Reducing Climate Change-induced Risks and Vulnerabilities from Glacial Lake Outburst Floods



Contract partner: UNDP - Asia-Pacific Regional Centre - Bangkok Country: Bhutan Funding amount: € 600.000,00 Project start: 01.06.2008 End: 31.12.2013

Short Description:

Overall goal


The most significant climate change impact in Bhutan is the formation of supra-glacial lakes due to the accelerated retreat of glaciers with increasing temperatures. The risk of potential costly economic damages on key development sectors such as agriculture, hydropower, and forestry by Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs) is mounting. Climate change is attributed as the primary reason that water levels in glacial lakes approach dangerous thresholds. This poses a new dimension to the existing range of threats to lives, livelihoods, and development. Consequently in its Communications to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and its National Adaptation Programme of Action (NAPA) Bhutan, identifies the risks resulting from GLOFs as one of the most pressing challenges for future development of the country. As the first co-financed project by the Least Developed Country Fund (LDCF) established under the UNFCCC it will have a high regional impact and international visibility.


The objective of this project is the reduction of climate change-induced Glacial Lake Outburst Flooding (GLOF) risk in the Punakha-Wangdi and Chamkhar Valleys in Bhutan. The project encompasses the national, district, and local levels using a three-pronged approach:

First, it aims to build capacity for disaster risk management at the national, regional, and local levels, with a focus on the skills and knowledge to integrate climate change risks. This will enhance adaptive capacity, enabling the key institutions and their partners to take actions that reduce the risks to communities of future climate change impacts.

The second component of the proposed project mitigates the GLOF risk from a specific lake and strengthens the technical expertise needed to reduce Bhutan's risks from future climate change-induced GLOFs.

The third component includes an early warning system

The knowledge and skills gained through this project will be shared within Bhutan and regionally.

project number 2534-00/2008
source of funding OEZA
sector Umweltschutz allgemein
tied
modality
marker
  • Policy marker: are used to identify, assess and facilitate the monitoring of activities in support of policy objectives concerning gender equality, aid to environment, participatory development/good governance, trade development and reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health. Activities targeting the objectives of the Rio Conventions include the identification of biodiversity, climate change mitigation, climate change adaptation, and desertification.
    • 1= policy is a significant objective of the activity
    • 2= policy is the principal objective of the activity
  • Donor/ source of funding: The ADA is not only implementing projects and programmes of the Austrian Development Cooperation , but also projects funded from other sources and donors such as
    • AKF - Foreign Disaster Fund of the Austrian federal government
    • BMLFUW - Federal Ministry for Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water
    • EU - Funds of the European Commission
    • Others - various other donors are listed in ADA’s annual business report.
  • Type of Aid – Aid modalities: classifies transfers from the donor to the first recipient of funds such as budget support, core contributions and pooled programmes and funds to CSOs and multilateral organisations, project-type interventions, experts and other technical assistance, scholarships and student costs in donor countries, debt relief, administrative costs and other in-donor expenditures.
  • Purpose/ sector code: classifies the specific area of the recipient’s economic or social structure, funded by a bilateral contribution.
  • Tied/Untied: Untied aid is defined as loans and grants whose proceeds are fully and freely available to finance procurement from all OECD countries and substantially all developing countries. Transactions are considered tied unless the donor has, at the time of the aid offer, clearly specified a range of countries eligible for procurement which meets the tests for “untied” aid.
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