Melting glaciers

Pakistan is among countries of the world facing grave consequences of climate change brought about by the increasing temperature. We are witnessing multiple manifestations of global warming and climate change such as simultaneous drought and flood in different parts of the country and their impact on people’s lives and livelihood. On May 7, a glacial lake outburst flood in Hunza caused by a melting glacier has done considerable harm in the area. The damage was inflicted as a result of the melting Shisper glacier due to heat. A historical bridge over the lake connecting Hunza and other parts of Gilgit-Baltistan with the Karakoram Highway was also swept away by the swirling flood waters. Floods caused by a glacier lake outburst had destroyed another important bridge over the Attabad Lake in the region more than two decades ago.

Pakistan is home to the largest number of glaciers outside the polar region, mostly in G-B and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. Some of them are losing their ice mass due to the increasing temperature. Experts say out of the more than 300 glaciers in Pakistan, 33 are dangerous as they are melting at a rapid rate submerging vast areas of agricultural and other lands and, in the process, destroying area residents’ means of support. Many human settlements have shrunk as a result of the widening of lakes and rivers. Dwellers keep on moving away from the expanding water bodies.

The melting glaciers are resulting in floods both in areas close to them and the Indus and other big and small rivers of the country. In recent years, this has often been occurring causing serious harm to humans, livestock and the ecosystem. Authorities need to focus more on the impact of global warming on glaciers so that their melting can be kept under check. The melting of glaciers at a faster rate also results in less availability of water in rivers. Close monitoring of the glaciers is of significant importance because Pakistan mostly depends on its rivers for drinking water and also for agricultural purposes.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 10^th, 2022.

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