One of
China's leading
tourist landmarks, Meili Snow Mountain, will be devoid of snow
within 80 years if global warming trends continue, a meteorological
scientist warned on Monday.
Liu Jiaxun also said China's lowest and southernmost glacier,
Mingyong, has shrunk by at least 40 meters over the past 13
years.
The combined effects of ice melting and drying water sources
would have devastating effects downstream, said Liu, deputy
director of the Meteorological Bureau of Diqing Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture, in northeastern Yunnan Province.
Mingyong -- at 2,700 meters above sea level and 28.5 degrees
north -- had the lowest elevation and latitude of all China's
glaciers, said Liu.
At 11.7 km long and covering 13 sq. km, it was shrinking faster
than any other Chinese glacier, he said.
Mingyong is located on the eastern side of the 6,740-meter Kagbo
Peak, the highest peak on the Meili Snow Mountain, on the border of
Yunnan and the Tibet Autonomous Region in southwest China. The
mountain has been shrouded in mystery after attempts to climb it
failed over the past decades.
Liu's observations were based on his study of global warming and
its impact on scenic resorts, including Meili Snow Mountain,
Baimang Snow Mountain and Haba Snow Mountain, in the province,
after analyzing the meteorological data collected over ten
years.
Glaciers were sensitive to changes in the global climate. With
the world's climate warming up, almost all low latitude glaciers
were melting.
The melting would result in floods, farmland damage and mud-rock
slides, while the drying up would lead to river shrinkage and
severe drought, Liu said.
In addition, the disappearance of the glacier landscape would
destroy natural resources for scientific research and tourism.
"In Europe, the snow line of the Alps has truncated 100 meters
in 50 years," said Liu. "The annual temperature in Shangri-la
county of Yunnan has risen from 4.8 degrees centigrade since 1990
to 5.2 degrees in 2006."
Zheng Guoguang, president of the China Meteorological Bureau,
said China had suffered 21 consecutive warm winters, pushing up
ocean levels by 2.5 mm annually and the national average
temperature in 2006 hit a record 10.2 degrees centigrade.
Diqing, also known as Shangri-la after the unearthly beautiful
land invented by British novelist James Hilton in his 1930s novel
"Lost Horizon", also boasts the Three Parallel Rivers World Nature
Heritage Site recognized by UNESCO.
In order to better understand global warming and its impact on
the Tibetan sacred mountains and the fauna and flora, Liu has
initiated a series of scientific programs by carrying out routine
tests and data-collecting activities on depth of snow and melting
of glaciers.
"People tend to think that the melting is attributable to
tourism, however, there is no direct evidence for that
observation," said Liu. "The mining and industrial activities will
always top the list of major contributors to global warming."
The number of domestic tourists in Diqing has increased from
517,500 in 1997 to 2.86 million in 2006, when foreign tourists
numbered 308,000.
(Xinhua News Agency September 11, 2007)
