Activity 2.2 – Cryosphere: Pré de Bard Glacier, italy

Pré de Bard Glacier (Cerutti, 1992)

Pré de Bard Glacier (Giovannini, 2008)

Pré de Bard Glacier (Google Earth, 2019)

Problem

Glaciers around the world are melting causing enormous consequences.  The retreat of glaciers is the hydrogeological phenomenon where the glaciers decrease in thickness and surface. It is a process that influences the availability of fresh water for irrigation and for domestic use, excursions in mountain, animals and plants that depend on the melting of the glacier and, in the long term, on the level of the oceans. The phenomenon started in the 1900s because of human activities. The industrial revolution opened to manufacturing production, but also to the increase of greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere. The increasing of greenhouse gasses raised the temperature, causing the ice melting (Hancok, n.d.) It is not just the Arctic ice that is melting. Glaciers have been in continuous withdrawal for almost all the regions of the Alps for years. In Italy, in less than 60 years more than 30 percent of the surface of Italian glaciers is already gone. The loss is about 150 square kilometers from 1850 to 2015 (Paparo, 2015). The pictures presented in this post are pictures of The Pré de Bard glacier. It is in the Mont Blanc, in Val Ferret, Italy. It extends approximately between the altitudes 3500 m and 2180 m (Giovannini, 2008).

Explanation

The retreat of glaciers leads to rising sea level since the melted ice flow into the sea. There are 15 million square kilometers of glaciers on earth. This mass of ice contains 69% of the planet's fresh water and - if it melts completely - the sea level would rise by 70 meters (AGI,2019). That is not all. The rising sea levels “which in turn increases coastal erosion and elevates storm surge as warming air and ocean temperatures create more frequent and intense coastal storms” (Hancok, n.d.). Another consequence of the ice melting is the temperature changing. Ice is able to reflect the sun ray keeping the hearth and the atmosphere cool. When the ice melt, the heat is not reflected anymore, but absorbed by the ocean. This influence warming ocean, water expansion and jet stream changes. Also, since the ice does not contain salt, when it melts and flow into the sea, it changes the salt concentration and, consequently, the ocean’s circulation. The changing in ocean currents has consequences across the entire planet. When the ocean currents change, the weather changes as well. But the weather changing has severe impact on the environment and on humans. In fact, arctic animals are losing their habitat because of glacier retreat while Inuits are experiencing reduced hunting seasons. (Brenner, 2018). According to the National Geographic, Permafrost is a “permanently frozen layer below the Earth’s surface. It consists of soil, gravel, and sand, usually bound together by ice”(NatGeo, 2012). Permafrost is melting with the retreat of glaciers. Since permafrost has also trapped air bacteria and viruses when frozen, its melting is a potential exposure to many diseases now eradicate. It might also release greenhouse gasses trapped inside contributing to global warming (Brenner, 2018).

References:

Agenzia Giornali Italiani. (2019). Quanto si stanno sciogliendo i ghiacciai? Retrieved from https://www.agi.it/fact-checking/scioglimento_ghiacciai-5938772/news/2019-07-31/

Brenner, L. (2019, March 2). How Does Polar Ice Melting Affect the Environment? Retrieved from https://sciencing.com/how-does-polar-ice-melting-affect-the-environment-13400295.html

Giovannini, L. (2008). Pré de Bard 2008. Retrieved from http://app.fondazionemontagnasicura.org/multimedia/crgv/default.asp?principale=32&indice=32_101_102_103_104_105_106_107_108_109_110_112_115_111_113_114_33_117_94_93_91_92_118_119_72_90_88_77_78_82_81_80_75_84_86_85&sezione=96

Giovannini, L. (2010). Le Immagini Storiche. Retrieved from http://app.fondazionemontagnasicura.org/multimedia/crgv/default.asp?principale=32&indice=32_72_75_84_85&sezione=63

Hancock, L. (n.d.). Why are glaciers and sea ice melting? Retrieved from https://www.worldwildlife.org/pages/why-are-glaciers-and-sea-ice-melting

National Geographic Society. (2012, October 9). permafrost. Retrieved from https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/permafrost/

Paparo, A. (2015, May 8). Come stanno i ghiacciai italiani. Retrieved from https://www.wired.it/attualita/2015/05/08/stato-ghiacciai-italia/