PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government has declared eight valleys in the province’s northern region as highly sensitive to potential glacial lake outburst floods (GLOF), directing authorities concerned to strengthen monitoring through the early warning system.
The areas declared sensitive are Utror, Kalam and Matiltan in Swat; Reshun in Upper Chitral; Madklasht and Arkari in Lower Chitral; Kumrat in Upper Dir and Kandia in Upper Kohistan.
According to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), glaciers in Pakistan’s northern mountain ranges — Hindu Kush, Himalaya and Karakoram — are melting rapidly due to rising temperatures.
This has led to the formation of 3,044 glacial lakes in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit-Baltistan, of which 33 are classified as dangerous and prone to sudden outburst.
On Tuesday, KP Chief Secretary Shahab Ali Shah chaired a meeting to review the GLOF situation in northern districts.
Officials briefed the meeting that Reshun in Upper Chitral is among the highest-risk areas, while Utror, Matiltan and Kalam in Swat, Madklasht and Arkari in Lower Chitral, Kumrat in Upper Dir, and Kandia in Upper Kohistan are also at risk of GLOF.
The chief secretary directed officials to take preventive measures and instructed deputy commissioners of all at-risk districts to submit daily reports to his office.
It is noteworthy that under the Ministry of Climate Change, a $34.67 million GLOF project, funded by the Green Climate Fund through UNDP, is under way in the province. Launched in 2017, the project is scheduled to conclude in December 2025.
The federal government has released funds to KP and Gilgit-Baltistan to help them better cope with the challenges posed by climate change in northern areas.
