Rising temperature reach alarming levels

Glacial melting is among the major global warming-induced risks Pakistan faces

LAHORE: Rising temperature and glacial melt due to global warming, have reached alarming levels which could be controlled by bringing maximum areas under vegetation.

Environmental experts while talking to APP said that presently, glacial melting was among the major global warming-induced risks Pakistan grapples with.

Ministry of Climate Change (MoCC) Deputy Director Mohammad Saleem Shaikh said that during summer, the above normal flows in glacial streams, which all eventually feed the 3,500 kilometres-long Indus River, clearly indicate that the country's glaciers were melting rapidly. Saleem added that temperatures in most of the mountainous valleys never used to go beyond 30 degree Celsius during summer, but now it was surpassing 40 degree Celsius at times.

Replying to a question, he said that the MoCC was playing a key role in planting trees across the country to overcome environmental issues being faced by the country.

World Wide Fund for Conservation of Nature (WWF), Pakistan Chapter Manager Conservation Humera Aysha said that recent findings of 10 weather monitoring stations set up by the Pakistan Meteorological Department, also concluded that glaciers in ablation zone (which refers to the low-altitude area of a glacier) was receding faster and snow-line was marching upward.

This means shrinking in the glacier area, she said.

"This means that ablation zones are increasing and accumulation zones of the glaciers reducing," she added.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, July 10^th, 2017.