Himalayan glaciers melting fast
A recent comprehensive scientific report has stated that by the end of the century, global warming, the way it is increasing now, could cause the Himalayan glaciers in the Hindu Kush Mountain Range to lose up to 80 per cent of their snow, affecting the lives of nearly 2 billion people who live downstream of 12 rivers that originate in the mountains.
The Himalayan glaciers in the Hindu Kush Mountain Range are melting at an unprecedented rate and could lose up to 80 per cent of their volume by 2100. The solution? Limit the earth’s warming to the 1.5 degrees Celsius as agreed upon at the 2015 Paris climate conference.
But the way things are going right now, that seems to be a big ask.
The above data has come from a report, ‘The Status of Glaciers n the Hindu Kush-Himalayan Region’ released by the Kathmandu-based International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development on June 20.
The report warns that flash floods and avalanches would grow in the coming years, and that the availability of freshwater would be affected for nearly 2 billion people who live downstream of 12 rivers that originate in these mountains.
According to the report, the Hindu Kush-Himalayan region (HKH) has the largest concentration of snow and glaciers outside the polar regions.
The report quoted a study that predicted a decline in snowfall by 30-50 per cent in the Indus Basin, 50-60 per cent in the Ganges and 50-70 per cent in the Brahmaputra between 2070 and 2100, compared to the average snowfall between 1971 and 2000.
The study also predicted a significant spike in glacial lake outbursts, leading to floods downstream and major thawing of permafrost, leading to the ground becoming unstable and thus causing damage to infrastructure, costing several billion dollars.
