The Question(s) of Tibet - World Affairs Council

ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES
WORLD GLACIER MONITORING SERVICE
http://www.geo.uzh.ch/microsite/wgms/index.html
Today, the World Glacier Monitoring Service (WGMS) collects standardised observations on
changes in mass, volume, area and length of glaciers with time (glacier fluctuations), as well as
statistical information on the distribution of perennial surface ice in space (glacier inventories).
Such glacier fluctuation and inventory data are high priority key variables in climate system
monitoring; they form a basis for hydrological modelling with respect to possible effects of
atmospheric warming, and provide fundamental information in glaciology, glacial
geomorphology and quaternary geology. The highest information density is found for the Alps
and Scandinavia, where long and uninterrupted records are available.
GLOBAL WARMING BENEFITS TO TIBET: CHINESE OFFICIAL (8/17/09)
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5g1eE4Xw3njaW1MKpJRYOch4hOdLQ
Global warming could prove devastating for the Tibetan plateau, the world's third‐largest store
of ice, but it helps farming and tourism, Chinese state media said Tuesday, citing a leading
expert. Qin Dahe, the former head of the China Meteorological Administration, made the
comment in an otherwise gloomy assessment of the impact that rising temperatures will have
on Tibet, according to the China Daily newspaper. "Warming is good for agriculture and
tourism. It has increased the growing season of crops," said Qin, now a researcher with the
Chinese Academy of Sciences. China is banking on tourism to help fund development in Tibet,
one of its poorest regions, hoping that a railway to the region's capital Lhasa will boost visitor
numbers. From January to July this year, more than 2.7 million tourists visited Tibet, nearly
triple the number in the same period of 2008, the Tibet Daily said recently.
While agriculture and tourism stand to benefit, Qin underlined a series of negative
consequences that global warming will have in Tibet and surrounding areas.
Deforestation, Desertification, Erosion, and other Environmental Issues
SOUTHWEST TIBET MOUNTAINS (NASA)
http://visibleearth.nasa.gov/view_rec.php?id=1422
This spaceborne radar image covers a rugged mountainous area of southeast Tibet, about 90
kilometers (56 miles) east of the city of Lhasa. In the lower right corner is a wide valley of the
Lhasa River, which is populated with Tibetan farmers and yak herders, and includes the village
of Menba. Mountains in this area reach about 5800 meters (19,000) feet above sea level, while
the valley floors lie about 4300 meters (14,000 feet) above sea level. The Lhasa River is part of
the Brahmaputra River system, one of the larger rivers in southeast Asia eroding the Tibetan
Plateau. The rugged relief in this area reflects the recent erosion of this part of the Plateau.
Most of the rocks exposed outside of the river valleys are granites, which have a brown‐orange
color on the image. In the upper left center of the image and in a few other patches, there are
some older sedimentary and volcanic rocks that appear more bluish in the radar image.
Geologists are using radar images like this one to map the distribution of different rock types
and try to understand the history of the formation and erosion of the Tibetan Plateau.
ruggedness of the terrain have precluded preventative measures that the Chinese government
might otherwise undertake to control the release of the water. The top image shows the
World Affairs Council Teacher Resource Packet – The Question(s) of Tibet February 28, 2011
24