EnvironmentTuesday, 8 September 2026·The Hindu - Environment
Tibetan Plateau glacial retreat: climate change, 14,000 lakes and flood-risk facts
Chinese researchers linked warming on the Tibetan Plateau to glacier loss, expanding glacial lakes and higher flood risks.
Key highlights
Direct fact
On September 7, 2026, Chinese researchers said climate change had reduced the Tibetan Plateau’s glacier area to 39,000 square kilometres and increased the number of glacial lakes to more than 14,000, after the August 26 glacial collapse on the Nepal-China border.
Key specifics
- The Tibetan Plateau glacier area fell to 39,000 sq km from 44,000 sq km and 51,000 sq km in earlier studies.
- Researchers said glaciers in the Gangdise Mountains, Nyenchen Tanglha Mountains and Himalayas shrank by about 40% over 60 years.
- Across the plateau, glaciers shrank by 24%, according to Kang Shichang of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
- There are now more than 14,000 glacial lakes on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, covering over 1,100 sq km.
- The area of glacial lakes near China’s southern borders is expanding by about 1% annually, raising flood-risk concerns for India and Nepal.
Exam lens
Question type: environment and disaster-risk MCQ, Tibetan Plateau, 39,000 sq km glacier area, 14,000 glacial lakes, 1,100 sq km lake area, 1% annual expansion. TNPSC may ask the main driver of glacier retreat and the downstream risk it creates.