Climate Change and the Rising Hazard Potential in Lahaul and Spiti: Himachal Pradesh

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Climate Change, Disaster and Adaptations

Part of the book series: Sustainable Development Goals Series ((SDGS))

Abstract

Climate change is one of the most debatable topics of the twenty-first century, with manifold impacts on the environment. But one of the major threats is of increasing intensity and magnitude of the natural disasters. Glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF) is one such natural disaster. GLOF is the high-velocity downstream discharge of water from the high-altitude glacial lakes causing huge devastation in and around the valley area with impacts having transnational signatures. The potential of increase in the threat of frequency, intensity and magnitude of GLOF in Lahaul and Spiti in Himachal Pradesh is imperative to study amid such scenario. This study is an attempt to understand the probable causes, assess the changing nature of the lake surface, evaluate the impacts in case of breach, and plan accordingly for the future infrastructural development.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
EUR 32.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or Ebook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Chapter
EUR 29.95
Price includes VAT (France)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
EUR 117.69
Price includes VAT (France)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
EUR 158.24
Price includes VAT (France)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free ship** worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
EUR 158.24
Price includes VAT (France)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free ship** worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Bahadur, J. (2004). Himalayan snow and glaciers: Associated environmental problems, progress and prospects. Concept Publishing Company.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bajracharya, S. R., & Mool, P. K. (2009). Glaciers, glacial lakes and glacial lake outburst floods in the Mount Everest region, Nepal. Annals of Glaciology, 50(53), 81–86.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bajracharya, B., Shrestha, A. B., & Rajbhandari, L. (2007). Glacial Lake outburst floods in the Sagarmatha region: Hazard assessment using GIS and hydrodynamic modeling. Mountain Research and Development, 27(4), 336–344.

    Google Scholar 

  • Basnett, S., & Kulkarni, A. (2012). Monitoring the seasonal snow cover in Sikkim Himalaya using remote sensing techniques. In M. Arrawatia & S. Tambe (Eds.), Climate change in Sikkim: Patterns, impacts and initiatives (pp. 69–80). Information and Public Relations Department, Government of Sikkim.

    Google Scholar 

  • Basnett, S., Kulkarni, A. V., & Bolch, T. (2013). The influence of debris cover and glacial lakes on the recession of glaciers in Sikkim Himalaya, India. Journal of Glaciology, 59(218), 1035–1046.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bolch, T., Buchroithner, M. F., Pieczonka, T., & Kunert, A. (2008). Planimetric and volumetric glacier changes in the Khumbu Himalaya since 1962 using Corona, Landsat TM and ASTER data. Journal of Glaciology, 54(187), 592–600.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fujita, K., Nishimura, K., Komori, J., Iwata, S., Ukita, J., Tadono, T., & Koike, T. (2012). Outline of research project on glacial lake outburst floods in the Bhutan Himalayas. Global Environmental Research, 16, 3–12.

    Google Scholar 

  • ICIMOD. (2011). Glacial lakes and glacial lake outburst floods in Nepal. International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development.

    Google Scholar 

  • IPCC. (2007). Climate change 2007: Impacts, adaptation and vulnerability. Contribution of Working Group II to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mason, K. (1929). Indus floods and Shyok glaciers. Himalayan Journal, 1, 10–29.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mool, P. K., Bajracharya, S. R., & Joshi, S. P. (2001). Inventory of glaciers, glacial lakes and glacial lake outburst floods: Monitoring and early warning systems in the Hindu Kush-Himalayan Region, Nepal. International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development.

    Google Scholar 

  • Raina, V. (2008). Glacier processes and landforms. In V. Raina & D. Srivastava (Eds.), Glacier atlas of India (pp. 44–47). Geological Society of India.

    Google Scholar 

  • Raina, V. (2009). Himalayan glaciers: A state-of-art review of glacial studies, glacial retreat and climate change (Discussion Paper). MoEF, Government of India, New Delhi.

    Google Scholar 

  • Raj, K. B., & Kumar, K. V. (2016). Inventory of glacial lakes and its evolution in Uttarakhand Himalaya using time series satellite data. Journal of Indian Society of Remote Sensing, 44, 959–976.

    Google Scholar 

  • WWF. (2005). An overview of glaciers, glacier retreat, and subsequent impacts in Nepal, India and China, Retrieved 2 September 2009.

Download references

Acknowledgement

Dr. Rakesh Arya for creating the initial database, University Grants Commission for JRF/SRF Fellowship, and the Department of Science & Technology, Govt of India for supporting the field campaigns.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2022 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Pathak, V., Sharma, M.C. (2022). Climate Change and the Rising Hazard Potential in Lahaul and Spiti: Himachal Pradesh. In: Siddiqui, A.R., Sahay, A. (eds) Climate Change, Disaster and Adaptations. Sustainable Development Goals Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-91010-5_8

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Navigation