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Glacier Loss Threatens Water Security, Mountain Ecosystems
(MENAFN) Mountain glaciers are vanishing from the planet because of climate change, scientists report, based on the newest research. Experts caution that this decline endangers the water resources of millions and increases the risk of both land- and weather-related disasters.
The United Nations has designated 2025 as the International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation. This year’s International Mountain Day, observed on Dec. 11, emphasizes the theme: “Glaciers matter for water, food and livelihoods in mountains and beyond.”
The most recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Assessment Report indicates that between 2000 and 2020, mountain glaciers lost an average of 267 gigatons of ice annually.
Additionally, the World Glacier Monitoring Service (WGMS) 2024 report confirmed that 2023 experienced the fastest recorded rate of glacier loss in history.
Projections under current IPCC scenarios paint a bleak picture for mountain glaciers. Even if global warming is limited to 1.5C, half of these glaciers are expected to disappear by the century’s end.
A 2C rise could result in 60%–70% loss, while a 3C increase would lead to the disappearance of nearly all mountain glaciers worldwide.
Speaking to a news agency, Professor Orhan Ince of Istanbul Technical University, who directs the TerrArctic Mega Grant Project and leads the university’s Microbial Ecology Group, cautioned that high-mountain ecosystems are experiencing rapid and irreversible changes.
He attributed these transformations to global warming, altered precipitation patterns, and increasingly severe extreme weather events.
The United Nations has designated 2025 as the International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation. This year’s International Mountain Day, observed on Dec. 11, emphasizes the theme: “Glaciers matter for water, food and livelihoods in mountains and beyond.”
The most recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Assessment Report indicates that between 2000 and 2020, mountain glaciers lost an average of 267 gigatons of ice annually.
Additionally, the World Glacier Monitoring Service (WGMS) 2024 report confirmed that 2023 experienced the fastest recorded rate of glacier loss in history.
Projections under current IPCC scenarios paint a bleak picture for mountain glaciers. Even if global warming is limited to 1.5C, half of these glaciers are expected to disappear by the century’s end.
A 2C rise could result in 60%–70% loss, while a 3C increase would lead to the disappearance of nearly all mountain glaciers worldwide.
Speaking to a news agency, Professor Orhan Ince of Istanbul Technical University, who directs the TerrArctic Mega Grant Project and leads the university’s Microbial Ecology Group, cautioned that high-mountain ecosystems are experiencing rapid and irreversible changes.
He attributed these transformations to global warming, altered precipitation patterns, and increasingly severe extreme weather events.
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