The Himalaya Mountains, Research Paper Example

Introduction

Fold Mountains is one of the subjects in earth science and is a type of the number of mountains available. They are created as a result of folding of the layers within the upper part of the earth. In the past, the term has commonly been used for mountain belts such as the Himalayas. They are formed when two tectonic plates moving together collide and from sedimentary rocks which accumulate along the continents margin then when plates and the continents riding collide with them, the layers of rock that had accumulated will crumple and fold then spreads along the surface of the earth especially with weak basal base. The report will explore the topic of Himalaya Mountains on its causes and its effects to its surrounding population. The work will also look at the importance of the Fold Mountains and how they benefit the community surrounding the place including the outside world. It will also cover the contemporary issues involving the Himalaya Mountains and other aspects of the topic.

The Formation of Himalaya Mountains

Himalaya Mountains are created as a result of two plates which have land masses on them moving towards each other and as they do that, they push the layers of accumulated sediments in the sea between them up into folds. This usually results into most fold mountains continuing to grow because the plates constantly move towards each other. The process of the sediment lying on the base of the sea takes a number of years and thus the whole process on the formation of the Himalaya Mountains takes several hundred or thousands of years. An example is the Rockies, the Alps and the Andes which are the Fold Mountains that are huge and caused by collision of two plates.

In the case of the Himalayas, the materials that formed the mountains originated at the bottom of the non-existent Tethys’s Sea (Ann Bowen, 2010). The Fold Mountains such as the Himalayas can form at collision margins and this occurs when the Indian plate moves to the north then east to the European plate that is not moving. The collision between the Eurasian and African plates led to the formation of the Alps Mountain. Both plates in this case are continental and thus cannot sink nor get destroyed, and for this reason, the material that is fitted in between them is forced to form the Fold Mountains. As the Indian plate pushed against the Eurasian plate, the sediments ended up folding to form the mountains such as the Himalayas.

Causes

The Himalaya Mountains are formed from sedimentary rocks that are usually found alongside the boundaries of the continents. They are formed when two plates move together by the process called compression plate margin. This process occurs when two continental plates move to each other; the movement of the two plates will then result to forcing of the sedimentary rocks upwards in a number of folds. This is due to the thickest deposits of sedimentary rocks that accumulate along the edges of the continents. When plates and continents riding on them collide with each other, the accumulated rock layers crumple and fold just like a tablecloth being pushed across the table (Singh, 2011).

Human Uses of Himalaya Mountains

The formation of the Himalaya Mountains is used by humans on a variety of purposes, these may be beneficial in various ways as it helps improve the living conditions of the as well as providing income to the people surrounding it. Some of these benefits include;

Tourism

The most attractive features from the Fold Mountains include the hill walking, attractive scenery, the climbing’s on the mountains and river rafting and these features have contributed to an all-year-round visit of tourists. This has brought large amounts of money into the areas and allowed the people around to diversify into farming and other jobs.

Tourism is also a major use of the Himalaya Mountains around the world as they are in economically developed countries. The increase in tourism means that there would be an increase in hotels and restaurants, much improved infrastructure and development of resorts. An example is the Rockies and Alps whose main attraction is skiing and thus this activity has brought several people each year which has brought changes and problems to the area.

Farming

This is an activity mainly carried out in all the fold mountains formed around the world. This is because of the height and steepness that many of the slopes offer. The foothills of Himalayas have people around it using terraces in the mountainside to help in the growth of crops and other variety of vines and fruits. The terrain is suitable for the farming of cattle and sheep which tend to thrive well in such areas. The weather is particularly suitable as it favors the seasonal movement of grazing animals for warmer months in the high ground and colder autumn on the valley floors; however this has been outdated with the modern technology.

HEP Scheme

The Hydroelectric power schemes are common around the Himalaya Mountains. The areas are mainly the prime spot in the generation of hydroelectric power. The electricity generated is then used by the citizens at home or as a power source for local industries like the saw and paper mills. The mountains are also very high and this means that greater power is generated due to the force created. They have plenty of water supplies, deep and narrow valleys with flowing rivers and are sparsely populated, which means that few people are displaced when reservoir is created.

Forestry

This can lead to the emergence of major businesses especially to the mountainous regions of the Fold Mountains. A good example is the cultivated coniferous forests in the Alps where trees have been planted as crops. The downside of forestry occurs due to deforestation as in the case at the foothills of Himalayas, where large-scale deforestation takes place with the presence of logging companies, which cut down a great number of trees, thus reducing the size of the forest.

Contemporary Issues Associated With Himalaya Mountains

The Cold and Wet Climate

The climate around the regions surrounding the Himalaya Mountains is very cold and wet, and this aspect makes it hard to for most industrial and agricultural activity to take place (Eloff, 2011). The cold weather tends to slow down processes in the form of application of manpower to the workplace as the production of people tends to be slow in the cold weather. The weather also makes it problematic to apply most industrial machinery during operations in the firm. For farmers, this weather will affect them in that they will be having very short growing season and thus it will be difficult to grow other types of crops that will require longer periods. The place also poses steep slopes which makes it difficult for farmers to apply machinery in their operations in the farm.

Mountainous Regions

This poses a crisis to the entire population as the mountainous regions are complex to build in because of the cold climate and steep sided valleys. The roads and other communication links will also come upon complexities when being built and thus has to snake its way up wherever it can for convenience in building and operating on them. The road networks are also not big enough to serve the community around it adequately and this is a great inconvenience caused by these mountainous regions.

The Threat of Avalanches

The avalanches create a constant threat in the areas covered with Himalaya Mountains. This only occurs when a large mass of snow or ice is detached from the mountain slope and slides or fall suddenly downward (Waugh, 2012). They may also result to destruction of properties and these can add up to be great losses to the surrounding population. An example is the devastating effect that witnessed in Peru in 1962. It also poses a great threat to the surrounding population as when these masses fall, they may accidentally cause injuries to people walking on the downside of the mountains and these can be fatal. There are huge amounts of money that is spent every year in trying to combat this threat especially with the large number of tourists using the mountains.

Conclusion

This research has clearly tackled on the Himalaya Mountains. It has dealt with the formation of the mountain together with the processes involved with its causes and effects to the surrounding population. The paper has also reviewed on the benefits brought about by the Fold Mountains to the surrounding community, which involves the hydroelectric power generation, the big business in forestry, sites of tourism attraction and assists farmers in doing farming in the region thus a source of revenue to the farmers themselves. Apart from these benefits, there are a number of negative sides brought about by the mountains, which has also been reviewed. These involve the issues of mountainous terrain brought and how it affects the surrounding population together with the cold and wet terrain which inconveniences operations of activities around the area.

Reference:

Aitken, B., (2003). Footloose in the Himalaya. New Delhi: Permanent Black Publishers.

Chandra, B. R., (2008). The Encyclopedia of Himalayas Mountains. New Delhi: A Mittal Publication.

Nandy, S., Dhyani, P. & Samal, P.K., (2006). Resources and  Information Database of the Himalaya. Almora: GBPIHED.

Sundaranand, S., (2001). Himalaya Mountains: Through the Lens of Sadhu. Tapovan Kuti Prakashan