Why mountains look bare and black?

In the previous years, most of the peaks of the mountains in Nepal used to be snow capped in the winter. But this year it did not happen so. The mountain peaks look bare and black.

One of the reasons behind the bare and black tops of mountains in Nepal is due to lack of substantial rainfall this winter.

The country should have received at 60 mm of precipitation in winter from December to February this winter. But it did not happen so.

Another reason is attributed to climate change according to International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD).

The ICIMOD report indicated that the snow cover in northern peaks has decreased by 1.5 percent per decade since the 1970s.

The rising temperature is also causing most of the mountains in Nepal to be losing their glaciers at the fastest rate. On an average, the retreat rate of glaciers in Nepal, Bhutan, India and Pakistan is about 0.3 to 1 meter per year.

These are very alarming warning for mankind. The low snow in mountains may also negatively impact the vegetation patterns and endanger the plants and animals. This factor has decreased the arrival of foreign tourists too.

Without enough snow, water may move more quickly, leading to more severe floods and landslides. This can bring more disaster to our homes and infrastructures thereby endangering our lives.

This can cause damage to infrastructure and homes, and put lives at risk. The low snow in mountains of Nepal can also bring changes in the local ecosystem.

In order to reverse the trend of lack of now in mountains in Nepal and globally, there is dire need to address the underlying causes of climate change. Our steps primarily should be reducing greenhouse gas emissions in India and China.

Lastly, everything is in our hands before everything goes out our hands if we want to survive on this planet. We must slow down the global warming and climate changes at any cost and unconditionally to avert further climatic disasters and damages.