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4
Contribution of snow and glacier melt to river flow
Selected upper river basins of the HICAP study, average 1998–2007
Contribution to total flow
Percentage
Average discharge
Cubic metres per second
More than 80
70 to 80
60 to 70
50 to 60
40 to 50
30 to 40
20 to 30
10 to 20
Less than 10
Less than 100
100 to 175
175 to 275
275 to 400
400 to 600
600 to 900
900 to 1 350
1 350 to 1 950
1 950 to 2 800
2 800 to 4 000
More than 4 000
Source: Lutz,AF et al. (2014) 'Consistent increase inHighAsia's runoffdue to increasingglaciermelt andprecipitation.'
NatureClimateChange
4: 587-592
Average contribution
of glacier melt
Combined snow
and glacier melt
Average contribution
of snow melt
Upper Mekong
Upper Brahmaputra
Upper Ganges
Upper
Indus
Upper Salween
Upper Mekong
Upper Brahmaputra
Upper Ganges
Upper
Indus
Upper Salween
Upper Mekong
Upper Brahmaputra
Upper Ganges
Upper
Indus
Upper Salween
Message from the Managing Director
Here are a couple of examples of what I mean. In 2015,
GRID-Arendal helped tell the story of why mountain
ecosystems are important. We did this through an excellent
new publication called the Himalayan Climate and Water
Atlas launched at a high level event at the United Nations
climate change conference in Paris. The Water Atlas tells
the story of the importance of glaciers and the river systems
they feed in the Hindu Kush Himalaya region – and the
threats they face from climate change.
In a world where climate change and environmental
devastation are increasingly being seen as threats to
global security, GRID-Arendal can highlight some good
news when West African nations that came together last
year to file a joint submission on the UN Law of the Sea
Convention. GRID-Arendal worked with Cabo Verde,
Gambia, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Mauritania, Senegal and
Sierra Leone for over eight years to help build the trust
and capacity needed to make this historic submission.
At GRID-Arendal we believe that change will only come when people can connect and see the
impacts of environmental and other changes through different eyes. One way to do this is through
stories. Storytelling is an ancient art. It has been the foundation of human culture for millennia.
Today, stories travel around the world in an instant. At GRID-Arendal we have stories to tell. And
we’re telling them in new and different ways.
Graphic from the Himalayan Climate and Water Atlas. Credit: GRID-Arendal/Riccardo Pravettoni