Melting glacier: our water in danger - what now?

Melting glacier: our water in danger - what now?

The dramatic loss of glaciers worldwide has far -reaching effects on people's lives, especially with regard to the availability of fresh water. According to a report by the world weather organization (WMO) on the occasion of the first world day of the glaciers on March 21, 2025, Gletscher has lost almost 9,200 gigatons of ice cream since 1976. This corresponds to an ice block in Germany, which is 25 meters thick. These terrifying numbers illustrate the urgency of the topic, especially since the loss of ice also increased the sea level by 18 millimeters, which increases the risk of floods for 200,000 to 300,000 people. The glaciers, together with the ice shields of the Antarctic and Greenlands, hold 70% of global freshwater resources. The WMO emphasizes the need to maintain glaciers because they are of great importance both ecologically, economically and socially.

In the past three years, all 19 glacier regions of the world have recorded losses, although the shrinkage during this period was as dramatic as it has not been since the 1970s. Globally viewed Glacier has lost an average of 5% of their ice mass since 2000. The European Alps and the Pyrenees are particularly affected, where the glaciers have shrunk by 40%.

global glacier loss and its implications

Part of the basic findings on this topic comes from the study "Glacier Mass Balance InterConison Exercise" (Glambie), which was carried out at the University of Zurich. This study shows that the melting glacier has increased significantly since 2000. While an annual loss of around 2000 billion tons of ice was recorded between 2000 and 2011, this loss increased by 36%in 2012 to 2023. This accelerated melt leads to regional differences, whereby the glaciers on antarctic and subantarctic islands show only a loss of about 2%, while in Central Europe a loss of up to 39% was observed.

The Glambie study has compiled a total of 233 estimates of regional glacier mass changes, which come from around 450 different data sources and were organized by 35 research teams. This comprehensive analysis not only provides information about regional trends, but also about annual fluctuations and differences between the observation methods used.

dangers for humanity and solutions

The loss of glacier mass has dramatic consequences. Scientists warn that dwindling glaciers endanger freshwater supply for almost 2 billion people, especially in regions such as central Asia and the Andes. The increase in sea level, which is accelerated by the glacier melting, is responsible for hikes of coastal communities and erosions that threaten both humans and ecosystems.

To slow down the melt, it is recommended to drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions and CO2 emissions. International climate protection agreements emphasize the importance of limiting global warming to a maximum of 1.5 ° C in order to avoid catastrophic ice loss. Innovative approaches, such as artificial ice reservoirs in Ladakh and glacier ceilings in Switzerland, are some of the measures that suggest experts to slow down the local melting and protect the water resources.

Overall, it is clear that the loss of glacier mass is not only an ecological catastrophe, but could also have profound consequences for human civilization. The measures to reduce climate change must be implemented immediately to alleviate the consequences of this development.