Glacial outburst floods threaten millions of people worldwide. Juneau, Alaska, experienced this type of flood recently, nearly a year after another flood struck the region.
What's happening?
In early August, meltwater from an Alaskan glacier overwhelmed a drainage basin above Juneau, bringing a deluge down to the town below. The record-breaking glacier outburst flood destroyed at least 100 homes.
Eran Hood is a hydrologist with the University of Alaska Southeast who studies glaciers. He believes what happened with the Mendenhall Glacier in Alaska will be repeated in the future.
"What we saw yesterday can happen again and likely will happen again in the future. And it could be bigger," Hood said, per The Washington Post. "We're chasing a moving target in terms of being able to really lock down the flood volume."
Why are glacial outburst floods important?
A study published in the scientific journal Nature Communications warns that glacial lake outburst floods (GLOF) threaten millions of people around the world. "The continued ice loss and expansion of glacial lakes due to climate change therefore represents a globally important natural hazard that requires urgent attention if future loss of life from GLOF is to be minimised," noted the study.
The study's authors say GLOFs are a major hazard that could result in significant loss of life. Their study was the first of its kind to quantify the exposure and vulnerability to these floods on a global scale.
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They estimate that 15 million people are exposed to the impacts of potential GLOFs. There is frequently little warning for these floods, which can kill and also cause serious damage to property and infrastructure.
The number, area, and volume of glacial lakes worldwide have increased nearly 50%. The population increase in areas potentially susceptible to these floods has put more people at risk.
What's being done about this type of flooding?
The Green Climate Fund, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and the Pakistan government partnered on a project to help reduce the risk of GLOFs and build climate resilience in the mountains of Gilgit-Baltistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
According to the UNDP, the project's goals are to "install protective infrastructure, repair, and rehabilitate irrigation channels, and stabilize slopes using bioengineering techniques."
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