Vienna — All but two of Austria’s 96 glaciers have retreated in the past two years, monitors in the alpine country reported Friday, a “dramatic growth” that highlights the impact of climate change.
A recent report from the Austrian Alpine Club shows that the Alpiner Ferner in the western Tyrol region and the Stübacher Sonblickies in Salzburg to the east face the biggest losses, each with more than 100 meters of retreat (about 330 feet). The average retreat is more than 20 meters (65 ft).
“The breakup of the glacier tongue is also progressing on the Pasteurz, Austria’s largest glacier, making the effects of climate change visible,” the club said in its 2024 and 2025 report.
The report, “reconfirms a long-term trend: glaciers in Austria continue to shrink significantly in length, area and volume.”
The retreat of glaciers in Europe has wide-ranging implications for drinking water, power generation, agriculture, infrastructure, recreational activities, the alpine landscape, and more.
Neighboring Switzerland, home to the most glaciers in Europe, has seen a similar retreat of its glaciers in recent years, which has been reported around the world.
Poor weather conditions, including low snowfall, and warm temperatures, including an unusually hot June last year – about 5 degrees Celsius (9 degrees Fahrenheit) above average – have contributed to the decline, the club said.
“The glaciers are melting — and with each new report, the urgency increases,” said club vice president Nicole Slupetzky. “It’s no longer a question of whether we can still save the glaciers in their old form; it’s about mitigating the effects ourselves.”
Such changes in the Alps should serve as a “wake-up call” to policymakers and the public on its behavior, the club said.
It said the current figure was lower than the previous two years, but was the eighth-biggest retreat in 135 years of measurements.
(Tags to be translated)Water Quality(T)Climate Change(T)Climate and Environment(T)Glaciers(T)World News(T)General News(T)Article(T)131031551
