By Jeremy Oxley
Covering an area the size of western Europe, Tibet consists of a vast plateau at an average altitude exceeding 4000 metres. It is one of the most sensitive and unique environments on Earth.
Following the 1950 invasion of Tibet by China, the Chinese rulers quickly realised that Tibet was home to an environment that had been preserved in its pristine and natural state. They named the country "Xizang", meaning large western treasure house.
In 1949, Tibet's forests covered 221,800 square kilometres. Today, almost 50% of these ancient forests have been clear-felled and transported to China. According to official Chinese reports, the total value of timber China extracted from Tibet till 1985 is estimated at $US54 billion (200 billion yuan).
Deforestation causes erosion, landslides and degradation of the soil. As most of Tibet's forests grow on steep slopes in river valleys, the extensive clear-felling has resulted in severe denudation of hillsides and massive soil erosion.
The tragic international effects of deforestation in Tibet are only now being realised. Ninety per cent of Tibet's water run-off feeds Asia's primary rivers. These rivers irrigate the great fertile plains of Asia, which support 47% of the planet's population. Because of the uncontrolled deforestation in Tibet, these rivers are now among the most silted in the world. Studies show siltation to be the leading cause of flooding.
In the last five years, both China's Yangtze and India's Brahmaputa rivers flooded more extensively than at any other time this century, killing thousands and causing $500 million dollars in damage. Scientists have acknowledged deforestation in Tibet is causing these flood disasters. Tibet's neighbouring countries, including China, face escalating disease, starvation and death through destruction of crops, farming land and homes.
As well, much of Tibet's wildlife is now facing extinction. More than 30 species (including the indigenous snow leopard) are officially listed as threatened due to habitat destruction and indiscriminate hunting. Chinese soldiers using automatic weapons have slaughtered the vast herds of wild yak and antelope. Wildlife trade is rampant in all areas of Tibet, including protected areas, with Chinese hunters selling endangered species in the flourishing international markets.
The migration of millions of Chinese into Tibet is putting increased pressure on Tibet's fragile terrain. Overgrazing of domestic animals, extensive habitat destruction for mass food production, land encroachment into steeper marginal run-off areas, use of toxic chemical fertilisers and unsustainable farming practices by the Chinese settlers are rapidly increasing the loss of biodiversity.
Tibet has experienced vast mineral exploitation and the mining of uranium — of which Tibet contains the world's largest known reserves — goes unchecked, leaving Tibet's landscape irreparably scarred.
One of the most serious problems in Tibet is China's use of it as a nuclear factory. China has a quarter of its nuclear arsenal on the Tibetan plateau and recently exploded a nuclear bomb at Lop Nor, 200 kilometres north of Tibet's border.
For decades the dumping of radioactive waste from nuclear facilities has been extensive. Some reports suggest that lakes, rivers and shallow unlined land fills on hazard-ridden hillsides have been used as dump sites. The effects in terms of serious and escalating health problems, deformities and deaths among local Tibetans are catastrophic.
Leading scientists now label the ecological devastation of Tibet one of the greatest environmental disasters threatening the ecology of the planet. Tsultrim Dekhang, executive head of the environment desk in the Tibetan Government in Exile in Dharamsala, India, also points out that the environmental problems in Tibet are a concern for the rest of the world.
"We can no longer ignore the environmental devastation occurring on the roof of the world", he says. "The United Nations conference on Environment in Stockholm in 1972, the Environment and Development conference in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil in 1992 and the Global Climate Forum in Germany in 1994 have proven that environmental problems of one county have far-reaching repercussions on other nations and are thus a global issue."
In response to the emerging picture of devastation in Tibet, the Wilderness Society and the Australia Tibet Council are presenting an international conference on the Tibetan environment in Sydney on September 28. The keynote speaker at "Endangered Tibet: Crisis on the roof of the world" will be the Dalai Lama. The conference will bring together in presentations and workshops a wide range of activists and environmental organisations to work on a national campaign to end the crisis in Tibet. For more information and registration inquiries, telephone Chris Doran at the Wilderness Society on (02) 9552 2788. The Dalai Lama's conference address will also be broadcast live in the Powerhouse Museum from 3-4pm in the Target Theatre and Turbine Hall. Bookings are essential; telephone 9217 0100.
[Jeremy Oxley is a campaigner with the Wilderness Society.]