellite-based study has indicated that a huge glacial lake has formed atop the Himalayas in Sikkim with a "very high" potential for it to burst and create devastation downstream. Analysis of satellite data has revealed that the lake has formed at the snout of South Lhonak glacier, that is about 7,000 metres high on the mountain in the northeastern state. The lake, bounded by loose soil and debris, could cause...
More »Himalayas melting faster than the global average
The melting of Himalayan glaciers has been a bone of contention between international environmentalists and the Government of India. The government believes that some perceptions of the international environmentalists are alarmist. Now a new global report has sought to set aside that controversy by measuring the rate at which the Himalayan glaciers are melting. (The report enclosed below) The Himalayan glaciers are melting faster than the global average and the rate...
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