Italy's largest glacier shrinks as scientists predict its demise in less than a century

The Adamello Glacier River, the largest of its kind in the Italian Alps, is experiencing slow but steady destruction due to climate change, with experts predicting its disappearance in less than a century.

According to Christian Ferrari, the head of the Glacial Rivers Committee at "Tridentine Alpine Society," the glacier river has lost about 2.7 kilometers since the late 19th century.

"In the past five years alone, the average area lost by the river has been 15 meters per year. However, the river lost 139 meters in 2022," Ferrari added.

The Italian environmental association "Legambiente" has been organizing annual expeditions through the Alps for the past four years to explore the effects of climate change on glacier rivers.

Similar to other glacier rivers in the Alps, the Adamello River has suffered a decrease in snowfall by 50 percent in the previous year.

The reduced snow cover, coupled with longer summers and more frequent heatwaves, gives the river less time to freeze.

The glacier river experiences crevasses, exposing additional areas to hot air.

The river bears traces of the history of the mountain range that witnessed fierce battles between Italian and Austro-Hungarian fighters during World War I.

Due to the melting ice, rifles and bullet boxes used during that time are now becoming visible.

Marco Giardino, the deputy head of the Italian Glacial Rivers Authority and a professor at the University of Turin, explained, "We explore the past, see the effects of the present, and realize that the trend is not positive because the blocks we see falling today will turn this part of the glacier river into a river covered with debris, which will disrupt its stability."

The annual "expedition," organized by "Legambiente" through the mountains and attended by scientists and environmental activists, has seen a significant number of glacier rivers over the past four years.

Fanda Bonario, responsible for the Alps at Legambiente, commented, "Last year, we wanted to revisit glacier rivers we had seen two years earlier, and we noticed a significant change."

She added, "Last year witnessed drought and heatwaves, but we noticed phenomena we could never have imagined."

The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicts that temperatures in this part of the Alps will rise by between one and three degrees Celsius by 2050 and between three and six degrees by the end of the century.

At this rate, the Adamello Glacier River may disappear before the end of this century.



AFP