Glacial Lake Outburst Floods

Lets face it Climate Change is real and manmade. And it is not just the coastal areas that will face more flooding in days to come but also high mountains like the Everest Region. Here, glaciers are retreating at an alarming rate of up to 74 meters per year and that rate is increasing every year. With a decrease in ice cover there is a corresponding increase in the amount of water in glacial lakes which makes them susceptible to bursting. Such events has happened three times in recent history in the Everest Region alone: in 1977, 1985 and 1998. And with the carelessness we all are guilty of, it is a no-brainer that more can happen in the future. Currently, organizations such as ICIMOD are actively monitoring various glacial lakes which could be potentially dangerous like the Imja Tsho above Chukung. Also encouraging is the fact that controlled drainage of such lakes have been carried out and Nepal has the expertise to do so again. However, that still doesn't give us the right to maintain a sympathetic inactivity to climate change.