The problem of Soil Erosion in Nepal

 The problem of soil erosion in very serious in Nepal. hills are suffering from landslides where plain is affecting from the erosion with floods.

soil erosion in a road construction : in syangja district, Nepal

  

Nepal is a beautiful country located on the foothill of Himalaya covers the area of 147181 square Kilometers and stretches 145-241 kilometer north to south.  Though, she is small than northern and southern giant neighboring China and India in size but rich in diversified natural characters. Diversity of climate in every short distance is the specialty of the country. Water resource and biodiversity is another unique in Nepal. The southern part is fertile plain and rest is hill region consists of deep valleys, hill, and mountains.

Landslides are the major factors of soil erosion in the hilly region. Hills and high mountains of Nepal also are facing the problem of landslides. Every year, hundreds of hectors of arable land, residences, and forest turn into debris. Sometimes debris comes to block the river and inundation problem suddenly comes up. Road network mostly disconnects in the rainy season by the landslides. A large amount of property and lives lost annually.

 A large-scaled landslide was struck with a death toll of 165 in Jure, Sindhupalchok a northern district of the country on 2 August 2014. It destroyed the land, houses, properties, and infrastructures. The cover of that landslide was 1.26 kilometer in length and width was 0.81 kilometer.  The debris came to block the Sunkosi River that created a 55m high dame in the river. The dam of 2.5 km long lake inundated arable and other lands, houses and a hydropower plant. The dam was the great risk of flood the low land of the river. The Araniko Highway, the only road connection to china also badly damaged. It was one of the major landslides in the history of Nepal. This is only an example in the context.

  Nepal is located on the risky zone of the earthquake. Geographically, Nepal is located on the joint of northern Tibetan plateau situated north of the Himalaya just lies above the southern Indian plateau.  The Tibetan plateau is the southern part of Eurasian plateau, stretching approximately 1000km north-south and 2500km east-west under the region.  According to research, the Indian plateau slipping northward the Tibet at the rate of approximately 20mm per year. Thousands year ago Himalaya came in existence due to this geological mobility. The hills and mountains of Nepal are prone to the earthquake that bringing devastating landslides. Thousands of major or small landslides are degrading the soil every year in Nepal. Geologically two-thirds of the total land of the country is fragile where soil erosion rate is exceedingly high. Billions of tons of soil are blowing in air and washing in rain or flood every year.

Nepal is one of the under developing countries of the world and very needy of infrastructure for development. The hungry of development the governments of all levels are giving priority in road connectivity. We can see in Mahabharata and Churia range, hundreds of dozer and excavators are breaking the hills for the road construction without any sense of soil conservation. Before the construction ecological survey, is very essential work for sustainable and Eco-conservation friendly infrastructures but is not strictly following. After the roughly breaking of hills by machines, soil as the debris let to be unmanaged to go in erosion.

               

  Only 20 percent of the total land of Nepal is cultivable. The largest contribution in GDP of Nepal is Agriculture by 31.7 percent. In this data, the plain region contributes major share.  Nepal is still in Traditional farming system. It is not easy for cultivation on hills slope. It is necessary to made steps on slopes for cultivation. Unscientifically step making agricultural land preparing system also adding the rate of soil erosion in Nepal.

Deforestation is an important cause of soil erosion. Nepal has 40.7 present of the total land is cover of the forest. Forest and grassland are the major natural factor to control soil erosion. With the growing population deforestation rate is going to high.  Nepal has lost about 91,700 hectares of forest per year between 1990 to 2000 AD. However, the rate of deforesting came down by 28.9 percent to 1.35 percent between 2000 and 2005. But the rate is not satisfactory in the part of soil conservation.  The high trend of migration toward rural to urban areas shows the diminishing rate of deforestation a few years is not sufficient for forest conservation.

 Eventually, Nepal has to do many more to diminishing the rate of soil erosion. It is not only possible by the government efforts but people’s awareness also is important.      

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