Eco-Rehabilitation of Tribal Villages: Water Management Using Ice-Stupa – Ministry of Tribal Affairs
At one location in Phyang, the ice stupa has enabled the villagers to plant and grow 5,000 poplar trees.
Problem
- The problem of water scarcity is threatening the way of life in Ladakh
- Villages in the region face an acute water shortage in the months of April and May
- By mid-June, there is an excess of water due to fast snow-melting
- Flash floods car caused due to snow melting
- Post-September, the stream flows continuously but it is not utilised because all farming activities cease by September
Solution
- Water is piped from 60m upstream and it rises close to 60m up from the ground when it reaches the village
- Then it is made to fall from that height on cold Ladakhi winter nights when it is -30 to -50°C outside
- The water freezes by the time it reaches the ground and slowly forms a huge cone or Ice Stupa
- When the Ice Stupa melts, it feeds the fields until the real glacial meltwaters start flowing in June
Outcomes
- At one location in Phyang, the Ice Stupa has enabled the villagers to plant and grow 5,000 poplar trees
- At other locations, the water has helped to increase the average yearly crop yield
- Ice Stupas have also boosted winter eco-tourism in the region and enabled locals to look into diverse livelihood activities
- Ice Stupas have helped to create a specific engineering capacity within the Ladakhi population, which is enabling them to address the emerging water crisis in the region
Project Details
Category: Environment and Sustainability
Sub-category: Climate Change
Project: Eco-Rehabilitation of tribal villages through Innovative design in water management using Ice-stupa
Organisation: Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Government of India
Start Date: 1-Apr-2020
Problem
As the Himalayan glaciers disappear due to global warming and local pollution, the problem of water scarcity threatens the way of life in Ladakh. Most villages in the region face an acute water shortage, particularly during the two crucial months of April and May when there is little water in the streams and all the villagers compete to use the available limited water for their newly planted crops.
By mid-June, there is an excess of water and even flash flooding due to the fast melting of the snow and glaciers in the mountains. By mid-September all farming activities end and yet a smaller stream flows continuously through the fall and winter, going into the Indus River without being used.
Solution
The idea is very simple and uses the principle of gravity so that water maintains its level. No pumps or power is required. Therefore, water is piped from 60m upstream and it rises close to 60m up from the ground when it reaches the village. For clarity, we can imagine that the pipe is mounted on a mobile-phone tower of that height, and then it is made to fall from that height on cold Ladakhi winter nights when it is -30 to -50°C outside (with wind chill factor). The water freezes by the time it reaches the ground and slowly forms a huge cone or Ice Stupa roughly 30 to 50m in height. The idea is also to conserve this tower of ice as long into the summer as possible so that as it melts, it feeds the fields until the real glacial meltwaters start flowing in June. Since these ice cones extend vertically upwards towards the sun, they receive fewer of the sun’s rays per the volume of water stored; hence, they take much longer to melt compared to an artificial glacier of the same volume formed horizontally on a flat surface.
Outcomes
At one location in Phyang, the ice stupa has enabled the villagers to plant and grow 5,000 poplar trees. At other locations like Lamtso, Warshu Do and Stongdey, amongst others, the water has helped to increase the average yearly crop yield. Ice Stupas have also boosted winter eco-tourism in the region and enabled locals to look into diverse earning opportunities throughout the year.
In the past two years, various teams have developed their Ice Stupa sites to attract tourists by building structures for ice climbing, designing ice cafes within the Ice Stupa itself and organising activities like the 1st Ladakhi Ice Festival at the location. Last but not the least, Ice Stupas have helped to create a specific engineering capacity within the Ladakhi population, which is enabling them to adapt, mitigate and address the emerging water crisis in the region.
