Nepal is located in the Tropic of Cancer (Northern Hemisphere) (Shrestha) and lies between China in the north and India in the south, east and west.(1990 map) It has an area of 147,181 sq. km including water which has an area of 3,830 sq. km and its geographical coordinates are 28°00′N 84°00′E. (Australia 2014) Nepal is typically characterised by a rugged topography due to the amount of hills and mountains within its area. Nepal also lies in the tectonically active zone, making it prone to earthquakes. Nepal is divided into 3 main ecological regions: The Himalayan region, Mid Hill region and Terai region.
The Himalayas mainly consist of mountains, but also consist of temperate forests and alpine pastures. The inner region of the Himalayas in the valley are cold deserts that share characteristics with the Tibetan plateau. This region is home to the tallest mountain in the world; Mount Everest (8,848m) and to seven other of the 14 over eight thousand metre mountains in the world [Kanchenjunga (8,586m), Lhotse (8,516m), Makalu (8,463m), Cho Oyu (8,201m), Dhaulagiri (8,167m), Manaslu (8,163m) and Annapurna (8,091m).]
The Terai region has an altitude ranging from 60-305m and a width ranging from 26-32km. It occupies approximately 17% of the total land area of the country. Within the Terai region lies the lowest point of Nepal; Kechana Kalan with an altitude of 60m. The Gorkha district can be found within the Terai region and within the Gorkha disrtrict lies Sandikhola which is 82km North West from the capital of Kathmundu and 16km south east from the city of Gorkha. It is north east of Kurintar and Bharatpur. Sandikhola has two rivers running along it, to the south of the village is the Trushuli Nadi River and to the east is the Ju...
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...r Profile." Retrieved 4/6/2014, from http://www.saarc-sadkn.org/countries/nepal/disaster_profile.aspx.
Nyaupane, G. and N. Chhetri "Vulnerability to Climate Change of Nature-Based Tourism in the Nepalese Himalayas." An International Journal of Tourism Space, Place and Environment 11(1): 95-119.
Online, W. W. (2014). "Average Rainfall for Gorkha, Nepal." Retrieved 4/6/2014, from http://www.worldweatheronline.com/Gorkha-weather-averages/NP.aspx.
Platform, U. N. I. (2012). "Nepal Risk Reduction Consortium." Retrieved 4/6/2014, from http://www.un.org.np/coordinationmechanism/nrrc.
Pokhrel, D., et al. Natural hazards and environmental implications in Nepal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited. 18: 478-489.
Shrestha, N. R., et al. "Population pressure and land resources in Nepal: a revisit, twenty years later." Journal of Developing Areas 33(2): 245.
Glaciers can be classified into many categories. First they are divided into either Alpine or Continental. Alpine glaciers are those that are found in mountainous regions and Continental, such as Greenland,...
...rable living space. Traveling and living became an incredible feat in the Nepali mountains, which is another reason it qualifies as a dystopia.
Briggs, John, Joanne Sharp, Nabila Hamed, Hoda Yacoub. The Geographical Journal. London: Blackwell Publishing, 2003. Print
7 Hanes, Samuel. 2011. "Southwest Asia and North Africa." World Geography (class). University of Maine, Orono.
On the basis of the evidence, it is accepted that climate change is occurring and the climate will change even further due to our fossil fuel based economy, the increasing number of people and their increasing wealth. The increase in greenhouse gases has already started having impacts on the climate, natural ecosystems and human societies. It is clear that the average surface temperatures have increased and it will continue to do as more carbon dioxide gets released into the atmosphere. The recent warming is unprecedented in both magnitude and speed. The projected warming for the 21st century will expect to create severe problems for natural ecosystems and human societies. Water resources are already suffering from increases stresses, and are likely to be reduced. This will inhibit the growth of crops and adversely affect other water uses such as water use for industries and the water supply for the human population. This will lead to more severe food shortages. The glaciers and ice sheets are already retreating, and will retreat more which will lead to changes in the total and annual cycle of river flow in some rivers, threatening water supplies further. Impact on the ecosystems will affect the distribution and productivity of plant and animal species and water supply. A loss of biodiversity is likely to be accelerated by climate change. There will be an increase in extreme weather events such as increases in flood magnitude and frequencies, increases in drought intensity, frequency and duration as evaporation rates will be greater. Higher average temperatures and possibly increased variability are likely to lead to increased frequency and severity of heat waves, causing additional deaths due to heat stress and vector-borne disea...
Over 650 million Indians depend on climate-sensitive sectors like agriculture, forestry and fishery for their livelihoods. The adverse impacts of water availability due to change in rainfall, increased flooding in certain areas and recession of glaciers combined with increased water demand due to demographic development and climate change could threaten food security, destabilize the natural ecosystems including species that sustain the livelihood of rural households and impact the coastal system due to sea level rise and increased extreme weather events (Garg et al. 2007).
north. It is called the Pyrenees. Other mountain ranges are the Cantabrian, Sierra Moreno and the Sierra Nevada Mountain ranges.
Soviet Central Asia remained one of the poorest regions of the USSR until the break- up of the union. These republics lagged behind the others in all social and economic indicators. The shortcomings of the Soviet policy of rapid economic integration were visible by the 1970s and a number of problems including environmental problems were assuming critical proportions (Patnaik, 1995). The situations became worst after the disintegration of Soviet Union in 1991 due to the lack of managements and resources. Central Asia is faced with a range of serious environmental challenges, where climate change and climate variability will add to the current problem complex. Climate variability is not a new phenomenon in Central Asia but climate change will add to existing and recurrent economic, social and ecological stresses, risks and uncertainties. With climate change follows environmental change which is manifested in changing resource abundance or scarcities of natural resources and ecosystem services (Nilsson and Ingevall, May 2009). Key environmental challenges include climate change and climate variability, radioactive emissions, widespread pollution, desertification, loss or degradation of ecosystem, salinization, floods, droughts and large-scale natural resource depletion of land, water, forests, minerals and energy resources. Climate change adds to existing economic, social and environmental challenges. Central Asia’s environmental problems are not isolated phenomena but are linked in multiple ways with other development themes across the region. Attaining development objectives such as sustained and pro-poor growth, public health, broad-based employment, devolution a...
It is a known fact that the world population is increasing without bound; however, there is a debate if this increase is a good thing or if it will prove catastrophic. The article “The Tragedy of the Commons” by Garrett Hardin discusses how the ever-increasing world population will exhaust the world of its natural resources, and eliminate human’s capability of survival. On the other side of the argument is Julian L. Simon who wrote “More People, Greater Wealth, More Resources, Healthier Environment.” This article proposes the theory that with an increase in population, human’s quality of life is amplified. One particular issue that they both mention and have drastically different views on is the future of agriculture and human’s ability to sustain it.
The Antarctic’s ice melt and the accelerating sea level rise, growing number of large wildfires, intense heat wave shocks, severe drought and blizzards, disrupted and decreased food supply, and the extreme storm events are increasing to happen in many areas world wide, and these are just few of many consequences of global warming. The fossil fuel like coal, natural gas, and oil we burn for energy, plus the loss of forests due to disforestation in the southern hemisphere are also big contributors to climate change. In the past three decades, every single year was warmer then the previous year, and the warmest 12 years were recorded since 1998. We are overburdening our atmosphere with green house emissions and trapping the heat, and recently, the carbon dioxide level in the atmosphere has reached 400 pmm. Not just environmental issues are rising due to carbon dioxide increase, but more and miscellaneous issues are appearing as climate change becomes more severe. For example, regional and local analyses and models agree that Mongolia has become noticeably warmer and this temperature rise is relevant in damaging their millennial of the historic nomadic lifestyle and even brought it to the peek of extinction. The Mongolian nomadic pastoralists became highly vulnerable to many unusual climate impacts and extreme temperature fluctuation that have led to inadequate pastureland and loss of an enormous number of livestock. Herders are facing hostile environmental conditions that led to entrenched pastoral poverty. This essay mainly focuses on the climate change impacts on the qualitative value of indigenous culture and nomadic life style. In addition, there is a starting t...
1998-1999 World Resources: A Guide to the Global Environment. Environmental Change and Human Health. A Joint Publication by the World Resources Institute, the World Bank, the United Nations Environmental Programme, and the United Nations Development Programme. Oxford University Press, New York, NY 1998.
Wedged between the high wall of the Himalaya and the steamy jungles of the Indian plains, a small land-locked country Nepal is a land of snow peaks and Sherpas, yaks and yetis, monasteries and mantras, situated between India and China. Eight of the world’s ten highest mountain peaks are in Nepal, including Mount Everest. Nepal is the birthplace of Lord Buddha. And, most importantly, Nepal was never ruled by any country, never ever.
Another reason for a lack of good access to public health care for the Nepalese women is caused by religion. The major religions in Nepal are hinduism (82.62%), buddhism (10.74%), islam (4.20%), kirant (3.60%), and christianity (0.45%). Previously the economic and political power was centralized interlinking it with the Hindu caste system since the majority of the Nepalese population are Hindus. The hindu caste system consisted of the Brahmins(priests) at the top of the pyramid, Kshatriya (warriors and Kings) just beneath, followed by Vaishya (Merchants) and the Sudra (peasants and labourers), and at the bottom of the pyramid were the “untouchables” (butchers, carcass and waste cleaners). Although Nepal was declared a secular country in 2006 and the caste system abolished, the hierarchy in the caste system still lingers on.
The reduction of the Earth's resources has been closely linked to the rise in human population. For many thousands of years people lived in relative harmony with their surroundings. Population sizes were small, and life-supporting tools were simple. Most of the energy needed for work was provided by the worker and animals. Since about 1650, however, the human population has increased dramatically. The problems of overcrowding multiply as an ever-increasing number of people are added to the world's population each year.