hyber Pakhtunkhwa is home to diverse species that provide essential ecosystem services such as freshwater, climate regulation, soil erosion prevention, and bio-resources. However, climate change poses a significant threat to this biodiversity, exacerbating existing challenges like deforestation, overgrazing, soil erosion, and unsustainable agricultural practices.

According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change 2021 report, approximately 100 endemic species are found in Pakistan, with 90 percent located in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Several mammal species, seven bird species, and twelve internationally endangered endemic and migratory birds inhabit the Himalayan range and sub-humid forests of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, making these mountain regions particularly vulnerable to biodiversity loss due to climate change.

A senior environmentalist at the Agricultural University, Peshawar explains that changes in precipitation and temperature patterns affect ecosystems, which provide habitats for numerous forest birds, mammals, and insect species. “Many plant species are unable to adapt to rapid climate changes, and the same is true for mammals. Furthermore, changes in ecosystems can trigger changes in animal feeding patterns, weakening them and eventually leading to extinction,” he says. Besides climate change, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s biodiversity faces threats from deforestation, overgrazing, soil erosion, salinity, waterlogging, unsustainable agricultural practices, and hunting.

The IPCC assessment report highlights six national parks, three wildlife sanctuaries, 38 game reserves, 22 private game reserves, 84 community game reserves, two wildlife refuges, and eight wildlife parks in the province. The Wildlife Department of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa observes that climate change impacts are affecting both migratory and indigenous flora and fauna.

“Globally, climate change is disrupting weather patterns, accelerating glacier melting, causing glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs), altering hydrological systems, impacting species diversity, and threatening food production patterns. Asia is expected to experience more frequent and prolonged heatwaves, while the number of cold days and nights will decrease. Historical events demonstrate that climate change endangers the natural balance and underscores human dependence on nature,” sates the IPCC 2021 report.

Over the past decade, the impacts of climate change in the province have included warming of the atmosphere and ocean, rise in sea levels, and increased greenhouse gas concentrations. These changes exacerbate the destruction caused by natural hazards, such as increased heavy precipitation and rising average surface temperatures, which alter natural weather patterns and intensify natural hazards in vulnerable areas.

To improve biodiversity conservation in the province, policy measures include establishing and managing protected areas, exploring funding opportunities, developing mechanisms to incentivise local communities to protect land, revising trophy hunting rules, and establishing nature reserves, botanical gardens, and gene banks. Enhancing understanding of climate change impacts on biodiversity and facilitating ecosystem-based adaptation are also crucial.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is a vulnerable region in terms of climate change impacts due to its fragile mountainous ecosystems and wildlife. 

WWF Pakistan reports that climate change has resulted in a rise in temperature and an increased frequency of extreme events such as floods, glacial lake outburst floods, droughts, and forest fires. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is a vulnerable region in terms of climate change impacts due to its fragile mountainous ecosystems and wildlife. Climate change impacts, in combination with human pressures, have further resulted in:

a) Decrease in floral species such as Taxus wallichian, Juniper, Chilgoza and Farxinus excelsior. These tree species are found in the temperate zone and have issues of natural regeneration due to changes in temperature and precipitation. The population of these species is fast declining in the province.

b) Increased frequency of forest fires is leading to both loss of wildlife and flora in the province. The forest fires in the Chilgoza forest of Shirani and Margallah forests are a few examples.

c) Shisham die-back disease, which leads to thinning of the tree leaves and drying up of the branches, has resulted in a decrease in the Shisham population and is also reported to be caused by climate change.

d) Temperatures in mountainous areas are reported to have doubled compared to the plain areas of Pakistan. This has resulted in the shifting of wildlife habitats, especially in the Alpine and Subalpine zones. This has further led to increased human presence in high-altitude areas, exacerbated human-wildlife conflicts, and retaliatory killings of snow leopards, common leopards, and bear populations.

Regarding the government response, the WWF has stated that the government should ensure the effective management of protected areas. A majority of these are only on paper and are not managed on scientific grounds.

In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, unregulated logging is ongoing in the name of windfall policy, ignoring suggestions of the scientific management plans. This needs to be stopped and shifted to proper scientific management of forests. The government should establish a forest management plan committee with members from government, conservation NGOs and academia to review and approve the scientific management plans and monitor their implementation. Community benefits should be ensured from conservation of biodiversity. Trophy hunting is one such example. Proper scientific research is needed to ensure the community benefits to further ensure conservation.

“We should develop and strictly implement scientific forest management plans and PAs management plans. We should also conduct research to explore innovative ways of biodiversity conservation. It is also recommended that relevant wildlife departments and other conservation organisations explore and introduce AI-based biodiversity monitoring. Further, steps should be taken to promote nonconsumptive uses of biodiversity such as nature photography, ecotourism, carbon sequestration/ carbon credit and wildlife credit programmes,” the WWF responded.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Minister for Climate Change, Forestry, Environment and Wildlife Fazal Hakim Khan, emphasised the need to protect trees and plants across the province. He highlighted efforts to combat deforestation and enforce strict actions against smugglers to safeguard the environment.

The writer is a freelance journalist based in Peshawar