Climate Crisis

What is the worst fact that is terrorizing the world other than Wars and Weapons of Mass destruction? It is none other than the rapidly changing environment that includes global warming, global emissions and reduction in green belts.

According to a latest report the glaciers of two thirds of Himalayas are melting rapidly. The Hindu Kush- Himalaya (HKH) assessment, this glacier could melt by 2100.

This is the real threat to the water source in the     Hindu Kush- Himalaya region. These glaciers are the source of water to some 250 million people that live in the mountains and other 1.65 billion people that live in the valleys.

The HKH glaciers feed the world’s most important rivers like Ganges, Indus, Yellow and Mekong.  They are not only the water but also source of food, income and energy for the people. The climate crisis has been a topic of discussion and agreement, but still world leading nations are unable to prevent it.

The Paris Agreement was also signed to overcome this crisis.  In 2015, the agreement declares to restrict the global warming below two degrees Celsius, above pre industrial levels. In December, United Nations climate forum agreed o implement the accord, but failed to introduce new commitments to reduce to greenhouse gases.

The Himalayan glaciers that were formed some 70 million years ago are very sensitive to climate change. Due to global warming, the areas covered by the snow and the snowfall have decreased drastically.

This meltdown will cause more air pollution and extreme weather conditions. The black carbon and dust produced from the Indo-Gangetic Plains that are known as one of the most polluted regions in the world, is triggering the meltdown and changing the monsoon circulation.

The third world countries are still not paying attention to the cost of climate change. The rich nations that are the biggest part of these historic emissions are also not coming to some sort of conclusion. Pakistan is also one of those threatened countries that face the changed rainfall and monsoon patterns. These mountains are the climate hotspots that need our urgent attention to keep the world safe.

By

Rabia Waqar