Himalaya Nations Develop Common Climate Plan

The mountain range containing the world's tallest peak is also one of the most important bastions of biodiversity in the world. This is why Eastern Himalayan nations have recently decided to adopt a common, unified plan of promoting adaptations to effects of climate change.

The region is bound to get severely affected by global warming. It will lose glaciers, and with it the species that depend on the ices for their survival. Invasive species will move at higher elevations as temperatures rise, further contributing to the decline of food webs.

Without human intervention, the entire mountain range is threatened. Already, it contains numerous endangered or nearly-extinct species, that need protection. Extending that protection over the entire habitat seems like the sensible thing to do at this point.

It is unfortunately becoming increasingly clear that there is no will at the international level to mitigate fore the effects of climate change and local warming, or to reduce the amount of greenhouse gases being emitted into the atmosphere every year.

Undoubtedly, when the effects of rising temperatures will make themselves felt around the world, politicians will be more willing to get past their interest and actually solve things, but by then it will already be too late for many endangered species.

Government representatives from Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal want to avoid this, which is why they met in Thimphu between January 27-28. At the talks, the officials began to set up the 10-year national and regional adaptation framework that will govern the Himalayas in the future.

“Climate change is a shared problem and regions bound by common issues and geographical boundaries should coordinate efforts to deal with its impacts on the Himalayan biodiversity,” said at the meeting Dr Pema Gyamtsho.

“Actions must be expedited at local, national and regional levels,” add the Bhutan official, who is the Honorable Minister for Agriculture and Forests. He explained that the complete proposals will be discussed at higher levels of representation later this year.

On October 14, top officials from the four governments are scheduled to meet again in Thimphu, Bhutan, to discuss the final conservation plans and targets to be achieved within the next decade.

The countries will need to address food, water, biodiversity and energy targets, and this is bound to be a very complex objective. However, the will is there in this matter, so solutions will most likely be found.

“To secure the Eastern Himalayan ecosystem from climate change and development pressures, it is essential for the nations in the region to work on a unified strategy,” explains the leader of the WWF Living Himalayas Initiative, Tariq Aziz.