The WWF is run at a local level by the following offices...
- WWF Global
- Adria
- Argentina
- Armenia
- AsiaPacific
- Australia
- Austria
- Azerbaijan
- Belgium
- Bhutan
- Bolivia
- Borneo
- Brazil
- Bulgaria
- Cambodia
- Cameroon
- Canada
- Caucasus
- Central African Republic
- Central America
- Central Asia
- Chile
- China
- Colombia
- Croatia
- Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Denmark
- Ecuador
- European Policy Office
- Finland
Our News
Climate Witness: Suo Bao, China
Suo Bao has lived near Lake Ngoring in Qinghai Province, China for over 50 years. In that time he has witnessed deterioration in the grasslands where he grazes his yaks. Their last well, at 15 metres, ran dry and they now use their yaks to carry water to their home.
I used to be a senior monk in the local monastery, where I also worked as a medical doctor and painter of Buddhist art. But my family has always depended on livestock farming for livelihood.
I came here in the 1950s when I was ten. Back then, there was tall and lush grass around the lake. Even with heavy snow in the winter, the cattle and sheep were able to feed on the grass. And the lake was bigger than it is now. There were only a couple of families living here besides my grandfather and I, and we often saw wild donkey, wolves, and bears in the mountains.
However, the grass began to deteriorate both in quality and quantity in the 1980s. Also, more and more poisonous grass began to appear in the pasture. The pasture has shrunk so much that we cannot get enough fodder for the cattle and sheep to pass the winter. As a result, the livestock has become smaller and smaller in size.
Our wells keep drying up
Meanwhile, the water has also gotten worse over time. In the 1950s, there were springs around here and water used to flow freely. Since the 1980s, however, the springs have dried up and we had to drill wells for water. It was in 1980 that we drilled the first well: water appeared when we dug only 2 meters down. But it dried up two years later. We drilled another two wells, each deeper than the previous. In 2003, our last well, which went down 15 meters, completely dried up. We've since used yaks to carry water from the lake.
As the quality of grass kept declining, my family's pasture is unable to sustain enough cattle and sheep for our livelihood. Last year, my second son left home to work for a farm on the other side of the mountain. One of my daughters also moved away with her husband. We used to be a big happy family of 11. Now it's very difficult for us to have a reunion.
I love Lake Ngoring, and I've lived here nearly all my life. As the environment worsens, I'm worried about the life of my children and grandchildren in the future. I hope more attention is paid to the changes in the environment here. Something has to be done about it.
Scientific review
Reviewed by: Dr Liang Sihai, Water Sources and Environmental Researcher at the China Geology UniversitySince 2001, we took 11 cross-section samplings around the source of Yellow River and four drillings were made near Suo Bao's house. Studies indicate that the local permafrost has been deteriorating. As the surface level of the permafrost have melted and decreased, the underground water is unable to sustain the local vegetation. That is why the grass has become thinner and the wells have dried up.
This deterioration of permafrost is chiefly caused by the increase in temperature. According to local records, the annual average temperature has been increasing by 0.32 degree Celsius per decade during the period from 1961 to 2006.
All articles are subject to scientific review by a member of the Climate Witness Science Advisory Panel.