Two-thirds of the Himalayan glaciers, which provide water for nearly 2 billion people, could disappear by the end of this century, a new scientific study warns.
The Himalayan glaciers feed the largest Asian rivers such as the Ganges, Indus, Yellow River, Mekong and Ayeyarwaddy. Because of this, scientists sometimes call them the Third Pole of the planet.
According to the study, two-thirds of these glaciers will melt by 2100 if the current trend of global warming continues and nothing is done about emissions.
Glaciers are located in the Hindu Kush mountain range, which belongs to the Himalayas. They are an important source of water for about 250 million people living in mountainous regions, as well as up to 1.65 billion others in river valleys.
The Hindu Kush-Himalaya region and its river basins. Photo: International Center for Integrated Mountain Development.
A report on the threat of melting of these glaciers was published in Kathmandu at the International Center for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) in Nepal, one of eight countries that could be affected by the impending disaster.
The study, which lasted 5 years, involved more than 350 scientists and experts from 185 organizations.
In 2015, an agreement was signed in Paris under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. According to which, countries pledged to make every effort to keep the rise in global average temperatures "well below" 2 ° C and to "make efforts" to limit the rise in temperature within 1.5 ° C.
However, according to the study, even if countries manage to fulfill the last point about 1.5 degrees, a huge part of the Himalayan glaciers will still melt, since without reducing the level of emissions into the atmosphere, the average temperature by the end of the century is expected to rise to 5 degrees.
The Himalayan glaciers were formed about 70 million years ago and are very sensitive to temperature changes. Since the 1970s, they began to melt and retreat, so every year the areas covered with snow and ice are decreasing.
As glaciers shrink, hundreds of glacial lakes may be unable to withstand the pressure of incoming melt water and can cause catastrophic flooding. Satellite data show that the number of such lakes in the region has grown from 3,350 to 4,260 since 1990.
And when the thaw stops, the region faces disasters such as drought due to water shortages.