New Delhi : Rapid glacier melt caused by global warming has doubled the number of rivers in the Himalayan region over the past decade, according to a study published in AGU Advances. A surge in river volume has been recorded in at least 10% of the region, affecting major rivers such as the Indus, Yangtze, Amu Darya, and Syr Darya. While these rivers are sustained by glaciers, snow, and rain, climate change has significantly altered their flow patterns. The effects are mixed—providing both benefits and risks to millions of people who depend on them.
Increased river discharge offers short-term benefits such as more water for hydropower and agriculture, but it also signals sediment increase and glacier loss, said Jonathan Flores, an engineer at the University of Massachusetts and the study’s lead author. If these glaciers continue to shrink, their meltwater contribution to river systems will decline, threatening long-term water availability downstream.
The short-term surge in water supports agriculture, electricity generation, and domestic use, but it also increases sediment loads—sand, silt, and gravel—that can clog hydropower turbines and disrupt sensitive aquatic ecosystems. The study found that rivers in the western Himalayas have experienced greater increases in discharge than those in the east, which are primarily rain-fed.
