Environment
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Himalayan glaciers melt 65% faster, study finds
Hindustan Times··15 Sept
Himalayan glaciers are losing mass 65 percent faster than a decade ago, with one-third of melt driven by black carbon, a Systemiq study found. Hindu Kush Himalayas could lose up to 80 percent of glacier volume by 2100. Only about 21 of nearly 40,000 glaciers are monitored, around 16 to 17 in India. Nepal floods killed at least 1,350 people.
Prism
What It Means For You
- The study said about 18 percent of Indian land is Himalayan yet the region accounts for about 35 percent of disasters and over 20 percent of GDP.
- Most Himalayan basins are expected to hit peak meltwater around mid-century before declines.
- Authors urged monitoring, early warning and risk mapping before new development approvals.
What's Happening
- Systemiq worked with the Integrated Mountain Initiative, with input from ICIMOD and GB Pant National Institute of Himalayan Environment.
- Researchers tied much black carbon on glaciers to brick kilns in the plains.
- ICIMOD director general Pema Gyamtsho said cross-border monitoring and shared early warnings are essential.
The monitoring gap behind the risk
- The report said only around 0.1 percent of the Himalaya's estimated 40,000 glaciers are monitored.
- Permafrost, another instability source, is even less mapped, it said.
- Recommendations included cutting soot, stewarding about 3 million hectares of fire-prone forest, and protecting drying springs.
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