Millions of livelihoods at stake as Himalayas approach tipping point, study finds

The Himalayas are approaching a tipping point as glaciers melt faster than a decade ago, threatening water security as ​the region approaches “peak water” by mid-century, according to a study ‌released this month.

The findings come after the collapse of a Himalayan glacier in late August along the Nepal-Tibet border, which caused cascading landslides and flash floods in the ​valleys below. At least 1,300 people have been confirmed dead ​and more than 5,300 are missing across Nepal and China’s ⁠Tibet region.

As glaciers retreat, they are leaving behind unstable glacial lakes ​held back by little more than loose rock and ice, above valleys ​where millions of people live, the study found.

The study was produced by Systemiq, a sustainability advisory firm, together with the Integrated Mountain Initiative, the International Centre for Integrated ​Mountain Development, and India’s GB Pant National Institute of Himalayan Environment.

Himalayan ​glacier mass loss had accelerated in recent decades, while only 21 glaciers were currently ‌monitored ⁠on the ground out of an estimated 40,000 glaciers across the Hindu Kush-Himalaya region, a vast mountain system spanning eight countries from Afghanistan to Myanmar, the study found.

Close to 200 glacial lakes in India had been identified as ​high risk, with ⁠56 classified as “very high risk”, leaving millions exposed downstream.

As the region neared “peak water”, the point when river flows ​stop rising and start declining, it would have ​profound implications ⁠for water security.

As the Himalayas underpinned more than 20 per cent of India’s GDP, the region made up a key piece of the country’s national ⁠economic infrastructure, ​upon which hundreds of millions of people ​depended.

Though making up around 18pc of India’s land, the Himalayan region accounted for roughly 35pc ​of the country’s natural disasters.