04-05-2010, 05:57 AM
[url="http://media.www.theracquette.com/media/storage/paper1301/news/2010/03/26/News/The-Big.Melt.Asian.Water.Supplies.In.Jeopardy-3895418.shtml"]The big melt: Asian water supplies in jeopardy[/url]
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China has begun a policy of forcibly resettling the nomadic families from open grasslands to enclosed complexes. Tibet has a long history of being a disputed territory, fluctuating between the reign of China and their own government, headed by the Dalai Lama. The Tibetan nomads realize that this forced relocation is not only a way to maintain authority over the plateau's vital natural resources, but is also a way to quell any future protests by the Tibetan nomads that would challenge China's occupation of their land.
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The Tibetan Plateau has clearly become an epicenter of crisis. As the multiple glaciers retreat, glaciologist Lonnie Thompson has described the area as the "fresh water bank account" of Asia. Time has shown that the rivers and lakes are running lower, pastures are drier, the deserts are larger and weather patterns in general are now more unpredictable. These problems clearly foreshadow that the plateau and surrounding lands are moving towards an environmental disaster which needs immediate attention.