Glaciar Lakes in Nepal
The collapse and flooding of Himalayan glacier lakes, which have wreaked tremendous havoc on villages downstream, is considered one of the most horrendous calamities caused by global warming.
More than 10 years ago, when such flooding was relatively unheard of, an engineer stationed at the Japanese Embassy in Katmandu led efforts to explore the unknown world of glacier lakes.
At a time when the Japanese Consulate General in Shenyang, China, has been criticized for its handling of five North Korean asylum-seekers, it may be necessary to consider the decisions made by far-sighted Japanese diplomats in Nepal a decade ago.
The flooding of Himalayan glacier lakes came to the world's attention when the Dig Tsho glacier lake, halfway up the Nepalese side of the Himalayas south of Mt. Everest suddenly collapsed on a sunny day in August 1985, sending huge blocks of ice tumbling down nearby rivers. An almost-completed hydroelectric dam in the nearby village of Namche, about 30 residential houses, 14 bridges and several roads were swept away in an instant as engineers at the dam site watched helplessly. Five people were killed.
Glacier lake collapses and resulting floods have occurred in the Himalayas before, mostly after heavy rains in the mountains. But the 1985 incident challenged conventional wisdom.
The Nepalese government immediately asked Canada and Japan for assistance. However, the Japanese Embassy was slow to respond to the request as it was unaware of the seriousness of the incident.
Three years later, in 1988, Kenzo Hiroki, an official of the then Construction Ministry, was posted to the embassy. He subsequently found the 1985 Nepalese request for Japanese assistance among a mountain of diplomatic documents on a desk in an embassy room.
He told the Japanese Foreign Ministry of the need for Japanese assistance. But the Japanese government had little interest in Nepalese affairs at the time. Neither the Foreign Ministry nor the Construction Ministry favorably responded to his suggestion as the seriousness of glacier lake flooding was little understood.
Only Shigekiyo Tabata, then an official at the Sediment Control Division of the Construction Ministry's River Bureau, recognized the significance of Japan's cooperation and assistance. In response to Hiroki's request, Tabata, currently director general of the SABO Frontier Foundation, made a unique proposal: Since a glacier is technically a river, the River Bureau would deal with the Nepalese request.
Tabata was then one of a few Japanese government officials knowledgeable about glaciers and had visited Nepal several times in connection with flood control projects undertaken by the Japan International Cooperation Agency.
He obtained the help of glaciologist Tomomi Yamada and sent him to Nepal to survey all of the country's glacier lakes.
On the basis of the survey, conducted by land and air, Yamada submitted a report, which included records of past glacial lake collapses and warned that future collapses could be caused by global warming. He also listed disaster prevention measures in order of priority.
Glaciers in the Himalayas are now shrinking by 70 to 100 meters a year, with melting water forming lakes after it is dammed by accumulated glacial debris. When the volume of melting water suddenly increases or glacier blocks break off due to global warming, millions to tens of millions of tons of lake water can be unleashed, causing flooding.
Glaciologists at Nagoya University, who have long been at the forefront of world glacier research, extended their cooperation for Yamada's survey. Japanese research on glacier lake flooding has led to the draining of accumulated glacier lake water and prevented flooding.
Yamada praised the work Hiroki did during his time at the embassy. "If it wasn't for Mr. Hiroki, Japan wouldn't have embarked on glacier lake projects in Nepal. Such a diplomat, capable of making high-level decisions, is a credit to his country," said Yamada, who still spends 30 days a year conducting surveys of glacier lakes in Nepal. Rijan Kayastha, who became the first Nepalese to take over Nagoya University's studies of glacier lakes, also regards Hiroki as a benefactor of Nepal, saying, "Thanks to Mr. Hiroki, Nepalese came to realize the importance of disaster prevention."
While posted in Katmandu, Hiroki repeatedly told Nepalese officials that Nepal could hardly develop without managing its mountains and rivers. He suggested various disaster-prevention measures, which resulted in the Nepalese government establishing the Flood Control and Sediment Control Bureau. He also taught Nepalese dwelling in mountain areas how to plant apple and tangerine trees. Now they enjoy harvesting fruit while managing mountains and rivers. They are so grateful for the cooperation Japan extended to Himalayan glacier lake flood control efforts that they never fail to mention Japanese cooperation when they serve apples to visitors.
The World Meteorological Organization predicts that Himalayan glaciers will disappear in several decades. This could result in a drought and trigger a food crisis that would affect 500 million people in India and neighboring countries. The disappearance of glaciers could even affect the climate of Japan and Southeast Asia in the long term. Recently, supercomputers have been used to measure the impact of glaciers on climate.
Hiroki has been named deputy secretary general of the third World Water Forum, to be held in March in Kyoto.
Water experts worldwide are waiting to see what Hiroki will propose at the Kyoto conference to deal with global warming and global water problems, which are expected to worsen in the 21st century. Asaba is a senior editor of The Yomiuri Shimbun.
(By Masaharu Asaba:The Yomiuri Shimbun)
