Climate Change in the Himalayas : Current State of Knowledge

Gautam, Mahesh R. ; Timilsina, Govinda R. ; Acharya, Kumud

World Bank, Washington, DC

关键词: ABSORPTION;    AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION;    AIR;    AIR POLLUTION;    ALBEDO;   

DOI  :  10.1596/1813-9450-6516
RP-ID  :  WPS6516

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: World Bank Open Knowledge Repository

【 摘 要 】

This paper reviews the literature on thepotential biophysical and economic impacts of climate changein the Himalayas. Existing observations indicate that thetemperature is rising at a higher rate in Nepal and Chineseregions of the Himalayas compared with rest of theHimalayas. A declining trend of monsoon in the westernIndian Himalayas and an increasing trend in the easternIndian Himalayas have been observed, whereas increasingprecipitation and stream flow in many parts of TibetanPlateau are noted. Glaciers in both the eastern and westernHimalayas are mostly retreating, but the majority of theglaciers in Karakorum are either stable or advancing slowly.Expansion of glacier lakes is reported, with the highestrate in Nepal and Bhutan. Most literature predicts increasesin temperature and monsoon precipitations and decreases inwinter precipitations in the future thereby leading tomonsoon flooding and increased sediments in stream flow.Available hydrological simulations indicate reduced rainfalland shrinkage of glacier thereby leading to shortage ofwater supply for power generation and irrigation in winterparticularly in highly glaciated basins. Projected economicimpacts of glacial lake outburst floods can be substantialon the developed river basin with infrastructures andpopulation centers. However, there is a clear gap inknowledge of economic impacts of climate change in the Himalayas.