Nepal hosts environment conference as Himalayan glaciers melt

KATHMANDU – An situation league opened successful Nepal connected Friday to sermon planetary clime change, including the interaction connected the highest Himalayan peaks wherever snowfall and crystal are melting.

The three-day league successful Kathmandu titled, “Climate Change, Mountains and the Future of Humanity,” is expected to see discussions of captious clime issues.

“From the thigh of Sagarmatha (Everest), the world’s highest peak, we nonstop this connection large and wide that to support the mountains is to support the planet. To support the mountains is to support our seas. To support the mountains is to support humanity itself,” Nepal Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Oli told participants astatine the opening meeting.

Nepal is location to 8 of the tallest mountains successful the satellite including Mount Everest. A precocious level of glaciers melting successful the Himalayan mountains due to the fact that of planetary warming has raised signficant concerns. Melting snowfall and crystal person exposed the mountains and accrued the hazard of stone slides, landslides and avalanches.

Scientists person warned the Himalayan mountains could suffer up to 80% of their glaciers if the Earth warms successful coming decades oregon centuries. They accidental flash floods and avalanches besides could go much apt successful coming years, successful portion due to the fact that of clime change.

“The calamity is that the Himalayas are facing an unprecedented accent trial successful existent clip today, exposing not lone the fragile quality of our upland ecosystems but besides a glaring grounds of the deficiency of meaningful planetary clime action,” Nepal Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba said. “As a mountainous state with precocious catastrophe hazard vulnerability, Nepal faces a stark predicament.”

Nepal has experienced a bid of terrible upwind events successful the caller past with devastating impacts connected radical and their livelihoods, Deuba said.

"Floods and glacial water outbursts person caused large-scale demolition and damage, and droughts, h2o scarcity and wood fires person brought untold suffering to the radical crossed the country," she said

Ministers from neighboring India, Bhutan and Maldives are attending the conference.

Organizers person said they mean to people a Kathmandu declaration aft the discussions extremity Sunday.

Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This worldly whitethorn not beryllium published, broadcast, rewritten oregon redistributed without permission.