Shafaqna English– A senior UN official has issued a stark warning that the Himalayan region faces escalating dangers from glacial floods, as the death toll from last week’s catastrophic flood in Nepal—triggered by a glacier collapse—has now exceeded 1,000.
Kanni Wignaraja, UN assistant secretary-general and UNDP regional director for Asia and the Pacific, cautioned that both hydroelectric infrastructure and the livelihoods of millions living along riverbanks are at risk, with entire floodplains potentially becoming uninhabitable.
She noted that technology cannot keep pace with the scale of the threat along major river systems that capture glacial lake overflow. In 2020, researchers identified 47 dangerous glacial lakes in Nepal, China, and India, but the actual figure is now believed to be far higher, with the at-risk population numbering in the millions, according to UNDP data updated in June.
The recent Nepalese disaster was caused by a glacier collapse near Langtang Lirung peak, sending a landslide and flood wave down the Trishuli River—a phenomenon distinct from glacial lake outburst floods, which occur when melting water breaches natural barriers.
Both threats are intensifying due to climate change, which accelerates glacier melt, destabilizes rock formations, and increases pressure on lake barriers. Additionally, the region’s relatively young mountain ranges are more susceptible to tectonic shifts that can trigger sudden collapses.
Source: Reuters