Rising glacier melt in Pakistan

 13,000+ glaciers melting put Pakistan on alert after deadly floods

Pakistan warned that accelerating glacier melt poses growing risks to lives, infrastructure and water security, as climate change intensifies extreme weather events across the country’s northern regions. Pakistan’s 13,032 documented glaciers and around 3,000 glacial lakes underscore the growing disaster risk facing communities in the country’s mountainous regions as climate change alters glaciers and increases the threat of glacial hazards. Country’s 13,000 glaciers feed Indus system are vital for agriculture, energy, water supply. 2025 flash floods and 2022 disaster highlight growing risks for the region from climate change. Environment scientist and glacier researcher Dr. Anees Ahmad warned that urgent investment in monitoring, early-warning systems, disaster infrastructure and public awareness was needed to reduce the risk of a major glacial disaster. Dr. Anees said Pakistan’s glaciers are concentrated across the Hindu Kush, Karakoram and Himalayan ranges, with around 30 glaciers covering areas of approximately 50 square kilometres each. The Hindu Kush region, particularly the border areas of Afghanistan and Chitral, contains more than 2,500 glaciers and around 180 glacial lakes, while the Himalayan region has more than 3,000 glaciers. The Karakoram alone contains around 10,000 square km's of glacial ice, according to the researcher.

The warning comes after a series of climate-linked disasters, including 2025 floods that the government estimates caused losses of Rs822 billion (around $2.9 billion) and claimed more than 1,000 lives across the country. Authorities say the deluge was driven in part by rising temperatures and changing glacier patterns in the Hindu Kush–Karakoram–Himalaya region. The latest events follow catastrophic floods, which killed more than 1,700 people and submerged large parts of the country, underscoring its vulnerability to climate shocks despite contributing minimally to global emissions. Climate change is accelerating glacier melt and increasing the likelihood of glacial lake outburst floods. The extreme heat and weather events witnessed in northern Pakistan in 2025, which led to flash floods, landslides, loss of lives and damage to infrastructure, served as a clear warning. Dr. Anees said the region faces multiple hazards because of steep and potentially unstable slopes, while rising temperatures are changing the country’s predominantly debris-covered glaciers.

Dr Anees called for continuous monitoring of glaciers and glacial lakes, installation of early-warning systems, creation of safe zones and stronger enforcement against construction along riverbeds and waterways. He also highlighted the shortage of weather stations in Pakistan and said several automated stations had been installed in high-altitude areas with support from the Italian high-altitude scientific research organization Ev-K2-CNR. Pakistan is home to more than 13,000 glaciers, the largest concentration outside the polar regions, which feed the Indus River system. Officials say shifts in glacier behavior are increasing the risk of glacial lake outburst floods, particularly in Gilgit-Baltistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where communities face growing exposure to sudden flooding and landslides. Water from these glaciers sustains millions of people downstream, irrigating farmland across the Indus basin and supporting both rural livelihoods and urban demand. The researcher cautioned against assessing glacier health solely through changes in surface area, arguing that glacier volume should also be measured to obtain a more comprehensive picture of climate-related changes.

Communities in glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF)-prone areas should not be allowed to rebuild homes in high-risk zones, while greater investment in research and monitoring would be necessary to improve disaster preparedness. Pakistan have taken steps to address the risks through policy measures, including the National Climate Change Policy 2021, the National Adaptation Plan 2023 and its commitments under international climate agreements. But still more regional and global cooperation, including improved data sharing, early warning systems and access to climate finance is required to help vulnerable mountain communities adapt to changing conditions. These glaciers are central to Pakistan’s water security and to the stability of the ecosystems that sustain millions. The choices Pakistan and world make today will shape the future of mountains and the wellbeing of generations that follow.