1368 21 DECEMBER 2018 • VOL 362 ISSUE 6421 sciencemag.org SCIENCE
PHOTO: ISTOCK.COM/ALLGORDProtect Third Pole’s
fragile ecosystem
The Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau and its sur-
rounding mountains, often termed the
Third Pole, contain more ice than anywhere
outside the Arctic and Antarctic ( 1 ). This
region is also the source of the nine larg-
est rivers in Asia, providing fresh water,
food, and other ecosystem services to more
than 1.5 billion people ( 2 ). Climate and
topography vary greatly across the region,
promoting rich biodiversity from species to
ecosystems. Unfortunately, the Third Pole
region is highly vulnerable to environmen-
tal changes ( 2 ).
In recent decades, air temperature at the
Third Pole has warmed significantly faster
than the global average ( 3 ). The effects
of climate change in the region include
increased precipitation ( 3 ), extensive glacial
retreat ( 4 ), snow cover decline ( 5 ), shrink-
age and expansion of lakes ( 6 ), permafrost
loss ( 7 ), degradation of rangelands ( 8 ), and
desertification ( 9 ). Meanwhile, intensive
anthropogenic activities, such as overgraz-
ing ( 10 ), deforestation ( 11 ), urbanization
( 12 ), and expansion of infrastructure proj-
ects such as construction of roads, dams,
Edited by Jennifer Sills and electrical grids, are causing widespread
landcover changes within the region ( 12 ).
Together, these changes are altering
the Third Pole’s biogeochemical cycles
and pushing the fragile ecosystem toward
degradation and possible collapse, which
would cause irreversible harm on a regional
and global scale. To avoid this, all nations
must meet the standards laid out in the
Paris Agreement. At the regional level, we
strongly urge the relevant nations (includ-
ing Afghanistan, Bhutan, China, India,
Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan,
and Tajikistan) to cooperate in addressing
these impending threats through systematic
changes to management policies. Rapid and
unprecedented coordination will be neces-
sary, including a regional cooperation treaty
and formation of a cross-border biodiversity
conservation plan for the Third Pole region.
Meanwhile, any infrastructure projects
undertaken must be environmentally
sustainable, and a practicable grazing man-
agement policy should be adopted. Finally,
these countries should improve national
policy coordination and increase efforts to
raise environmental protection awareness
among local communities, as well as enlist
international assistance to effectively imple-
ment conservation plans.
Jie Liu1,2, Richard I. Milne^3 , Marc W.
Cadotte^4 , Zeng-Yuan Wu^2 , Jim Provan^5 ,Guang-Fu Zhu^2 , Lian-Ming Gao^1 *,
De-Zhu Li1,2,6*(^1) CAS Key Laboratory for Plant Diversity and
Biogeography of East Asia, Kunming Institute of
Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming,
Yunnan 650201, China.^2 Germplasm Bank of Wild
Species, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese
Academy of Sciences, Kunming, Yunnan 650201,
China.^3 Institute of Molecular Plant Sciences, School
of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh,
Edinburgh EH9 3JH, UK.^4 Department of Biological
Sciences, University of Toronto-Scarborough,
Toronto, ON M1C 1A4, Canada.^5 Institute of
Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences,
Aberystwyth University, Aberystwyth SY23 3DA,
UK.^6 Kunming College of Life Sciences, University
of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, Yunnan
650201, China.
*Corresponding authors.
Email: [email protected]; [email protected]
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10.1126/science.aaw0443LETTERS
Rising temperatures in the Himalayas (shown here) and Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau are causing environmental degradation.
INSIGHTS
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