According to a study by the Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology, (WIHG), the already receding Gangotri glacier seems to have more bad news in store.
Black carbon concentration in the region increases by 400 times during summer. The study suggests agricultural burning and forest fire as the reason behind this seasonal increase. This can trigger glacial melt because of the light-absorbing nature of black carbon.
Scientists from Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology, (WIHG), an autonomous institution under Department of Science & Technology, in a study conducted at Chirbasa station near Gangotri Glacier, for the Year 2016, found that black carbon (BC) concentration in this region has changed drastically during summer.
Causes
It was revealed by investigating the occasional high values of black carbon extricated, that the seasonal cycle of increase was significantly influenced by the emissions resulting from agriculture burning (in western part of the country), forest fires (along the Himalayan slopes) in summer, and to some extent by the contribution from long-range transport of pollutants in winter, depending the prevailing meteorological conditions.
Equivalent Black Carbon (EBC)
The Equivalent Black Carbon (EBC) aerosols contribute significantly towards global warming due to its light-absorbing nature. Their presence in the eco-sensitive zone, such as the Himalayan glacier valleys, is a matter of serious concern and needs to be meticulously monitored. However, baseline data on BC is rarely available from most of the glaciated Himalayan region.
Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology
- It was established in June, 1968 as a small nucleus in the Geology Department, Delhi University. Later the Institute was shifted to Dehradun during April, 1976.
- Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology, Dehradun is an autonomous research institute of the Department of the Science & Technology, Ministry of Science and Technology, Govt. of India.
