Himalayan glaciers, which provide water for nearly 2 billion people, are melting faster than ever due to climate change and exposing communities to unpredictable disasters, scientists warned Tuesday.
Glaciers melted 65% faster from 2011 to 2020 than in the previous decade, according to a report by the International Center for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD).
“With warming, the ice melts, that was expected, but what is unexpected and very worrying is the speed,” Philippus Wester, lead author of the study, told AFP.
Glaciers in the Hindu Kush Himalayas (HKH) region are a crucial source of water for some 240 million people in the mountainous regions, as well as 1.65 billion people in the valleys below, according to the study.
According to current emissions forecasts, glaciers could lose up to 80% of their current volume by the end of the century, said ICIMOD, an intergovernmental organization based in Nepal that includes Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Burma, Bhutan, China, India. and Pakistan.
Glaciers feed 10 of the world‘s major river systems, including the Ganges, Indus, Yellow, Mekong and Irawady rivers, and directly or indirectly provide food, energy and income for billions of people.
“With 2 billion people in Asia depending on water and snow from glaciers, the consequences of losing this cryosphere (frozen zone) are too great to contemplate,” said ICIMOD Deputy Chief Izabella Koziell.
Even if global warming is limited to 1.5 to 2 degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial levels set out in the Paris Agreement, glaciers would lose half their volume by 2100, according to the report.
“That highlights the need for urgent climate action,” Wester said. “Every little increase will have huge impacts and we really need to work on climate mitigation.”
The planet has warmed an average of 1.2º per year since the mid-19th century, causing extreme weather with waves of intense heat, severe droughts and storms.
The most affected are the most vulnerable people and poorest countries, which have contributed little to the emissions that cause warming.
Amina Maharjan, ICIMOD migration specialist, highlighted that communities do not have the support they require.
“Most of the adaptation is done by responsive communities and households. It is insufficient to meet the challenges of climate change,” Maharjan said.