For many years, scientists have been discussing whether the population in mountain regions is increasingly at risk from meltwater floods, as melting glaciers release more and more water.
For many years, scientists have been discussing whether the population in mountain regions is increasingly at risk from meltwater floods, as melting glaciers release more and more water. A small proportion of this meltwater remains in the glacial lakes around the world. If their dams break, the corresponding glacial lake floods can have catastrophic consequences for the population living downstream. The Potsdam research team was able to show that it is not only the increasing number and surface area of glacial lakes that determines the risk of such floods. By analyzing satellite images of almost 1700 documented glacial lake floods in 13 glacier regions around the world over a period from 1990 to 2023 they found that the areas of ice dammed lakes became smaller, while those of moraine-dammed lakes remained largely constant. Overall, they were unable to identify a trend towards larger lake floods.
“Some lakes have developed a wide outlet over time. This allows the rivers from these lakes to discharge the meltwater very efficiently without necessarily breaking the dam. Other lakes, especially in the Alps, Peru and Norway, have been artificially reinforced with dams in order to use them intensively for hydropower”, says leading author Dr. Georg Veh from the Institute of Environmental Science and Geography. Such lake changes contribute to the fact that floods tend to originate from smaller lakes, even if lake areas are increasing globally.
Read More: University of Potsdam
Dr. Georg Veh in front of Lake No Lake in British Columbia (Canada), this lake is dammed by the Tulsequah glacier in the background and empties several times a year. (Photo Credit: University of Potsdam)
