The Waters of the Third Pole
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Material Information

Title:
The Waters of the Third Pole Sources of threat, sources of survival
Creator:
Aon Benfield UCL Hazard Research Centre
China Dialogue
Disaster Risk Reduction Program, Florida International University (DRR/FIU) ( summary contributor )
University College London
Humanitarian Futures Programme
King's College London
Publisher:
Humanitarian Futures Programme
Publication Date:
Copyright Date:
2010
Language:
English

Subjects

Subjects / Keywords:
Risk management ( lcshac )
Water resources development ( lcshac )
Genre:
non-fiction ( marcgt )
Spatial Coverage:
Hindu Kush

Notes

Summary:
This document is an analysis of the potential threats facing the Hindu-Kush Himalaya (HKH) region related to the interaction between human activities and water-related hazards. It seeks to foster new regional alliances to address impending threats by presenting possible disaster scenarios the region is susceptible to and proposing initial steps needed in order to develop preventive and preparedness measures equal to the nature and scale of such threats. The HKH region is one of the world’s most important sources of water. Referred to as the Third Pole, it contains the largest body of frozen water outside the polar regions, acting as a water source for ten major river systems in eight countries, sustaining 1.3 billion people, nearly 20 percent of the world’s population. Unfortunately, the region’s water and environmental resources are increasingly under duress due to the combination of climate change and rapid population growth. Climate change is leading to rapid glacier melting throughout the Himalayas, initially causing massive flooding as the volume of water in rivers increases exponentially, but likely to lead to higher water stress throughout the region in the long term as glaciers shrink and inevitably disappear. These risks are further exacerbated by the lack of effective water management and the prevalence of unplanned development throughout the region. Rapid glacier melting due to climate change will likely increase the incidence of humanitarian crises, from conflict and mass migration to famines and devastating flooding. The document identifies a number of reasons why these risks are not being addressed. One major factor is that disasters are often analyzed from a narrow geographic or sectoral perspective because the region is not treated as an inter-related system. Governments throughout the region emphasize short-term issues, ignore cross-border implications of natural and man-made hazards, and generally fail to share information regionally to foster cooperation on measures to address long-term regional risks. The document recommends that a framework be established that defines vulnerabilities across the HKH region. It advocates the creation of regional humanitarian professionalization programs that promote the sharing of best practices and standards, the development of mechanisms to share information on regional aspects of vulnerability, and collective pre-disaster protocols for responding to disasters. The risks facing the region cannot be dealt with on an ad hoc or individual basis. These are regional risks that require regional measures. ( English )
Subject:
Risk Management ( English )
Citation/Reference:
(2010). The waters of the third pole: sources of threat, sources of survival. Aon Benfield UCL Hazard Research Centre—University of London, China Dialogue, Humanitarian Futures Programme—King’s College London, the US Agency for International Development—Office of US Foreign Disaster Assistance (USAID/OFDA).

Record Information

Source Institution:
Florida International University
Rights Management:
Refer to main document/publisher for use rights.
Resource Identifier:
FI13042415

dpSobek Membership

Aggregations:
Disaster Risk Reduction