Experts warn rising temperatures, unusual rainfall threaten Afghanistan's environment and health

KABUL (Afghan Verified) - Environmental and health experts warn that rising temperatures and unusual rainfall patterns are accelerating glacier melt, reducing snow cover, drying soils, increasing land erosion and triggering more frequent dust storms across Afghanistan, while posing serious risks to public health.

They emphasized that Afghanistan has contributed little to global climate change but remains one of the most vulnerable countries to its impacts, requiring international cooperation and local adaptation measures. Global warming has caused droughts in some regions and storms, heavy rainfall and floods in others, while accelerating glacier melt and raising sea levels. Studies indicate climate change may also increase underground risks such as earthquakes and volcanic activity.

In May 2025, the Food and Agriculture Organisation reported that snowfall in Afghanistan reached a 25-year low at the start of the 2025/26 winter season, posing a serious threat to agriculture and livestock that rely on melting snow for water. United Nations statistics show Afghanistan faced one of its most severe droughts in recent years.

Environmental expert Najibullah Sadid said the effects of climate change are clearly visible in Afghanistan, with the average annual temperature rise in the country and Central Asia around two degrees Celsius higher than the global average. He noted that rising temperatures have reduced snowfall, replaced increasingly by rain that leads to floods and rapid runoff due to inadequate infrastructure. Studies indicate about 14 percent of Afghanistan's glaciers disappeared between 1990 and 2015.

Sadid said higher temperatures accelerate snow cover loss, cause excessive snowmelt floods, reduce vegetation, dry soils and intensify erosion, making dust storms the third major environmental threat after drought and floods. He added that water shortages force use of contaminated sources, increasing water-related diseases.

Given limited resources, Sadid said mitigation is confined to household and village levels, such as environmental protection and water management. He urged adaptation measures like using protective equipment during dust storms, avoiding extreme heat exposure, rainwater collection, building reservoirs and planting trees, while calling on the global community to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Climate expert Syed Mohammad Sulaimankhail described climate change as a global phenomenon with widespread damaging consequences across Afghanistan, where the population is already paying financial and human costs.