Himalayan region

Glaciers

In recent years, scientists have monitored a notable increase in the rate of glacier retreat across the region as a result of climate change. For example, glacial lakes have been forming rapidly on the surface of debris-covered glaciers in the Bhutan Himalaya during the last few decades. Studies have measured an approximately 13% overall decrease in glacial coverage in the Himalayas over the last 40–50 years. Local conditions play a large role in glacial retreat, however, and glacial loss can vary locally from a few m/yr to 61 m/yr. A marked acceleration in glacial mass loss has also been observed since 1975, from about 5–13 Gt/yr to 16–24 Gt/yr. Although the effect of this will not be known for many years, it potentially could mean disaster for the hundreds of millions of people who rely on the glaciers to feed the rivers during the dry seasons. The global climate change will affect the water resources and livelihoods of the Greater Himalayan region. The vulnerability of Himalayan water resources is an active area of research, with these mountain regions described as "water towers" for downstream populations.