Climate change?induced Glacial Lake Outburst Floods in Hunza Valley of Pakistan: an assessment of indigenous farming community perceptions and adaptation

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作   者：

Wahid Hussain;  Muhammad Ammad Khan; 

作者机构：

Pakistan;  School of Social Sciences and Humanities (S3H);  NationalUniversity of Sciences and Technology (NUST);  Department of Development Studies;  Islamabad; 

关键词：

Climate change;  Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs);  Awareness;  Perceptions;  Indigenous communities;  Adaptation; 

期刊名称：

Environment, development and sustainability

i s s n：

1387-585X

年卷期：

2024 年 26 卷 5 期

页   码：

11515-11515

页   码：

摘   要：

Climate change is an emerging challenge that is triggering natural variabilities and disastersglobally. In Gilgit–Baltistan (GB) region of Pakistan, Glacial Lake Outburst Floods(GLOFs) have been occurring frequently due to glacier surges, increasing the vulnerabilityof mountain communities, particularly small farmers. This research aims to investigate theclimate change-induced GLOFs of the Shishper glacier in Hunza valley of GB with theintent of studying the farming activities; local awareness and perceptions toward climatechange; impacts of climate change and GLOFs on agriculture; and adaptation mechanismsbased on indigenous knowledge. Mixed-methods research approach was employed for afield survey in two villages inhabited by farmers of the Burusho community. Quantitativedata were gathered from a sample of 180 respondents by using a structured questionnaire,whereas field observation coupled with photography and spot interviews were undertakento accumulate qualitative data. Results revealed that many farmers lost their fertile land,and their crops and fruit orchards were severely damaged as a result of the devastatingeffects of climate change and recent GLOFs in 2019 and 2020, resulting in low crop yieldand agricultural income. Local communities typically respond to GLOFs through self-helpstrategies and indigenous methods to sustain their livelihoods. However, our findings suggestthat current adaptation practices are insufficient in light of rising climate risks. Thus,there is an urgent need to assist mountain communities by providing maximum support andinterventions to enhance their resilience to future GLOFs and to increase people’s adaptivecapacity by strengthening their socioeconomic conditions.