According to a new International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development report, the Hindu Kush Himalaya has experienced record low snow for the third year running. This raises serious water security concerns for almost two billion people across 12 major river basins.
The Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) region has recorded its lowest snow persistence in 23 years, marking the third straight year of below-normal snow levels, according to the newly released Snow Update Report 2025 from the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD).
Snow persistence – the amount of time snow remains on the ground after falling – dropped by 23.6 percent across the region, a sharp decline that threatens water security for the nearly two billion people reliant on 12 major river basins fed by Himalayan snowmelt.
On average, seasonal snowmelt contributes around 25 percent of the total annual runoff of these rivers, with higher dependence in the western basins. Reduced snow cover means reduced river runoff and increased early-summer water stress – a growing concern for downstream communities already experiencing intensifying heat waves.
“Carbon emissions have already locked in an irreversible course of recurrent snow anomalies in the HKH,” said Pema Gyamtsho, ICIMOD Director General. “To tackle this regional snow crisis and the challenges it creates for long-term food, water, and energy resilience, we urgently need to embrace a paradigm shift toward science-based, forward-looking policies and foster renewed regional cooperation for transboundary water management and emissions mitigation.”
Monitoring a 23-year timeseries (2003 to 2025) of basin-scale snow persistence during the snow season between November and March, the report shows recurrent seasonal deficits coupled with severe yearly fluctuations that have become increasingly marked over the last five years. Among the most alarming declines in snow persistence recorded in 2025 were in the Mekong Basin, which at -51.9 percent threatens to disrupt agriculture and hydropower, and the Salween Basin, which was down to a low of -48.3 percent. The Tibetan Plateau, meanwhile, recorded +92.4 percent in 2022 before falling to -29.1 percent in 2025, highlighting the plateau’s climate sensitivity.
Commenting on these findings, lead report author Sher Muhammad emphasized the need for localized action: “We are observing such deficit situations occurring in continuous succession. This is an alarming trend. While our findings give a broad picture across the region, each must act based on the specific conditions of their river basins, particularly where seasonal snow melt is the major water source.”
ICIMOD urges governments to adopt basin-level adaptive water management, invest in seasonal water storage infrastructure, and integrate snow anomaly data into national water strategies for hydropower, agriculture, and allied sectors.
As snow continues to decline across the Himalayas, experts warn that failure to act could lead to worsening droughts, crop failures, and energy shortages in one of the world’s most climate-sensitive regions.
Cover image by Peter Freitag.
