Glacial Lake Outburst Floods in the Nepal Himalaya: A Manageable Hazard?

Abstract

Within the past fifteen years, glacial lake outburst floods have become an active topic of discussion within the development community focused on Nepal. Such floods endanger thousands of people, hundreds of villages, and basic infrastructure such as trails and bridges. The flood risk is also a major impediment to hydroelectric development in several river basins. Unlike most other mountain hazards in Nepal, reducing the possibility of outburst floods is technically feasible. The first attempt within Nepal to reduce the hazard of one lake by artificially lowering its water level was partially completed in June 2000. Completing this task and beginning work on other hazardous lakes will require difficult decisions about risk by downstream residents and substantial investment from the international aid community.