Climate shocks and responses in Karnali-Mahakali basins, western Nepal
The Himalayas are highly susceptible to the impacts of climate change, as it consequently increases the vulnerability of downstream communities, livelihoods and ecosystems. Western Nepal currently holds significant potential as multiple opportunities for water development within the country are unde...
| Autores principales: | , , , , |
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| Formato: | Journal Article |
| Lenguaje: | Inglés |
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MDPI
2019
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| Materias: | |
| Acceso en línea: | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/106734 |
| _version_ | 1855524367798108160 |
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| author | Pandey, Vishnu Prasad Sharma, Akriti Dhaubanjar, Sanita Bharati, Luna Joshi, I.R. |
| author_browse | Bharati, Luna Dhaubanjar, Sanita Joshi, I.R. Pandey, Vishnu Prasad Sharma, Akriti |
| author_facet | Pandey, Vishnu Prasad Sharma, Akriti Dhaubanjar, Sanita Bharati, Luna Joshi, I.R. |
| author_sort | Pandey, Vishnu Prasad |
| collection | Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace) |
| description | The Himalayas are highly susceptible to the impacts of climate change, as it consequently increases the vulnerability of downstream communities, livelihoods and ecosystems. Western Nepal currently holds significant potential as multiple opportunities for water development within the country are underway. However, it is also identified as one of the most vulnerable regions to climate change, with both an increase in the occurrence of natural disasters and exacerbated severity and impacts levels. Regional climate model (RCM) projections indicate warmer weather with higher variability in rainfall for this region. This paper combines bio-physical and social approaches to further study and understand the current climate shocks and responses present in Western Nepal. Data was collected from 3660 households across 122 primary sampling units across the Karnali, Mahakali and Mohana River basins along with focus group discussions, which provided a rich understanding of the currently perceived climatic shocks and related events. Further analysis of climatology was carried out through nine indices of precipitation and temperature that were found to be relevant to the discussed climate shocks. Results show that 79% of households reported experiencing at least one type of climate shock in the five-year period and the most common occurrence was droughts, which is also supported by the climate data. Disaggregated results show that perception varies with the region and among the basins. Analysis of climatic trends further show that irregular weather is most common in the hill region, although average reported frequency of irregular weather is higher in the mountain. Further analysis into the severity and response to climatic shocks suggest an imminent need for better adaptation strategies. This study’s results show that a vast majority of respondents lack proper access to knowledge and that successful adaptation strategies must be adapted to specific regions to meet communities’ local needs. |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | CGSpace106734 |
| institution | CGIAR Consortium |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2019 |
| publishDateRange | 2019 |
| publishDateSort | 2019 |
| publisher | MDPI |
| publisherStr | MDPI |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | CGSpace1067342025-03-11T09:50:20Z Climate shocks and responses in Karnali-Mahakali basins, western Nepal Pandey, Vishnu Prasad Sharma, Akriti Dhaubanjar, Sanita Bharati, Luna Joshi, I.R. climate change adaptation risk analysis river basins climatology weather hazards drought rain flooding hailstorms crop losses strategies mountains households animal diseases The Himalayas are highly susceptible to the impacts of climate change, as it consequently increases the vulnerability of downstream communities, livelihoods and ecosystems. Western Nepal currently holds significant potential as multiple opportunities for water development within the country are underway. However, it is also identified as one of the most vulnerable regions to climate change, with both an increase in the occurrence of natural disasters and exacerbated severity and impacts levels. Regional climate model (RCM) projections indicate warmer weather with higher variability in rainfall for this region. This paper combines bio-physical and social approaches to further study and understand the current climate shocks and responses present in Western Nepal. Data was collected from 3660 households across 122 primary sampling units across the Karnali, Mahakali and Mohana River basins along with focus group discussions, which provided a rich understanding of the currently perceived climatic shocks and related events. Further analysis of climatology was carried out through nine indices of precipitation and temperature that were found to be relevant to the discussed climate shocks. Results show that 79% of households reported experiencing at least one type of climate shock in the five-year period and the most common occurrence was droughts, which is also supported by the climate data. Disaggregated results show that perception varies with the region and among the basins. Analysis of climatic trends further show that irregular weather is most common in the hill region, although average reported frequency of irregular weather is higher in the mountain. Further analysis into the severity and response to climatic shocks suggest an imminent need for better adaptation strategies. This study’s results show that a vast majority of respondents lack proper access to knowledge and that successful adaptation strategies must be adapted to specific regions to meet communities’ local needs. 2019-07-18 2020-01-28T04:28:08Z 2020-01-28T04:28:08Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/106734 en Open Access MDPI Pandey, Vishnu Prasad; Sharma, Akriti; Dhaubanjar, Sanita; Bharati, Luna; Joshi, I. R. 2019. Climate shocks and responses in Karnali-Mahakali basins, western Nepal. Climate, 7(7):1-24. (Special issue: Social-Ecological Systems, Climate and Global Change Impacts) doi: 10.3390/cli7070092 |
| spellingShingle | climate change adaptation risk analysis river basins climatology weather hazards drought rain flooding hailstorms crop losses strategies mountains households animal diseases Pandey, Vishnu Prasad Sharma, Akriti Dhaubanjar, Sanita Bharati, Luna Joshi, I.R. Climate shocks and responses in Karnali-Mahakali basins, western Nepal |
| title | Climate shocks and responses in Karnali-Mahakali basins, western Nepal |
| title_full | Climate shocks and responses in Karnali-Mahakali basins, western Nepal |
| title_fullStr | Climate shocks and responses in Karnali-Mahakali basins, western Nepal |
| title_full_unstemmed | Climate shocks and responses in Karnali-Mahakali basins, western Nepal |
| title_short | Climate shocks and responses in Karnali-Mahakali basins, western Nepal |
| title_sort | climate shocks and responses in karnali mahakali basins western nepal |
| topic | climate change adaptation risk analysis river basins climatology weather hazards drought rain flooding hailstorms crop losses strategies mountains households animal diseases |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/106734 |
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