La Maladeta Glacier (Pyrenees)
As the planet warms the mountains of Spain are running out of snow. The regions where the altitude is high and human activity is scarce, have become one of the main witnesses of global warming in our country.
In the last century almost 90% of the extension has disappeared, and this retreat of the ice has been accelerating since 1980. If the situation continues the same, in 40 years there could be no glacier left.
The effects of global warming are being felt in the high mountains of the country. The La Maladeta glacier, located in the Pyrenees, has lost a meter in thickness in the last century. During this period, it went from occupying an area of 50 hectares to 23,3. The thickness of the ice sheet has lost eight feet in some areas. Only glacier remains above 3000 meters of altitude.
But why? Why it snows less and less in the north of Spain. According to a study carried out by the Cantabria Meteorology Group (UC), it does so 60% less in winter -eight days- and 50% less in spring -almost four- than at the beginning of the century. Thus, if between five and eight million liters of snow fell in the 60s and 70s, in ten years it has been reduced to 2,65.
In addition, the average temperature has gone from 5 degrees Celsius to more than 8. There has also been a decrease in rainfall, of up to 25%, falling from 16 billion liters to 12, so there has been a decrease of up to 50% in accumulated snow according to the evaluation that Ebro Hydrographic Confederation (CHE) carried out between 1984 and 2014 through the Erhin program.
At this rate, by the year 2060 there may be no glaciers in Spain.