Rock glacier inventory, permafrost probability distribution modeling and associated hazards in the Hunza River Basin, Western Karakoram, Pakistan

Javed Hassan; Xiaoqing Chen; Sher Muhammad; Nazir Ahmed Bazai

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.146833

Rock glacier inventory, permafrost probability distribution modeling and associated hazards in the Hunza River Basin, Western Karakoram, Pakistan

Sci Total Environ. 2021 Aug 15:782:146833. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.146833. Epub 2021 Mar 30.

Authors

Javed Hassan¹, Xiaoqing Chen², Sher Muhammad³, Nazir Ahmed Bazai⁴

Affiliations

¹ Key Laboratory of Mountain Hazards and Earth Surface Process, Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu 610041, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.
² Key Laboratory of Mountain Hazards and Earth Surface Process, Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu 610041, China; CAS Centre for Excellence in Tibetan Plateau Earth Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China. Electronic address: xqchen@imde.ac.cn.
³ International Center for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), Kathmandu, Nepal. Electronic address: sher.muhammad@icimod.org.
⁴ Key Laboratory of Mountain Hazards and Earth Surface Process, Institute of Mountain Hazards and Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu 610041, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China; China-Pakistan Joint Research Center on Earth Science, QAU, Islamabad, Pakistan.

PMID: 33845369
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.146833

Abstract

The destabilization of rock glaciers and permafrost variations is of great importance to the safety of the population and infrastructure in the Karakoram region because of their effects on land stability and river obstructions. In this study, we compiled the first complete rock glacier inventory for the Hunza Basin, western Karakoram, of 616 rock glaciers with an area of 194 km² between 2800 and 5700 m a.s.l. We categorized the rock glaciers as intact or relict, and their distributions and destabilization were further analyzed and used along with in situ climate and elevation dataset to model the permafrost probability distribution. The modeled areas where the permafrost zonation index (PZI) is 0.5-1.00 indicate that permafrost occurs over 85% of the catchment area and lies above 3525 m a.s.l., which closely matches the zero-degree isotherm of 3800 m a.s.l. Based on the sensitivity analysis of the independent variables, elevation is the most sensitive variable, followed by net radiation, for predicting the probabilities of the presence and absence of permafrost. The model distributions are quite precise, with median posterior areas under the curve of 0.98 and 0.96 for model training and testing, respectively. We analyzed the rock glacier destabilization for 68 rock glaciers that interacted with river channels, of which 50 blocked or diverted river channels. Destabilized rock glaciers can be closely linked to the 0 °C isotherm between 3400 and 4600 m a.s.l. The significant damage caused by periodic floods from the subsequent blockage of river channels by landslides can be attributed to variations in permafrost. Which demolished infrastructure, including a hydropower plant, suspension bridge and water supply system in Hassan-abad catchment. Quantification of rock glacier dynamics and permafrost in the region can further improve policies related to the reduction in disaster risk and mitigation of associated hazards.

Keywords: Climate change; Cryospheric hazards; Karakoram; Permafrost; Rock glaciers.