Glacier-influenced hydrological regimes in the Afghanistan Hindu Kush Himalaya under current and future climate

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Version: Final published version
License: CC BY-NC 4.0
Serval ID
serval:BIB_7B80064D8E2B
Type
Article: article from journal or magazin.
Collection
Publications
Institution
Title
Glacier-influenced hydrological regimes in the Afghanistan Hindu Kush Himalaya under current and future climate
Journal
Hydrology Research
Author(s)
Shokory Jamal Abdul Naser, Horton Pascal, Schaefli Bettina, Lane Stuart N.
ISSN
0029-1277
2224-7955
Publication state
Published
Issued date
01/02/2025
Peer-reviewed
Oui
Volume
56
Number
2
Pages
108-135
Language
english
Abstract
Glaciers in the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) are important freshwater resources. Glacier recession may lead to a significant decrease in summer runoff. This study focuses on Afghanistan in the western Himalayas with an arid to semi-arid climate, where, despite strong societal and ecosystem dependance upon mountain water resources, the contribution of glacier melt is poorly known. This study used a new conceptual precipitation and ice melt-runoff model to assess current and future streamflow, taking into account the effects of debris-covered ice. Three catchments with varying glacier cover are considered: Sust (4,609 km2, 15.6% glacier cover) in eastern Afghanistan; the Taqchakhana (264.4 km2 area, 2.8% glacier cover) in northern Afghanistan; and the Bamyan (325.3 km2, 0.7% glacier cover) in central Afghanistan. Results identified different annual hydrological regimes, with glacier runoff dominating Sust (76%), rain and snow runoff dominating Taqchakhana (50%), and baseflow dominating Bamyan (61%). Under RCP 2.6, glacier runoff in Sust and Taqchakhana is expected to increase until 2050, then decline as temperatures stabilize; under RCP 8.5, a more significant increase is projected, while runoff in Bamyan will decrease throughout the century. Catchments may experience a peak water phase due to both temperature effects and progressively diminishing size of glaciers.
Keywords
Afghanistan, climate change, debris cover, glacier runoff, peak water
Web of science
Open Access
Yes
Create date
14/04/2025 13:20
Last modification date
02/05/2025 7:02
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