REPOSITORIO DIGITAL DEL INSTITUTO NACIONAL DE INVESTIGACIÓN EN GLACIARES Y ECOSISTEMAS DE MONTAÑA
El Repositorio Digital del INAIGEM es una plataforma de acceso abierto que preserva, organiza y difunde documentos científicos generados por nuestra institución, relacionados con el estudio de glaciares, ecosistemas de montaña y cambio climático. Facilita el acceso al conocimiento, promoviendo la conservación y gestión sostenible de los recursos de montaña para el bienestar de la sociedad.
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Modeling a glacial lake outburst flood process chain: the case of Lake
Palcacocha and Huaraz, Peru
(Copernicus GmbH, 2016-07-01) Marcelo A. Somos-Valenzuela; Rachel E. Chisolm; Denny S. Rivas; Cesar Portocarrero; Daene C. McKinney
Abstract. One of the consequences of recent glacier recession in the Cordillera Blanca, Peru, is the risk of glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs) from lakes that have formed at the base of retreating glaciers. GLOFs are often triggered by avalanches falling into glacial lakes, initiating a chain of processes that may culminate in significant inundation and destruction downstream. This paper presents simulations of all of the processes involved in a potential GLOF originating from Lake Palcacocha, the source of a previously catastrophic GLOF on 13 December 1941, killing about 1800 people in the city of Huaraz, Peru. The chain of processes simulated here includes (1) avalanches above the lake; (2) lake dynamics resulting from the avalanche impact, including wave generation, propagation, and run-up across lakes; (3) terminal moraine overtopping and dynamic moraine erosion simulations to determine the possibility of breaching; (4) flood propagation along downstream valleys; and (5) inundation of populated areas. The results of each process feed into simulations of subsequent processes in the chain, finally resulting in estimates of inundation in the city of Huaraz. The results of the inundation simulations were converted into flood intensity and preliminary hazard maps (based on an intensity-likelihood matrix) that may be useful for city planning and regulation. Three avalanche events with volumes ranging from 0.5 to 3 × 106 m3 were simulated, and two scenarios of 15 and 30 m lake lowering were simulated to assess the potential of mitigating the hazard level in Huaraz. For all three avalanche events, three-dimensional hydrodynamic models show large waves generated in the lake from the impact resulting in overtopping of the damming moraine. Despite very high discharge rates (up to 63.4 × 103 m3 s−1), the erosion from the overtopping wave did not result in failure of the damming moraine when simulated with a hydro-morphodynamic model using excessively conservative soil characteristics that provide very little erosion resistance. With the current lake level, all three avalanche events result in inundation in Huaraz due to wave overtopping, and the resulting preliminary hazard map shows a total affected area of 2.01 km2, most of which is in the high hazard category. Lowering the lake has the potential to reduce the affected area by up to 35 %, resulting in a smaller portion of the inundated area in the high hazard category.
Compiling an Inventory of Glacier-Bed Overdeepenings and Potential New Lakes in De-Glaciating Areas of the Peruvian Andes: Approach, First Results, and Perspectives for Adaptation to Climate Change
(MDPI AG, 2017-05-09) Daniel Colonia; Judith Torres; Wilfried Haeberli; Simone Schauwecker; Eliane Braendle; Claudia Giraldez; Alejo Cochachin
Global warming causes rapid shrinking of mountain glaciers. New lakes can, thus, form in the future where overdeepenings in the beds of still-existing glaciers are becoming exposed. Such new lakes can be amplifiers of natural hazards to downstream populations, but also constitute tourist attractions, offer new potential for hydropower, and may be of interest for water management. Identification of sites where future lakes will possibly form is, therefore, an essential step to initiate early planning of measures for risk reduction and sustainable use as part of adaptation strategies with respect to impacts from climate change. In order to establish a corresponding knowledge base, a systematic inventory of glacier-bed overdeepenings and possible future lakes was compiled for the still glacierized parts of the Peruvian Andes using the 2003–2010 glacier outlines from the national glacier inventory and the SRTM DEM from the year 2000. The resulting inventory contains 201 sites with overdeepened glacier beds >1 ha (104 m2) where notable future lakes could form, representing a total volume of about 260 million m3. A rough classification was assigned for the most likely formation time of the possible new lakes. Such inventory information sets the stage for analyzing sustainable use and hazard/risk for specific basins or regions.
Multi-Source Glacial Lake Outburst Flood Hazard Assessment and Mapping for Huaraz, Cordillera Blanca, Peru
(Frontiers in Earth Science, 2018) Instituto Nacional de Investigación en Glaciares y Ecosistemas de Montaña; Frey Holger; Huggel Christian; Chisolm Rachel E.; Baer Patrick; McArdell Brian; Cochachin Alejo; Portocarrero César; Frontiers in Earth Science
The Quillcay catchment in the Cordillera Blanca, Peru, contains several glacial lakes, including Lakes Palcacocha (with a volume of 17 x 106 m3), Tullparaju (12 x 106 m3) and Cuchillacocha (2 x 106 m3). In 1941 an outburst of Lake Palcacocha, in one of the deadliest historical glacial lake outburst floods (GLOF) worldwide, destroyed large parts of the city of Huaraz, located in the lowermost part of the catchment. Since this outburst, glaciers and glacial lakes in Quillcay catchment have undergone drastic changes, including a volume increase of Lake Palcacocha between around 1990 and 2010 by a factor of 34. In parallel, the population of Huaraz grew exponentially to more than 120,000 inhabitants nowadays, making a comprehensive assessment and mapping of GLOF hazards for the Quillcay catchment and the city of Huaraz indispensable. Here we present a scenario-based multi-source GLOF hazard mapping, applying a chain of interacting numerical models to simulate involved cascading mass movement processes. Susceptibility assessments for rock-ice avalanches and breach formation at moraine dams were used to define scenarios of different magnitudes and related probabilities, which are then simulated by corresponding mass movement models. The evaluation revealed, that (1) the three investigated lakes pose a significant GLOF hazard to the Quillcay Catchment and the city of Huaraz, (2) in some scenarios the highest hazard originates from the lake with the smallest volume (Cuchillacocha), and (3) current moraine characteristics of Lake Palcacocha cannot be compared to the situation prior and during the 1941 outburst. Results of outburst floods obtained by the RAMMS model were then converted into intensity maps and corresponding hazard levels according to national and international standards, and eventually combined into the GLOF hazard map for the entire Quillcay catchment, including the urban area of Huaraz. Besides technical aspects of such a multi-source model-based hazard mapping, special attention is also paid to approval and dissemination aspects in a complex institutional context. Finally, some general conclusions are drawn and recommendations are given, that go beyond the presented case of the Quillcay Catchment.
Redistribution of precipitation in the Polylepis weberbaueri canopy
(Taylor & Francis Online, 2026-05-24) Instituto Nacional de Investigación en Glaciares y Ecosistemas de Montaña; Lujano Laura, Efraín; Arroyo Alfaro, Sandra Jackeline; Quispe Ccajavilca, Cristian Evelio; Mallqui Meza, Helder Edegardo; INAIGEM
"Los bosques de Polylepis son fundamentales para la regulación hídrica en los ecosistemas altoandinos. Este estudio analizó la redistribución de la precipitación en el dosel de Polylepis weberbaueri en los Andes peruanos, evaluando la variabilidad de los eventos de lluvia y las relaciones ecohidrológicas asociadas. Se registró la precipitación total (P) y la precipitación que atraviesa el dosel o throughfall (TF), mientras que la interceptación del dosel (CI) se estimó como la diferencia entre ambas variables. Las relaciones se analizaron mediante correlaciones de Spearman y modelos cuadráticos.
Los resultados evidenciaron un predominio de eventos de precipitación de intensidad baja y moderada. El dosel interceptó el 36 % de la precipitación total, mientras que el 64 % alcanzó el suelo como TF. La proporción TF/P aumentó conforme se incrementaron la intensidad y la duración de los eventos de lluvia, mientras que la proporción CI/P disminuyó. Asimismo, se encontraron correlaciones significativas entre la precipitación total, la duración y la intensidad de los eventos, y los componentes TF y CI (ρ = 0,71–0,98; p < 0,001).
Estos hallazgos resaltan el papel regulador del dosel de P. weberbaueri en la dinámica hídrica de los ecosistemas altoandinos y destacan su importancia como infraestructura natural para mitigar los efectos de los cambios en los regímenes de precipitación asociados al cambio climático."
Translocation and Experimental Adaptation of Distichia muscoides Cushions in a Wetland Impacted by Acid Rock Drainage, Ancash, Peru
(Revista de la Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias - UNCuyo-, 0027-03-26) Instituto Nacional de Investigación en Glaciares y Ecosistemas de Montaña; Maria Cristina Otoya Fernández; Yeidy Montano; Marilín Sánchez-Purihuamán; Pedro M. Tapia; Junior Caro-Castro; Carmen Carreño-Farfán
La desglaciación de la cordillera de los Andes afecta negativamente a los ecosistemas y los cuerpos de agua, principalmente al incrementar la concentración de metales pesados. Sin embargo, estas concentraciones pueden reducirse mediante la aplicación de técnicas de biorremediación. El objetivo del estudio fue evaluar el efecto de la translocación y adaptación de cojines de Distichia muscoides en un bofedal ubicado en la unidad hidrográfica Pachacoto, distrito Catac, provincia de Recuay, departamento de Áncash Perú, que se encuentra afectado por drenaje ácido de roca en una región altoandina. Para ello, se compararon las características del agua, la turba y los tejidos de D. muscoides en dos bofedales, y se evaluó el comportamiento de los cojines translocados a partir de los factores de bioacumulación y de translocación de metales. La cuantificación de aluminio, hierro y manganeso en la turba, las raíces y el tejido aéreo de D. muscoides mostró mayores concentraciones tras la translocación de los cojines. Además, el factor de bioacumulación clasificó a los cojines trasplantados como acumuladores de aluminio, cobre, arsénico, hierro, manganeso y zinc, mientras que el factor de translocación los clasificó como fitoextractores de aluminio, arsénico, cromo, hierro, manganeso y zinc, y como fitoestabilizadores de plomo y cobre. Se concluye que los cojines de Disticha muscoides translocados y adaptados presentan un alto potencial para la biorremediación de bofedales impactados por drenaje ácido de roca.