Climate change threatens Nepal’s snow leopards =

   Kathmandu (dpa)- A study by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Tuesday warned that the snow leopards in the Himalayas are threatened by climate change.

   Warming at high elevations in the Himalayas is occurring at rates higher than the global average, according to the WWF.

   The report says 30 per cent of snow leopard habitats in the region may be lost if greenhouse gas emissions continue to increase. Warmer and wetter conditions in the Himalayas will result in forests ascending into alpine areas, which is the snow leopard’s habitat.

   “If the treeline shifts upward, as our research predicts it will, we’re looking at the snow leopard faced with diminishing options for where it can live,” said Jessica Forrest, a WWF researcher and one the study’s authors.

   The, snow leopards live in areas generally below 5,000 meters. The endangered species are found in the mountains of northern and central Asia, including the Himalayas. Their number is between 4,000 to 6,5000. Some 500 of them live in Nepal’s mountains.

   “Loss of alpine habitat not only means less room for snow leopards, but also has the potential to bring them closer to human activities like livestock grazing,” said WWF snow leopard expert and study co-author Rinjan Shrestha.

   “As grazing intensifies and the leopards’ natural prey decline, they could begin preying more heavily on livestock, resulting in increased retaliatory killings.”
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Fourteen killed in Nepal in flash flood triggered by avalanche

   Kathmandu (dpa) - Fourteen people were killed and more than 50 suspected missing in flooding triggered by an avalanche in Nepal's western district of Kaski Saturday, police confirmed.

   Police said an avalanche on Machhapuchre (Fishtail) peak three days ago had blocked Seti River, which then burst its banks on Saturday, flooding the region.

   The flooding washed away people, settlements, bridges, vehicles and farmland. Police said three Russian tourists, who had been trekking in the area, were among those missing.

   The flooding occurred near the tourist town of Pokhara, about 200 kilometres west of the capital Kathmandu.

   The army and police were helping with rescue operations and said the death toll could rise further as three among the rescued were in critical condition.
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King of Everest climbers to trek Himalayan trail to raise awareness

   Kathmandu (dpa) – The man who has climbed Mount Everest a record 21 times is leading a trek along the Himalayan foothills to raise awareness of climate change effects, organizers said Saturday.

   Apa Sherpa will head a group of four on the 1,700-kilometre Great Himalaya Trail over 120 days.

   “The world wants to support Nepali communities in their climate battle but they need to be told how and where,” Sherpa said.

   “My effort to walk from east to west in Nepal is to find places and people that need the attention and help of the world in their climate battle.”

   The project will also invite celebrities from across the world to do walk parts of the trail to raise the project's profile.

   “I’ll be working to tell the stories of the people affected by climate change in the region and their adaptation capacity to the impending changes on their livelihood,” said Saurav Dhakal, one of the four trekkers.

   The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development said Nepal's glaciers have shrunk by 21 per cent over 30 years.

   Its study showed 10 Himalayan glaciers surveyed were shrinking, with a marked acceleration. The report by the Kathmandu-based centre said millions of people are under threat from the glacial melting.

   “The Himalayas are iconic for Nepal and very important for the South Asian region,” said Simon Lucas of the British government's department of international development.

   “We need to highlight the climate change in the Himalayas, because the melting of the glacial lakes is likely to affect 1.3 billion people downstream, which includes India and Bangladesh.”

   The Great Himalaya trail, stretching between north-eastern and  south-western Nepal, is the longest walking trail in the world, passing under eight of its highest mountains.
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