Thousands of glaciers will melt every year by mid-century, study finds | Climate crisis news

Scientists estimate that up to 4,000 glaciers could melt each year if global warming is not controlled.

The world could lose thousands of glaciers every year over the coming decades if global warming is not curbed, leaving only a fraction by the end of the century, scientists warn.

A scientific study published Monday in Nature Climate Change warns that unless governments act now, the planet could reach a stage of “peak glacier extinction” by mid-century, with up to 4,000 melting each year.

There are around 200,000 glaciers left in the world and around 750 disappear each year. That rate could more than quintuple if global temperatures rise 4 degrees Celsius (7.2 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels and accelerate global warming, according to the report, which predicts only 18,288 glaciers will remain by the end of the century.

Even if governments meet their commitments to limit warming to 1.5°C (2.7°F) under the Paris Agreement, the world could end up losing 2,000 glaciers per year by 2041. At this rate, just over half of the planet’s glaciers would be gone by 2100.

This best-case scenario seems unlikely. The United Nations Environment Program already warned last month that warming was on track to exceed 1.5°C in the coming years. It predicts that even if countries keep the promises they made in their climate action plans, the planet will warm by 2.3°C to 2.5°C (4.1°F to 4.5°F) by the end of the century.

Monday’s study was released at the close of the UN’s International Year of Glacier Conservation, with findings intended to “highlight the urgency of ambitious climate policy.”

“The difference between the loss of 2,000 and 4,000 glaciers per year by mid-century is determined by short-term policies and societal decisions made today,” the study says.

Co-author Matthias Huss, glacier expert at ETH Zurich, participated in the symbolic funeral of the Pizol glacier in the Swiss Alps in 2019.

“The glacier loss we’re talking about here is more than just a scientific concern. It really affects us,” he said.