For billions of people, mountain meltwater is essential for drinking water and sanitation, food and energy security, and the integrity of the environment. But today, as the world warms, glaciers are melting faster than ever, making the water cycle more unpredictable and extreme. And because of glacial retreat, floods, droughts, …
On a hot June day in 1981 S Z Qasim, then environment secretary, reached out to answer a telephone. The caller was Indira Gandhi, the prime minister. The conversation was brief and to the point. "Can India reach Antarctica?' asked the prime minister. Qasim, who had only an academic knowledge …
the entire gamut of activities that threaten ecosystems in the mountain regions dominated discussions at the meeting of the scientific advisory body to the Convention on Biological Diversity (cbd): from habitat fragmentation, poaching and wildlife trade in the Himalayan belt to grazing pressure, encroachment and fuelwood demand in the Western …
Seeking nirvana Rich, restless and willing to pay Babu Vargese was thrown out of college because he insisted on wearing his hair long. Vargese likes to do things differently. Like running TourIndia, a Kerala based travel agency he founded 20 years ago. His keen interest in nature and people, coupled …
USA: Domestic and international travellers made nearly 287 million visits to the 378 parks under the US National Park Service in 1998 compared to the 275 million visits in 1997. This travel generated US $14.2 billion and supported almost 300,000 tourist-related jobs during 1996. Nepal: The Annapurna area is the …
If there is an ideal ecotourism destination in India, it is Sikkim. This eastern Himalayan state of India with its pristine mountains, crystal clear lakes and rich cultural and natural diversity, is fast gaining popularity. Attracting some two lakh tourists a year, of which 12,000 are foreigners, it has witnessed …
Not everyone is thrilled with ecotourism. Many believe that the big business of tourism people is only using the people in destinations, who offer their natural, social and cultural resources to make the
If tourism revenues are generated by the quality of natural goods like a healthy tiger habitat or an excellent coral reef, then should tourists not be asked to pay an ecotax to conserve them? This year the socialist-green regional government of the Balearic Islands in Spain has attempted to do …
Mount Everest is the world's tallest mountain and the world's highest garbage dump. A four-nation Asian team will clear the 8,850-metre high peak of mounds of oxygen cylinders, plastic, food cans, ropes and tents left behind by other climbers. The team will have 29 members belonging to Georgia, Japan, Korea …
DEWAN SINGH AGE 95 VILLAGE LATA He remembers accompanying the last expedition to Nanda Devi peak, the country's second highest peak, which falls within the Nanda Devi Biosphere reserve (NDBR). Today, the Union ministry of environment and forests (mef) has to clear all ventures into the core of the reserve. …
A supposedly scientific expedition into the Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve (ndbr) has stirred the minds of people in Lata village of district Chamoli, in Uttaranchal. They say the expedition was a farce. They claim it was a surreptitious attempt to open the region to high-end tourism with tour operators and …
The Swiss take pride in their lush landscapes, and Bolly wood buffs know why. The breathtaking alpine pastures of this small mountain country have replaced strife-torn Sri nagar and polluted and overpopulated Ooty as a backdrop for frolicking fantasies as our buxom actresses and burly actors join Heidi in yodeling …
In a move representing an important step to focus on the need for sustainable use of hilly regions' resources of water, forests, soils, minerals, conservation of biodiversity and ecotourism, the United Nations has declared the year 2002 as the International Year of the Mountains. It is not surprising that the …
Latest NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) satellite maps reveal that most of the world's glaciers are shrinking. Rick Wessels of the US Geographical Survey, based in Arizona, compared thousands of satellite images to aerial photographs dating back 20 years and found almost every mountain glacier in Patagonia, the Himalayas, …
Sherpas in Nepal have collected 4.3 tonnes of garbage from Mount Everest. The garbage was dumped by climbers over the years and many have described the mountain as the world's highest dump site. "We have paid up to US $7 to the sherpas for bringing down each kilogramme of garbage …
