Grassland in Mabi County destroyed by glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF). This area used to be farmland, now it's covered with black glacial deposits after the glacial lake burst. Global warming causes Himalayan glaciers to melt at an unprecedented rate, making GLOF more frequent. Latest research (2009) indicates that in the Chinese Himalayas region, there are currently 143 glacial lakes and 44 of them are very high risk of bursting.
© © Greenpeace / Du Jiang