Crucial Role of Timely Monitoring and Research in Helping Mountain Communities in Disaster Risk Reduction: Shomare Village, Khumbu region

Shomare for climbers is a small cluster of houses with a “fantastic close-up view of Ama-Dablam” on their way to the Mount Everest Base Camp. It is also a place to rest and take a meal between Pangboche and Pheriche.

For the ICIMOD research team it is the location of Shomare that sends warning bells tingling. Shomare is situated on the west bank of the Imja River on the old landslide debris and close to the active landslide. According to the research team, if the Imja lake bursts its banks (link Google Earth) the resulting outburst of water could wipe out the entire Shomare Village.

These are the kinds of observations that the research team is gathering in their effort to contribute to reducing disaster risks created by climate change in the lives of mountain communities. The scientific field study is a part of the Eco Everest Expedition 2008 organised by Asian Trekking, ICIMOD and UNEP.

The ICIMOD research team is carrying out detailed field investigations to study the climate change impacts on the glaciers and glacial lakes. The team also tries to assess the potential risk of glacial lake outburst floods (GLOF) activities to mountain communities living downstream.