REPORT : International workshop on ‘Himalayan Permafrost under the Changing Climate” India Habitat Centre, New Delhi: 12 August 2016

Abstract

The hydrology of the Himalayan region and its changes are being closely watched today as it is vital for the sustenance of a very large mountain population as well as the people in the plains downstream. Several of the big rivers originate in the Himalaya and civilizations are built and sustained in its flood plains. Today, with the increasing population and unpredictable climate, water resources in the region is experiencing an unprecedented stress. Regionally, mountain communities are trying to cope with greater uncertainty of water related issues, such as floods and water availability. These scenarios forces us to look into the finer details of the water resources dynamics in the Himalayas. The Himalaya is known for its glaciers and snow cover from time immemorial and during the past decades, most of the attention focused on these two cryospheric components. The climate change debates during the past two decades have given a fillip for the Himalayan glacier research and an increased vigour in research activities are visible today on this front. However, knowledge about frozen ground, and more specifically permafrost in the high altitude regions of the Himalaya is sparse till date. Permafrost is the thermal state of ground material, which remains at or below 0oC for more than two years. However, normally frozen water is part of permafrost. The layer above permafrost is termed ‘active layer’ and thaws during the warm season. A lack of appreciation of permafrost stems primarily from the fact that it is hidden beneath the ground surface. Furthermore, the impact of thawing permafrost on the mountain eco-system in comparison to other cryospheric components is largely unknown. However, recent studies have suggested widespread occurrence of permafrost in the Himalayan region and its potential role in local/regional water availability as well as disasters such as landslides. This is especially true for the arid regions of the Himalaya and more so under the changing climate. As permafrost lies beneath the ground, we need to employ robust monitoring and modeling strategies to understand the permafrost and its characteristics in the Himalayan region. To achieve this, we need trained and dedicated manpower as well as sufficient funds to undertake research in the high altitude terrain, and institutions with committed programmes to sustain such research activities and capacity building. Hence the workshop was aiming at bringing together various national and international stakeholders with following objectives a) Sensitize the local government, funding agencies, research institutions, universities and other stakeholders on various issues related to the permafrost thaw/ ground ice in the Himalaya with an aim to promote permafrost research and knowledge generation in the Indian Himalayan region (IHR) and b) Explore research collaborations with experts in the field who can help in fostering permafrost research in India.Wide appreciation of the knowledge gap and need for permafrost and frozen ground research in the Himalayan region.  Identification of key problem areas: A. Lack of research background in Indian institutions and universities B. Lack of funding opportunities for permafrost/frozen ground research.  Establishment of Indian Permafrost Network (IPN) with National Institute of Hydrology, Roorkee as the lead organisation.  Expression of interest to be part of the Permafrost Network by 25 Individual members belonging to 15 institutions.  Identification of thrust areas for permafrost research in the Himalayan region 1. Field monitoring (Ground temperature) 2. Hydrology 3. Modelling 4. Chemistry and isotope studies 5. Kinematics and Dynamics 6. Remote Sensing 7. Geophysical Survey 8. Instrumentation and Sensors.  Identified organisation of a training programme and project mentoring as immediate next step to promote permafrost research in the country.  Willingness of international participants/institutions in collaborations for training and research