They had warned that warming temperatures due to climate change was melting the Himalayan glaciers and facilitated avalanches and landslides, and that constructing dams in this fragile ecosystem was dangerous. Experts say that the disaster underscores the fragility of the Himalayan mountains where the lives of millions are being altered by climate change. Himalayan glaciers are melting twice as fast since 2000 as they were in the 25 years before due to human-caused climate change, a 2019 paper published in Science Advances found. Whether this particular disaster was caused by climate change isn’t known. Development plans need to “go along with the environment” and not against it, said Anjal Prakash, a professor at the Indian School of Business who has contributed to research into the impacts of climate change in the Himalayas for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

Source: Egypt Independent February 09, 2021 10:30 UTC