2 weeks Ago By Ubaid Sahil
One morning in May 2022, the people of Hassanabad, Hunza, woke up to an ominous, thunderous roar. The sound was unlike anything they had heard before. Within moments, a violent surge of water and ice came crashing down from the mountains, destroying everything in its path.
Homes were swallowed, roads disappeared, and the historic Hassanabad Bridge which was an essential lifeline connecting remote communities, was torn apart like a piece of paper. What the villagers had witnessed was not just another natural disaster; it was a warning from the mountains, a direct consequence of Pakistan’s rapidly melting glaciers. Pakistan is home to over 7,200 glaciers, making it one of the most glaciated regions outside the polar zones.
These glaciers, nestled in the towering peaks of the Hindu Kush, Karakoram, and Himalayas, are the lifelines of the country. They feed into the Indus River, which sustains the livelihoods of millions. But this ice is disappearing at an alarming rate.
Our glaciers are vanishing because the world is heating up faster than ever. Rising global temperatures, driven by unchecked carbon emissions, are causing the ice to melt at an alarming speed. Factories, vehicles, and industries in wealthier nations pump out greenhouse gases, trapping heat in the atmosphere.
This warmth reaches the towering peaks of the Himalayas, Karakoram, and Hindu Kush, breaking centuries-old ice into water. Deforestation and black carbon pollution from burning fuels settle on the glaciers, absorbing heat and speeding up the meltdown According to a 2019 report by the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), one-third of the glaciers in the Hindu Kush-Himalayan region could disappear by 2100 if global emissions continue unchecked. Scientists from the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) have recorded an increase in average temperatures across Pakistan, with mountain regions warming at twice the global average.
The consequences are dire, rising temperatures mean accelerated glacial melt, leading to floods, water shortages, and displacement on a massive scale. The melting glaciers have led to the formation of more than 3,044 glacial lakes in Pakistan, according to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Out of these, 33 are considered critically dangerous.
These lakes, held back by unstable walls of ice and debris, can burst without warning, triggering Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs). These floods are not isolated incidents. Between 2010 and 2020, more than 50 GLOFs were recorded in Pakistan, and their frequency is increasing.
Entire villages are at risk of disappearing overnight, and thousands of people live in constant fear of the next catastrophe. Paradoxically, while melting glaciers initially release excess water, they will ultimately lead to severe shortages. Pakistan is already a water-stressed country, with per capita water availability dropping below 1,000 cubic meters per year, the threshold for water scarcity.
The Indus River, which provides 75% of Pakistan’s freshwater, is glacier-fed. If the glaciers continue to shrink, water supplies for agriculture, industry, and daily consumption will plummet. Farmers in Punjab and Sindh are already feeling the impact.
In recent years, unpredictable water flows from the mountains have led to irregular irrigation patterns, affecting wheat, rice, and sugarcane production. In some areas, prolonged dry spells have forced farmers to abandon their lands, leading to loss of income and food insecurity. If the trend continues, Pakistan could face severe drought conditions, threatening food supplies for millions.
Hydropower, which supplies a major part of the country’s electricity, relies on steady river flows. But erratic water levels mean power plants struggle to generate enough electricity, leading to more blackouts in an already energy-starved nation. Infrastructure is also under attack, bridges, roads, and homes built near riverbanks are being washed away by sudden floods.
The damage runs into billions, leaving Pakistan in a cycle of destruction and rebuilding, while the glaciers continue to shrink. As glaciers melt and floods become more frequent, thousands of people are being displaced from their ancestral lands. In Chitral and Swat, entire communities have been forced to relocate as their villages become uninhabitable.
The people of the Shisper Glacier region in Gilgit-Baltistan have been repeatedly evacuated due to rising water levels and landslides. Pakistan is already one of the most disaster-prone countries in the world. The 2022 floods, exacerbated by glacial melt and extreme monsoon rains, displaced over 33 million people, a humanitarian catastrophe.
Without urgent action, more communities in the northern regions will be forced to flee, further straining urban resources and increasing poverty levels. Despite contributing less than 1% to global carbon emissions, Pakistan bears a disproportionate brunt of climate change. The global north, responsible for the bulk of historical emissions, continues to expand industrial activities, while countries like Pakistan suffer the consequences.
The melting glaciers are not just a local problem, they are a global warning sign. The world’s inaction on climate change means Pakistan must prepare for an inevitable future of harsher environmental conditions. The government, in collaboration with international organizations, has launched initiatives like the Glacial Lake Outburst Flood Risk Reduction Project (GLOF-II) to mitigate disasters.
However, funding remains inadequate, and implementation is slow. Ubaid Sahil He writer is a student, activist, and columnist. He can be reached at ubaidsa9@gmail.
com.
