Snowfall breathes new life into glaciers: Afforestation seen as key to extending winter lifeline
CHITRAL, (APP): Recent moderate to heavy snowfall across northern Pakistan has brought a rare glimmer of hope for the region’s rapidly shrinking glaciers being a lifeline that sustain agriculture, livestock and millions of people downstream.
Stretching across Chitral, Swat and Gilgit-Baltistan, these glaciers are among Pakistan’s most breathtaking natural wonders, providing water to living creatures.
Feeding an Indus River system and its tributaries, they function as vast freshwater reservoirs, gradually releasing meltwater during summer months and maintaining the region’s delicate ecological balance.
“The snowfall we received recently will help increase the lifespan of our glaciers,” said Sabir Ali, a resident of Chitral, as icy winds swept through his village Bomburat, forcing locals to pull on extra layers of warm clothing.
“The cold breeze coming from the glaciers and Trichmir mountain being highest outside Gilgit-Baltistan in Pakistan has intensified again which is something we haven’t felt properly in years.”
For poor Sabir, a 55-year-old farmer from Bumborat, the changes in the environmental landscape are deeply personal. “When I was a child and go to field with his father, the glaciers were much closer to our village,” he recalled.
“Every year, they keep retreating higher up the mountains because temperatures are rising due to deforestation and climate change besides lack of snowfall in winter.”
Like hundreds of other residents in Chitral, Sabir has witnessed the consequences of glacial retreat firsthand. Farming here has relied on glacier-fed irrigation for generations, but erratic water flows have made agriculture increasingly uncertain.
“We used to grow wheat, barley, apple, peaches and apricots without any difficulty,” he said. “Now we depend on rainfall, which is rarely enough. Sometimes we lose our entire crop to droughts or sudden floods.”
For communities like Sabir’s, melting glaciers are not just an environmental concern rather they are a direct threat to survival.
“If the glaciers disappear, what will happen to us?” he asked quietly. “How will we feed our families?”
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the Himalayan region including Chitral and Gilgit-Baltistan is warming faster than the global average.
Some glaciers in the region are losing up to five meters of thickness annually, accelerating their retreat. The crisis is compounded by deforestation and population explosion in KP.
Changing climate patterns are altering vegetation cycles, weakening native plant species and allowing invasive ones to spread. These shifts threaten biodiversity and undermine livelihoods that depend on forests and water resources.
Dr Bakhtair Khan, a glaciologist, said recent snowfall has had a positive short-term impact on glacier health in Chitral and Gilgit-Baltistan, but warned the long-term outlook remains grim.
“If current trends continue, Pakistan especially KP could lose up to 60 percent of its glaciers by the end of this century,” he said. Beyond water scarcity, melting glaciers significantly raise the risk of natural disasters.
“As glaciers retreat, unstable glacial lakes form at high altitudes,” Dr Bakhtair explained. “A minor earthquake or sudden temperature rise can trigger a glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF), causing widespread destruction downstream as we have seen 2010, 2022 and 2025 floods in KP.”
In these floods, expansive hotels were razed to ground in Swat and livestock washed away besides crops destroyed.
Dr Bakhtair stressed the need for urgent action, combining global efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions with local adaptation strategies such as improved water management, reforestation and early-warning systems for GLOFs.
Dr Salimur Rehman, former Chairman Environmental Science Department at University of Peshawar said that consequences of glacial retreat extend far beyond agriculture, water and wildlife.
He said ecological balance and tourism are another economic pillar of the region are also under threat.
“Chitral and Swat are known for their spectacular glacier landscapes,” Dr Salim said. “If glaciers continue to retreat, tourist inflows will decline, directly affecting local incomes.”
Many families depend on seasonal tourism, glaciers and forests for water and its decline could trigger a broader economic downturn.
Northern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa hosts a wide range of cold-adapted flora and fauna, now struggling to survive as their habitat shrinks.
“The snow leopard, an iconic species of the Himalayas, is particularly vulnerable,” Dr Salim said. “As glaciers melt, its hunting grounds and shelter are disappearing, pushing the species closer to extinction.”
Despite these challenges, efforts to mitigate these crisis are underway in KP. Government departments, local communities and international organizations are collaborating on sustainable solutions, including reforestation drives and installation of early-warning systems to reduce disaster risks.
Ahmad Jalil, Chief Conservator of Forests, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, said recent snowfall combined with large-scale afforestation could significantly enhance glacier longevity.
“Besides farmers and the general public, government departments, NGOs and village development committees will be mobilized to maximize plantation during the upcoming spring campaign,” he said.
Under the 10 Billion Tree Afforestation Project (10BTAP), Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has planted 711.35 million saplings of various species up to December last year, achieving 98.08 percent of its enclosure targets and 85.53 percent of farm forestry and free distribution goals.
“The success of this programme has strengthened Pakistan’s standing on the international environmental stage,” Ahmad Jalil added.
As climate change continues to reshape northern Pakistan’s landscape, snowfall and forests now stand as fragile allies in the fight to preserve glaciers that are natural treasures upon which millions depend for water, food and life itself.
