Kathmandu, Sept. 17: Minister
for Forest and Environment Shakti Bahadur Basnet said that a significant
proportion of the country’s economy is associated with climate-sensitive
activities.
“The livelihoods of
Nepali people are very dependent on climate. It is estimated that the direct
cost of the climate change impacts is equivalent to 1.5 – 2 per cent of current
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) annually,” Basnet said at the inauguration of the
Hindu-Kush-Himalaya Regional Conference on ‘Cryosphere, glacier melting and
mountain economy: Trans-boundary solutions for resilient HKH mountains’.
The two-day regional
conference began in Kathmandu on Monday.
According to current
prices, 2 per cent GDP means Rs. 60 billion. Citing a study conducted in 2013,
the Minister said that the impact would be much higher in extreme years, rising
to 5 per cent or more.
Basnet said that all
the countries in the HKH region were facing common challenges to development.
“Poor infrastructure,
low economic integration, lack of technology, finance and capacity are other
challenges impacting transport, watershed and river basin management, and
sustainable land management,” he said.
According to him, the
environmental change is jeopardising the environment and economy of the entire
Himalayan range as well as the Indo-Gangetic and Indus plains downstream which
serve as the food baskets for more than a fourth of humanity.
Meanwhile, recognising
the risks posed to their water resources and ecosystems, senior government
officials from Afghanistan, Bhutan, India, Nepal, and Pakistan participating in
the conference agreed to launch a regional network to boost their mountain
economies and combat glacier and snow melt
caused by climate change and air pollution across the region.
They have formed HKH
Glaciers and Mountain Economy Network.
The group of scientists and
climate champions, delegates from five
south Asian countries agreed on a set of principles to better maintain the snow
covers and glaciers that span their mountain ranges and serve as a valuable
source of energy, water, and food for millions of people living in downstream
areas.
“South Asia is home to the
largest glaciated area outside of the poles, and
the region shares many common challenges related to climate change and glacier
melting. Greater cooperation with our South Asian neighbours will bring the
solutions we need to keep our Himalayan glaciers healthy, boost our mountain
economies, and make our communities more resilient to climate change,” said
Minister Basnet.
Chief Economist of the World
Bank for South Asia Martin Rama said that the newly-formed Hindu Kush Himalaya
Glaciers and Mountain Economy Network would help South Asian countries develop
joint strategies to counteract climate change and pollution that threaten their
environment and their people.
The HKH region has high
diversity in flora and fauna, culture and indigenous knowledge, practices and
traditions. It is comprised of 39 per cent grasslands, 20 per cent forests, 15
per cent shrub lands and 5 per cent agricultural lands. The remaining 21 per
cent covering rocky areas, snow cover and water bodies have high potential for
hydropower, tourism and adventures.
South Asia is highly dependent
on water provided by Himalayan glaciers and thus vulnerable to rising
temperatures that trigger snowmelt. During the past century most of the
Himalayan glaciers have been shrinking and, between 2003 and 2009, lost an
estimated 174 gigatons of water each year at a rate faster than the global
average. Projections of climate change for the region suggest that rising
temperatures will continue to impact snowmelt and affect water supply for all countries.
The conference is jointly
organised by the Ministry of Forests and Environment, Government of Nepal, the
World Bank, and the Centre for Green Economy Development, Nepal (CGED-N).
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