A study published in Geophysical Research Letters reveals that the glaciers in western Canada, the northwest United States, and the Swiss Alps lost about 12% of their mass between 2021 and 2024, an unprecedented reduction driven by heatwaves, prolonged droughts, and polluting particles that accelerate melting.
The research was led by Brian Menounos, a glaciologist at the University of Northern British Columbia and chief scientist at the Hakai Institute, who warns that the ice loss in this short period doubled the melting rate observed in the previous decade.
“Glacial melting is collapsing. If we thought glaciers would last 50 years, there might only be 30 left”, Menounos alerted.
Extreme Heat and Dark Particles: Factors Enhancing Melting
The study combined aerial and ground observations on 27 glaciers: three in Canada, four in the United States, and twenty in Switzerland, regions where glaciers not only sustain ecosystems and water supply but are also key for tourism and local culture.
Among the main identified factors are:
- Sustained temperature increase and reduced precipitation
- Decrease in albedo: snow and ice dirtied by forest fire ash (North America) and Saharan dust (Switzerland), which increases solar absorption
- Extreme events like 2023, considered the worst wildfire season in Canadian history
At Haig Glacier in the Canadian Rockies, surface darkening was responsible for nearly 40% of mass loss between 2022 and 2023.
Conservative Predictions and Growing Risks
The report highlights a structural weakness in current climate projections: the albedo effect and other physical variables are not fully integrated into glacier loss models, suggesting that future scenarios might be underestimated.
While the contribution of these glaciers to sea-level rise is marginal, their melting alters water availability in dry seasons, threatens river ecosystems, and increases the risk of flooding from unstable glacial lakes.
Glaciers on the Edge: A Call to Plan
Beyond the physical impacts, Menounos poses a cultural and political challenge: how to prepare for a future without glaciers. Mountain communities and decision-makers must anticipate effects on:
- Water security and human supply
- High mountain tourism and local economy
- Geological risk management and territorial adaptation
“Society must begin to consider what it means to lose these ice reserves. Because that future is approaching faster than we think”, the researcher concludes.
