After a tsunami from the hills, Nepal must rebuild its ecology as well

There are many ways a nation can measure the devastation caused by a natural disaster — homes destroyed, roads washed away, bridges collapsed, crops lost and economic losses calculated in millions. But there is one measure that stands above all — human life.

No loss is greater than the loss of a human being.

Nepal is now confronting a tragedy of frightening proportions. 

A catastrophic surge of water, mud, rocks and debris from the mountain streams — almost like a "tsunami from the hills" — which has swept through settlements between the mountains, along riverbanks and across valleys. Entire communities have reportedly disappeared beneath the force of the torrents.

Hundreds may have lost their lives, while many more remain missing. 

And behind every number is a human story: a mother waiting for her child, a family searching for a father, a brother hoping for news of a sister, or an entire household suddenly reduced to grief and uncertainty.

At a moment like this, the only priority is the people.

The rescue of survivors, medical treatment, provision of food, drinking water and shelter, and the recovery of those who have perished must come before everything else. 

The painstaking identification of recovered bodies — including through DNA testing where necessary — is equally important. For families waiting in anguish, identification is not merely an administrative exercise. It is the beginning of closure.

Nepal will also have to confront an enormous economic catastrophe once the immediate humanitarian emergency is brought under control. Homes will need to be rebuilt. Roads and bridges reconstructed. Schools and hospitals restored. Agricultural land recovered. Businesses revived. Thousands of people who have lost their livelihoods will need assistance to begin their lives again.

The financial cost will undoubtedly be enormous. But there is another cost that may be less visible — and therefore more easily forgotten.

A disaster of this magnitude can fundamentally alter mountain ecosystems, ripping away forests, destroying riverbank vegetation, burying wetlands, altering stream channels, and devastating aquatic habitats. Fish and other aquatic organisms may be swept away or buried. Amphibians and reptiles can lose breeding sites. Birds and mammals may lose feeding grounds, shelter and nesting habitats.

The ecological disaster behind the human disaster

Once the immediate human tragedy has been addressed and the country begins the long process of economic recovery, Nepal must also assess the environmental and biodiversity damage caused by this catastrophe.

Let me stress this clearly that environmental losses are secondary to human lives. Nothing should distract the Nepalese government and NGOs from the humanitarian emergency. But secondary must not mean forgotten.

A disaster of this magnitude can fundamentally alter mountain ecosystems. Torrents carrying enormous quantities of water, rocks and sediment can rip away forests, destroy riverbank vegetation, bury wetlands, alter stream channels and devastate aquatic habitats. Fish and other aquatic organisms may be swept away or buried. Amphibians and reptiles can lose breeding sites. Birds and mammals may lose feeding grounds, shelter and nesting habitats.

Nonetheless, the ecological consequences may continue long after the waters have disappeared.

A river whose course has been dramatically altered today may threaten communities tomorrow. A denuded mountainside may become increasingly vulnerable to erosion and landslides. A destroyed wetland may no longer perform its natural function of storing and slowly releasing water. The disappearance of riparian vegetation can affect water quality, fish populations and the entire food chain.

Much of this damage will not appear in the first photographs of the disaster. That is why it must eventually be scientifically assessed and documented.

Rebuilding cannot simply mean replacing what was lost

Nepal's recovery will require enormous reconstruction. But rebuilding should not simply mean putting back everything exactly where it stood before the disaster.

The tragedy should prompt a serious reassessment of where settlements, roads and other infrastructure are located in relation to rivers, floodplains, unstable slopes and mountain watersheds.

If a village has been repeatedly exposed to catastrophic flooding or landslides, should it simply be rebuilt in the same place? If a road has been repeatedly destroyed because it cuts through an unstable slope, should the same engineering approach be repeated? If natural forests along a river have been removed and the river has consequently become more destructive, should reconstruction ignore the role those forests once played?

These are difficult questions. But Nepal cannot afford to avoid them.

Nature must become part of the recovery plan

The restoration of damaged forests, wetlands, streams and watersheds should therefore become an integral part of Nepal's long-term recovery programme. This is not merely about protecting wildlife. It is about protecting people from future disasters.

Healthy forests can help stabilise slopes. Natural vegetation along rivers can reduce erosion. Wetlands can retain water. Intact watersheds can regulate water flows. Healthy ecosystems provide services that engineered infrastructure alone cannot always replace.

Nature conservation and disaster resilience are therefore not two separate agendas. They are increasingly becoming two sides of the same agenda.

The disaster should also trigger comprehensive ecological surveys of the affected areas. Scientists should document changes in forest cover, river morphology, water quality, aquatic life, wildlife populations and critical habitats. Such information will be invaluable for deciding where restoration is most urgently required and where human reconstruction itself needs to be redesigned.

Let Nepal rebuild wiser

Nepal's immediate priority must remain absolutely clear: save the living; find the missing; recover and identify the deceased; care for the survivors; and rebuild homes and livelihoods.

Only after these urgent responsibilities are addressed can the nation fully turn its attention to the broader economic and ecological consequences. But when that moment comes, environmental recovery must not be treated as a luxury that can wait indefinitely.

The people of Nepal have suffered an unimaginable tragedy. They deserve not merely a return to what existed before, but a safer and more resilient future.

The ultimate tribute to those who have died should therefore be more than memorials. It should be a commitment to learn from this catastrophe — to rebuild settlements more safely, restore damaged watersheds, protect natural ecosystems and ensure that future generations are less vulnerable to the fury of the mountains.

Nepal must first heal its people. Then rebuild its economy. Alongside that rebuilding, it must begin healing its wounded landscapes. Because the protection of nature, ultimately, is also the protection of people. After such a terrible tragedy, Nepal cannot afford to forget either one.