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Are Man-Made Glaciers the Answer to the Himalayas’ Melting Ice?
How one man’s plan to irrigate the Ladakh desert is drawing inspiration and critics
LADAKH, INDIA — In a region with scant water — less than 4 inches of annual rainfall — Sonam Wangchuk, a mechanical engineer by trade, has taken it upon himself to irrigate the mountainous desert of Ladakh, a sprawling Himalayan region that borders China and Pakistan. Ladakh translates to “land of high passes,” and with mountains that average about 20,000 feet, it’s no exaggeration. This combination of isolation and hostile environment has made this region imperiled and in many ways a fool’s errand. Wangchuk believes it’s an opportunity for true climate change.
He’s built a dozen man-made glaciers which he says release 2.6 million gallons of runoff to thousands of struggling farmers in the area. His designs collect ice in winter and then slowly melt that ice to hydrate parched summer fields.
Wangchuk’s man-made glaciers are 90-foot high domed structures shaped like traditional Tibetan Buddhist mounds. It’s so cold in Ladakh that when glacial stream water is pumped into the air, it solidifies around the wire or tree branch frame to form conical, temple-like glaciers. Known colloquially as ice stupas, Wangchuk uses plastic piping and sleeping bags donated by the army which are wrapped around the pipes to provide insulation at a minimal cost. Situated in mountain valleys where runoff feeds adjacent villages when these glaciers melt, the runoff feeds community crops.
“It’s a leap of faith,” admits Wangchuk, 52, in an office-bedroom at his experimental, environment-friendly school, just outside Leh, the capital of Ladakh.
The idea to build man-made glaciers was born in 2013 when Wangchuk was walking through Ladakh and noticed that a massive chunk of river ice lasted into summer. A year later, with the blessing of the Dalai Lama’s deputy— His Holiness Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang Rinpoche — and the help of student volunteers, Wangchuk raised $125,000 on Indiegogo and built a prototype. In 2016, he received a $100,000 Rolex…
