The Theory of Himalayan Environmental Degradation
Its Validity and Application Challenged by Recent Research
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 13908232 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Jack D Ives (corresponding author) |
| Year | 1987 |
| Volume | 7 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 189-189 |
| Publication date | 1987-08-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Mountain Research and Development (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0276-4741 • E-ISSN: 1994-7151 |
| Publisher | International Mountain Society (PUBLISHER • CH) |
| DOI | 10.2307/3673192 |
| OpenAlex | W2326101980 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 39 |
| References cited | 14 |
An overview of the theory of Himalayan Environmental Degradation is introduced based upon a synthesis of the earlier research and conservationist literature and development policy formulation. It is presented as an eight-point scenario that leads to a prediction of environmental and socio-economic collapse by AD 2000. The theory is shown to be a complex of interrelated, yet separate, components that are linked by a series of assumptions; these are identified and briefly examined. A focus is thereby provided for the critical assessments that occupied the working sessions of the Mohonk Mountain Conference. It is proposed that the theory is overly simplistic and its assumptions are either untenable or not supported by rigorous analysis of reliable data. This invalidation of the theory notwithstanding, it is postulated that the Himalayan region is facing a rapidly evolving crisis. The theory on which development planning and implementation has been based confuses cause and effect and ignores the great complexity of the region and its peoples. Thus, a much fuller understanding of the dynamics of the Himalayan-Ganges Problem and an entirely new perspec- tive are urgently needed to help formulate an effective response to the crisis. The uncertainty and confusion induced by the theory have become a significant part of the problem
Biology · Degradation (telecommunications · Environmental degradation · Environmental planning · Environmental resource management · Geography · Computer Science · Environmental Science · Hydropower, Displacement, Environmental Impact · Rangeland Management and Livestock Ecology · South Asian Studies and Conflicts · Ecology
‘Sustainable development’ and the environment
Geographic Information Engineering and Social Ground Truth in Attappadi, Kerala State, India
Environmental science education in Nepal
Social Organization and Ecological Stability Under Demographic Stress
Lessons from a participatory forest restoration program on socio-ecological and environmental aspects in Nepal
Mountain Geography
Development and Environment
Can authority change through deliberative politics
Drivers and mechanisms of forest change in the Himalayas
The road to deforestation
Crisis and conservation in Sagarmatha national park, Nepal
"Too Much" Sand, Not Water
Social production of vulnerability to climate change in the rural middle hills of Nepal
Planning for sustainability
Geomorphic and Forest Cover Controls on Monsoon Flooding, Central Nepal Himalaya
Traditional Knowledge and Conservation as a Basis for Development in a West Nepal Village
Solid Waste and Water Quality Management Models for Sagarmatha National Park and Buffer Zone, Nepal
Himalayan Forest-Cover Changes in Historical Perspective
Not Seeing the Trees for the Forest
Conditions for Local Level Community Forestry Action a Theoretical Explanation
The Role of Scale in Research on the Himalaya-Ganges-Brahmaputra Interaction
Persistence and Change in High Mountain Agricultural Systems
Mountain Myths Revisited
Landslides and Erosion in the Catchment of the Gaula River, Kumaun Lesser Himalaya, India
Challenge and Response in the Karakoram
Sustainable developmentality
From watertowers of mankind to livelihood strategies of mountain dwellers
Disaster management strategy for mass wasting hazard prone Naitwar Bazar and surrounding areas in Upper Tons valley in Uttarkashi district, Uttaranchal (India)
Disaster management strategy for potential slide zones of Kumarkhera in Narendra Nagar township of Tehri Garhwal district, Uttarakhand, India
Increase in Tree Cover on Private Farm Land in Central Nepal
Land-use changes in Himalaya and their impact on the plains ecosystem
Political ecology of land reforms in Kinnaur
Sagarmatha Park (Mt Everest) porter survey and analysis
Agencies of the present
Boldness and Caution in the Face of Global Change 1
The Question of Communist Land Degradation
Contemporary Human Impacts on Alpine Ecosystems in the Sagarmatha (Mt. Everest) National Park, Khumbu, Nepal
Medicinal plants, traditional medicine, markets and management in far-west Nepal
New Ecology and the Social Sciences
Himalayan households
The Deterioration of Mountain Environments
Crisis, Pseudocrisis, or Supercrisis Poverty, Women, and Young People in the Himalaya a Survey of Recent Developments
Uncertainty on a Himalayan Scale
The Mountain Environment
The 1985 Catastrophic Drainage of a Moraine-Dammed Lake, Khumbu Himal, Nepal
People-Forest Interaction
High Mountains and Plateaus
Environmental Knowledge and Response to Natural Hazards in Mountainous Nepal
An Assessment of Landscape Change in the Khumbu Region of Nepal Using Repeat Photography
From a Mountain-Rural to a Plains-Urban Society Implications of the 1981 Nepalese Census
Deforestation in the Food/Fuel Context
Trans-Himalayan Traders. Economy, Society, and Culture in Northwest Nepal
| Citations per year | 1.03 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 1988 - 2025 (38) |
| Highly cited | No |