1. Mountain environments are important but also face threats from climate change, land degradation, pollution, and overtourism. 2. Conservation efforts include using renewable energy, reducing waste, promoting eco-friendly infrastructure and practices, and ensuring local economic benefits from tourism. 3. Achieving "leave no trace" and "zero waste" goals in mountain areas is challenging due to lack of waste management infrastructure and decomposition issues at high altitudes. 4. All stakeholders including local communities, tourists, guides, and governments must work together and take responsibility to protect mountain environments through sustainable practices.

1. Mountain Environment:
Importance & Conservation
June 10 2010
Presented by:
E-mail: arjunlimbu@hotmail.com Mob. 9841-323842
ARJUN KUMAR LIMBU, Program Officer
Kathmandu Environmental Education Project (KEEP)

2. Importance : Mountain Environment
 Importance: why?
 Conservation: How?
 Interaction: Q/A
 Why? Benefits
ISAS
(Information Search & Analysis Skill)
 Life Betterment.
 Knowledge is Power.
 Skill is a tool.
 Use your Power to use Tool.

3. Presentation Topics
About Nepal Mountain Geography.
Mountain Importance
Mountain Opportunities
Threats & CHALLENGES
Mountain Conservation

4. Mountain
steep, sloping sides and sharp or slightly rounded ridges
and peaks.
-3500 m (SNOWY) – 600 m -1500m -2500m
-About 1/5 world's landscape,
-homes at least 1/10 world's people.
-Tallest known mountain -solar system is
Olympus Mons, located on Mars.
-mountains under the surface of the sea
-Highest Mountain Range: Himalayan
-Longest : Andes of Mountain
-Himalaya = Andes = Rockies = Alps =

5.  Elevation : 60 - 8848 m
Geographical Division :
3 geographical zones-
Mountainous & Hilly (75%), Plain.
 HKH Region.
 Young Mountain-Australia
 Immense Altitudinal Changes
 Climatic Great Variations
 Diversity of Ecosystems: Rich
 many high altitude plants medicinal
economic value of
mountain people (Yarsa Gumba)

6. Now, we
are here

7. How Mountain Formed?

9. Mountain Importance: Cultural
• Unique Indigenous Culture, life-style
125 languages spoken in Nepal (Summer Institute of Linguistics)

11. Mountain Importance: Tourism
• Tourism- Development: local income
(BHTMC- tell tourists the indepth of indigenous culture, knowledge, tradition)
• "The expansion of tourism to villages will contribute more to the economic
development.” (Ninth Plan of HMG pg 64)
• Over 80 percent of all visitors come for holiday / pleasure or trekking /
mountaineering purposes
• Major contributor to Nepal's economy: US$170 million annually 463,646 -
in the year 2000 (MoCTCA 2001)
• Provides direct and indirect employment for over 300,00015% of total
export earning. (Nepal Tourism Board 2001) people
• Major earner of foreign exchange dollars and represents

12. BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY:
• One of Asia’s most rich biodiversity. No biodiversity: No life-Food
chain
• wide range of altitude has contributed to abundant and diverse
ecosystem, species and genetic resources.
• home of 2% of world’s flowering plants.
• 4% of the world’s mammals (the largest population of one horned
rhino is found in Royal Chitwan National Park).
• 8% of the world’s bird populations, among which the Spiny
Babbler is found only in Nepal.
• Out of an estimated 1,000 species of indigenous medicinal plants
approximately 700 species have been identified.

14. OTHER UNIQUE FEATURES:
• Eight of the world’s 14 highest mountains found in Nepal
• The world’s deepest gorges—the Kali Gandaki named after the
ferocious goddess Kali, which is also Nepal’s very best river for white
water rafting.
• Tilicho Lake (at 5,099m) north of Annapurna is one of the highest lakes
in the world.
• In terms of hydroelectric power, Nepal has the world’s second largest
hydroelectric power potential

15. • Nepal has two natural and eight cultural sites listed as World Heritage
Sites by UNESCO
• Two Natural Heritage Sites are: Sagarmatha National Park and Chitwan
National Park.
• The eight Cultural Heritage Sites are: Kathmandu Durbar Square, Patan
Durbar Square, Bhaktapur Durbar Square, Swoyambu Nath, Pashupati
Nath, Baudha Nath ,Changunarayan and Lumbini.
• Nepal—the largest figure declared for conservation in any country.
• 16 Protected Areas in Nepal, i.e 18% of the total area
• There are currently nine National Parks, three Wildlife Reserves, three
Conservation Areas and one Hunting Reserve.

16. Mountain importance
• Climbers and tourists visit them for the
scenery.
• Farmers graze their animals on them.
• Water authorities make reservoirs and pump
the water to towns and cities.
• Forestry companies grow coniferous forests
and harvest wood on them.

17. Mountain Importance: Water
• Water-power for life:
hydroelectricity, drinking,
Water Towers of Asia,
• One of the World’s richest
• Nepal Major economy -cultivation.
• Third Pole
• Fresh water

20. Locals Dump Waste in
Syabru Besi
Dumping Site at Dhunche

21. GOOD ENVIRONMENTAL PRACTICE
WASTE GENERATION AND DISPOSAL
Protection of waterways
• In Dhunche, the drainage doesn’t reach
river system
• Syabru Besi, few hotels at the Bank of
the river discharge their waste water
into the river system
• But in Syarbu Besi, though they dump
their waste on the river bank they are
planning to build a incinerator,
• In Gosainkunda during high season, the
waste water seeps into the lake.
• In Phedi, the toilet is directly flushed
into the stream

22. Dumping Site Under
Construction in Syabru Besi
Beer Bottles at Lauribina

23. Mountain Environment: Threats
• Mountain systems are sensitive to climate change
• Small change has large scale effects,
• Unpredicted river flows, frequent floods, droughts and crop failures
• Others include, landslides, land degradation, desertification, GLOF (
Glacial Lake Outburst Flooding)
• Five GLOF events are known to have occurred in Nepal between
1977 and 1998. In August 1985 a GLOF from the Dig Tsho
(Langmoche) glacial lake destroyed 14 bridges and caused about
US$ 1.5 million worth of damage to the nearby completed Namche
small hydropower plant.

24. GLOF (Glacial Lake Outburst Flood)

25. EDMUND HILLARY
Deforestation

28. Mountain Environment Threats:

30. WASTE DECOMPOSITION
 At HIGH ALTITUDE NOTHING decomposes
 Batteries contain very pollutant toxic
products and cannot be RECYCLED in Nepal
 REDUCE canned food products

31. Mountain Environment: Opportunity
Develop mountain by preserving its environment.
Leave nothing but footprints
ake nothing but photographs." old phrase
Leave nothing but Memories
ake nothing but local products." new
-arjun June 112010

34. Case Study: Khumbu region
• Annual Visitors: Approx 50,000
• Average waste disposal of 50-60kg/km2
• On Average, a lodge in Namche Bazaar produces 15,000
empty beer bottles per year.
• Heavy forest cover damage
• Alteration in traditional cultural practices
• Deterioration on traditional values
• Despite the availability of kerosene and LPG, there is a high
dependence on forest resources for energy supply. It is
estimated that in Langtang, locals consume 20-40 kgs of
firewood per day while an average lodges use around 30-40
kgs per day (Banskota et.al, 1998).

35. Distributing Tourism Benefits

36. Mountain Environment: Conservation
ENERGY SOURCE CONSUMPTION
Actions to minimize energy consumption
• Firewood major source of energy in upper
elevations,
• Hotels in the area have installed Improved
Cooking Stoves (ICS) and brought energy
efficient heaters,
• Solar Energy for lighting purposes at Higher
Elevations
• Travelers usually have torch lights and head
lamps

38. Mountain Environment: Conservation
• ECO- TECHNIQUES
•
• Solar energy
• Rain water
• Collection and utilization
• Bio-climatic design
• Local materials
•
– LOCAL MATERIALS AND PEOCEDURES WILL DEVELOP LOCAL CRAFT AND UNIQUENESS
– RECYCLING OF WASTE WILL HELP REDUCE SOLID WASTE PROBLEMS IN THE FPREST OR THE RIVERS
•
• Issues in Eco-tourism Development
• (National Parks, ACAP, Sirubari)
•
• Avoiding negative impacts
• Ensure economic benefits to local communities
• Revenue for conservation
• Carrying capacity
• Ownership and empowerment
• Education (Local ECO/GREEN CLUBS)- Life skills equip : leadership, management
• Planning and management
• Harmonious development
• Capacity building
• BUILD AWARENESS AND INCULCATE A FEELING THEREBY THAT CONSERVATION IS BY CHOICE RATHER THAN COMPULSION
•
– External intervention to get the community through the initial stages
– User pays concept for the visitor

41. • “Leave No Trace Principle”
• Zero Waste: Challenges in the Mountains
• Use of Cotton Bag than Plastics
• Higher prices of land and food
• Pollution from traffic
• Erosion
• Litter
• More crowded
• Trees felled to supply timber and fuel wood
• Lost of cultural identity among the mountain people

42. Waste MINIMIZATION
• A Trekker can consumes 72
plastic bottles is left behind as
waste
• 1 IODINE tablets = 1 liters of
Mineral Water
• CARRY your waste and don’t
LITTER on the TRAILS
• Suggestion to Guests.

43. Mountain Conservation: Challenges
Problem
Efforts (?) Issues
Mountain
Environment
Responsi Importance
bilities (?)
Action (?)

44. Mountain Environment: Importance & Conservation

45. Interaction
 What can we do to address these issues?
 Is there anyway ‘Leave no trace’/ ‘Zero waste’?
 Whose responsibility?
 In your experience, Tourists what they say n do?
 What are the locations needed Environment prob?