Formed in the shadow of Mount Everest, the turquoise depths of Nepal’s Imja glacial lake would be a breathtaking miracle of nature to behold — were they not a portent of catastrophic floods. “The risk is getting bigger,” said Arun Bhakta Shrestha, a climate scientist from the Kathmandu-based International Center for Integrated Mountain Development. A 2014 survey found one quarter of Nepal’s glaciers shrunk between 1977 and 2010, leaving behind 1,466 lakes. Experts told the government that the gigantic glacial lakes were effectively a ticking time bomb. Melting glaciers from climate change pose a huge threat to Nepal — as well as an undeserved extortionate burden, authorities say.

Source: Egypt Independent December 11, 2018 09:33 UTC