POLITICS OF BLAME
Himalaya, the youngest mountain system in the world, is highly prone to erosion . Natural erosion processes in the Himalaya are so intense that they dwarf the changes caused by deforestation. Afforestation will help the local economy but will not prevent large floods in Himalayan rivers .
Major Himalayan rivers behave as erratically as small mountain torrents . Even the mighty Brahmaputra's stream flow in one year can be double that of another.
Landslides contribute more to soil loss in the Himalaya than surface erosion. Deforestation is often blamed for landslides. Forests can inhibit shallow landslides but they have little effect on deep landslides .
The environmental argument that deforestation in the Himalaya is a major cause of floods in the 20th century is giving rise to bad politics
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