The lives and livelihoods of 1. 65 billion people living in downstream river basins will be impacted as at least a third of the glaciers in the Hindu Kush Himalayan (HKH) ranges will melt by 2100 due to climate change, a new report has claimed.
That is the best - case scenario, in case global emissions are cut and global warming is restricted to 1. 5º C above pre - industrial levels – the most ambitious target under the 2015 Paris Agreement.
If, however, emissions are not cut and the world continues on its current warming trajectory, two - thirds of all glaciers could be gone by the end of the century. About 15% of the glaciers have already disappeared.
Water availability will also likely be impacted in the region owing to climate change. The report estimates that until 2050, there will be an increase in streamflow in the basins of the Indus, Ganga and Brahmaputra. Thereafter, there will be decrease in pre - monsoon flow.