New York (AsiaNews / Agencies) - A new study published in the scientific journal Nature GeoScience shows that the alleged melting of Himalayan glaciers, quoted by the United Nations as a "proof" of catastrophic global warming is not based on solid foundations. Instead, the researchers found that many glaciers in the Himalayas are stable, or growing. The authors stress that their study corrects "incorrect statements in the fourth report of the Intergovernmental Commission on Climate Change" and say their results show that "there is no uniform response of the Himalayan glaciers to climate change."
The study, conducted by Dirk Scherler, Bodo Bookhagen, and Manfred R. Strecker of Potsdam University and Santa Barbara University, California indicates that there are “strong spatial variations in glacier behavior” in the Himalayas. “More than 65% of the monsoon-influenced glaciers that we observed are retreating, but heavily debris-covered glaciers with stagnant low-gradient terminus regions typically have stable fronts,” the authors write, adding that “In contrast, more than 50% of observed glaciers in the westerlies-influenced Karakoram region in the northwestern Himalaya are advancing or stable.”
In 2007, Rajendra K. Pachauri, head of the Intergovernmental Commission on Climate Change said that with "very high" probability, the Himalayan glaciers would have disappeared "by 2035, and possibly sooner." At the time this statement was challenged by the best-known Indian expert in glaciers, Vijay Raina. Pachuari responded by calling Rajna a practitioner of voodoo science. " In January 2010, the Commission admitted that the complaint about the state of the glaciers was not based on “peer reviewed" scientific research that is checked by other scientists. This theme, like that of global warming in general, is often linked to policies of birth control. Various groups and organizations have accused over-population of being the leading cause of pollution of the planet and thus demand drastic anti-birth campaigns, especially in developing countries.