Vanishing Glaciers Jolt Smokestack China The speed and scale of
change on the Tibetan plateau have made Chinese leaders react to
something they understand — a potential threat to the future of
China itself. They are clearly seeking to mould opinion in
favour of “greener” policies after decades of a highly polluting
dash for economic growth that has poisoned China’s rivers and
darkened its skies. Last month, for example, researchers
discovered that levels of black carbon in the ice core of the
Tibetan plateau had soared since the 1990s because of smokestack
industries and coal fires in millions of homes. The plateau’s
36,000 glaciers, which once extended for 18,000 square miles,
could vanish before mid-century if present rates of warming
persist. More than 80% of them are in retreat. The overall area
has shrunk by 4.5% in the past 20 years. Most ominous of all, in
the area that Chinese know as Sanjiangyuan, where three mighty
rivers rise — the Yangtze, the Yellow and the Mekong — the
headwaters run shallow and