{"id":604,"date":"2014-06-21T15:58:14","date_gmt":"2014-06-21T10:28:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tibetnature.lhasocialwork.com\/en\/?p=604"},"modified":"2014-07-08T11:33:41","modified_gmt":"2014-07-08T06:03:41","slug":"priority-actions-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tibetnature.net\/en\/priority-actions-future\/","title":{"rendered":"Priorty Actions For The Future"},"content":{"rendered":"

Conservation of watersheds<\/strong><\/p>\n

Much of the development in Tibet described above reveals\u00a0a pattern focusing mainly on natural resource extraction.\u00a0Mining and deforestation are the most obvious examples\u00a0of this; the utilisation of rivers for hydropower and irrigation\u00a0is another facet of the same focus. The Upper Yellow River\u00a0is primarily utilised for the generation of large quantities of\u00a0power that either facilitates natural resource extraction in\u00a0Amdo or is transmitted out to burgeoning\u00a0Chinese cities. Major dams on the Upper\u00a0Yangtze and its tributaries either transmit\u00a0power east into China or provide power\u00a0for logging, mining and other associated\u00a0industries.<\/p>\n

Increasing utilisation of the Yarlung Tsangpo watershed\u00a0poses many dangers for the sustainability of a fragile\u00a0ecosystem. The Three Rivers Project, with its programme\u00a0of agricultural intensification, threatens the Yarlung Tsangpowith pollution from fertilisers and fragmentation from\u00a0multiple dams and diversions. The associated effects on the\u00a0soils in the valley will also affect the river in the long run\u00a0because as soil erosion and salinisation increases so does the\u00a0salt and silt content of the river.\u00a0The primary solution for improving the sustainability of\u00a0water resource utilisation in Tibet \u2014 as well as preserving a\u00a0unique and important watershed ecosystem \u2014 is to bring\u00a0about a fundamental change in the paradigm in which these\u00a0resources are viewed. The current emphasis in Tibet is on\u00a0resource extraction. This reduces the value of resources
\nfor their long-term ecological function \u2014 a function that is\u00a0similar to many upper riparian environments which provide\u00a0stable downstream flows of freshwater and sediment.\u00a0This does not exclude development in the Tibetan Plateau\u00a0per se. However, it does exclude development that is\u00a0primarily focused on over exploitation through resource\u00a0extraction and commercialisation of agricultural and pastoral\u00a0production. More importantly, it also excludes development\u00a0that is primarily planned by a central government operating\u00a0thousand of kilometres away in Beijing.<\/p>\n

Water Conservation<\/strong>
\nGiven the acute shortage of water resources in many\u00a0industrial regions of China, water conservation, especially\u00a0upstream on the Tibetan Plateau is vital for the livelihood\u00a0of millions of people downstream. Zhu Dengquan, Viceminister\u00a0of Water Resources of China said, \u201cAt current rates,\u00a0a preliminary tackling of the country\u2019s soil and water\u00a0conservation problem could take as much as 60 to 70 years\u201d\u00a0(China Daily 1999b).\u00a0In Tibet irrigation schemes should be planned in\u00a0consultation and cooperation with local populations and\u00a0should be scaled down to less ambitious production targets.\u00a0Local seed varieties that are better adapted to the local\u00a0environment with less demand for water and artificial\u00a0fertilisers should be prioritised. Traditional water harvesting\u00a0techniques should be studied and developed in cooperation\u00a0with local users. These traditional techniques are often ignored\u00a0by planners who prefer a top-down centralised know-all\u00a0approach.<\/p>\n

Traditional small-scale techniques of irrigation are bound\u00a0to be more efficient as the systems are based on the\u00a0participation of users in all aspects of planning. Conversely,\u00a0the centralised approach relies on the knowledge of a few\u00a0\u201cexpert\u201d technicians alienating farmers from the process.\u00a0These techniques involve smaller-scale dams and\u00a0diversions that do not interfere with the river\u2019s natural course\u00a0and functions. Preference should be given to methods of\u00a0rainwater catchment and storage and techniques aimed at\u00a0minimising water consumption such as drip irrigation should\u00a0be studied. Crops that are well adapted to local conditions
\nshould be planted. In Nepal, for example, indigenous<\/p>\n

\"Untitled-1<\/a><\/p>\n

irrigation still accounts for three-quarters of irrigated land.\u00a0(McCully 1996). India has a long tradition of highly-efficient\u00a0water management which is currently being rediscovered\u00a0and promoted, due to the failure of many modern centralised\u00a0techniques. Some of these good and effective practises could\u00a0be studied and adapted for use in Tibet.<\/p>\n

Renewable Energy<\/strong><\/p>\n

Tibet possesses great potential for the generation of power\u00a0by micro-hydro (up to 100 kW per unit), solar and wind\u00a0power. As discussed above, the maintenance of small hydro\u00a0plants in Tibet has been lax and a high proportion have\u00a0fallen into disrepair. These small power plants can provide\u00a0villages with a reliable source of electricity with minimal\u00a0impact on the environment so they should be encouraged\u00a0rather than left to fall into disrepair.\u00a0Where micro-hydro is not feasible, solar and wind\u00a0generation should be considered. A mixture of these\u00a0techniques should be the focus, rather than relying on any\u00a0single method, and needs should be calculated on a local\u00a0scale so that an appropriate solution for each location can\u00a0be found. The provision of solar powered equipment such\u00a0as solar ovens and water heaters should be increased so that\u00a0there is less need for burning wood or manure, which can\u00a0be put to better use as fertiliser.\u00a0Due to its high altitude the Tibetan Plateau has one of\u00a0the highest solar radiation values in the world at 140-190\u00a0Kilocalorie per sq. centimetres per year (Zhao 1992). In the\u00a0Yarlung Tsangpo valley 70-80 per cent of precipitation\u00a0occurs at night giving the area an extraordinarily high quantity\u00a0of sunlight. Lhasa averages 3,400 hours of sunshine annually\u00a0(Zhao 1992). This potential should be fully utilised before\u00a0resorting to extensive damming of rivers to provide power.<\/p>\n

Preventing Pollution<\/strong><\/p>\n

The threat of pollution is one problem that can be easily\u00a0assessed and resolved, given the will and co-operation of\u00a0the Chinese government. Control of tailings and wastes from\u00a0mines could mitigate many of the impacts on watersheds;\u00a0sewage treatment and control of wastes can also be\u00a0improved. However, so far mining in Tibet has been carelessly regulated resulting in unnecessary waste production\u00a0and inefficient use of resources (Lafitte 1998). Other\u00a0influences on the hydrological regime of Tibet may be farm\u00a0more difficult to address as they require China to adjust\u00a0short-term and long-term patterns of economic\u00a0development.\u00a0The Chinese government should enforce existing laws\u00a0and regulations to ensure the safe and efficient operation\u00a0of mines. As an area that contains the headwaters of so\u00a0many of Asia\u2019s major rivers, Tibet is the last place on earth\u00a0where pollution regulations can be relaxed or ignored.\u00a0Preferably there should be no large scale mining at all in an\u00a0area in which the highest value should be placed on the\u00a0ecological function of the upper riparian environment.\u00a0Surveys should be carried out immediately to discover how\u00a0much pollution has occurred and to prevent further\u00a0occurrence.<\/p>\n

About 70 per cent of China\u2019s wastewater is dumped into\u00a0rivers with the Yangtze river receiving 41 per cent of the\u00a0country\u2019s sewage. The figure is expected to rise in the future.\u00a0Fifteen out of China\u2019s 27 major rivers are considered to be\u00a0seriously polluted (Zhu,1990). China planned to increase its\u00a0spending on controlling pollution from the current 0.8 percent\u00a0of its GNP to more than one percent at the turn of the\u00a0century or approximately US $ 17.5 billion (The World\u00a0Resources Institute 1998).\u00a0In urban areas, sewage treatment should be developed\u00a0immediately and industrial pollutants must not be dumped\u00a0in rivers. Public education campaigns should focus on\u00a0informing people how to avoid polluting rivers with\u00a0household wastes and non-biodegradable garbage such as\u00a0plastics.
\nSustainable Development<\/strong><\/p>\n

Tibet, with its huge variety of natural resources and its unique\u00a0high altitude situation, demands careful location-specific\u00a0planning to utilise its resources sustainably. Over exploitation\u00a0in a fragile mountain environment can lead to long-term\u00a0ecological consequences.\u00a0The assumption that Tibet can be an endless resource\u00a0for China\u2019s economic development should be abandoned.\u00a0With the use of appropriate technologies, Tibet\u2019s resources\u00a0can be developed in a way that draws upon traditional\u00a0knowledge of the land and its potential.<\/p>\n

International agencies, as well as countries situated\u00a0downstream from Tibet, should consider targeting any aid\u00a0to Tibet that encourages in sustainable development and\u00a0public participation. Continued unsustainable resource stripping\u00a0\u2014 and its associated deleterious effects on\u00a0waterways \u2014 is of grave concern to the billions of people\u00a0dependent upon these valuable water resources for their\u00a0livelihood and for the gift of life itself.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Conservation of watersheds Much of the development in Tibet described above reveals\u00a0a pattern focusing mainly on natural resource extraction.\u00a0Mining and deforestation are the most obvious examples\u00a0of this; the utilisation of rivers for hydropower and irrigation\u00a0is…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-604","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-water-resources"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tibetnature.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/604","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tibetnature.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tibetnature.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tibetnature.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tibetnature.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=604"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/tibetnature.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/604\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":751,"href":"https:\/\/tibetnature.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/604\/revisions\/751"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tibetnature.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=604"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tibetnature.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=604"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tibetnature.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=604"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}