Coordination stressed to address glacial melting issue

PESHAWAR: An agriculture expert, Khan Faraz, has said that climate change is a critical issue for Pakistan and there is an urgent need for all stakeholders to join forces through adaptation and mitigation policies across all socio-economic sectors.

“The glaciers in Pakistan are crucial to the country’s water supply, with over 60 percent of our water originating from glacial meltwater that feeds the Indus River.

However, rising global temperatures are causing these glaciers to shrink at an alarming rate, threatening to destabilise the country’s already stressed water resources,” he added.

He said that the global issue of glacial melting, which affects many regions worldwide, including Pakistan, needs coordinated action to address the global issue of glacial melting.

“It merits a mention that glaciers in the northern regions of the country play a vital role in water security, economic stability, and climate resilience. Pakistan’s glaciers, particularly in regions like Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral, are vital to the country’s water supply, providing over 60 per cent of the water to the Indus River Basin,” Khan Faraz said.

The agriculture expert, however, feared that these glaciers are rapidly melting due to climate change and it was leading to significant risks for both water security and the livelihoods of millions of people.

It is worth mentioning that World Water Day is observed every year on March 22.

This year’s theme of the world water day is Glaciers’ Preservation.

“This is a particularly pertinent theme considering that an estimated 60 per cent of the world’s freshwater originates from mountainous regions and the world’s glaciers, the main source of this mountain water, are steadily retreating as global warming accelerates,” Khan Faraz said.

He said water is not only the soul of life, but also a cornerstone for building prosperous and developed economies. Also, water is the livelihood of agriculture, industry, energy and daily life.