Climate change is known to be increasing temperatures around the globe. This is causing the glaciers and the poles to melt. An obvious example of this happening is the fracture that has occurred in the Gray glacier, located in the Torres del Paine National Park in Chile.
The melting of glaciers has serious consequences for sea level and, therefore, for coastal cities. What effects can the Gray glacier fracture cause?
Climate change and melting glaciers
Before starting with the Gray Glacier issue, a small misconception about the melting of the polar ice caps and rising sea levels needs to be cleared up. It is true that this causes a rise in sea level, but it does not work this way. It must be taken into account that an iceberg that floats in the sea, like the ones at the North Pole, already occupies a volume in water, even greater than the one it will occupy when it returns to liquid state. The melting of the North Pole it will not cause the sea level to rise.
On the other hand, the glaciers in Antarctica are located on top of a continental shelf, so when they melt, the volume of water that the ocean will contain will increase.
Gray Glacier Fracture
This week a large block of ice broke off the Gray Glacier. The ice block has a dimension of 350x380m and, for 12 years, it has been losing a volume equivalent to 900 cubic meters.
Climate change is the strongest global problem that humanity is facing. 78% of Chileans They believe that the fight against climate change should be prioritized over the economic development of the country.
“Climate change is happening now and it is happening here. It is something that Chileans are very clear about, ”said the president when she opened the Forum of Mayors on Climate Change, organized by the Chilean Network of Municipalities on Climate Change and the non-profit organization Adapt Chile.
Although many people do not consider it important, it is key that local governments take measures to alleviate climate change so that, from the local, to the global. Small actions in a limited scope are those that finally act throughout the globe.
What can a city council do against climate change?
The ruler of Chile, Michelle Bachelet, has inaugurated an event in which it is intended to publicize the actions that municipalities can carry out to stop climate change at a local scale. The policies that are proposed during the event can be launched, designed and implemented in the municipalities of Chile.
This event will address important issues that affect the entire planet, such as monitoring the Paris Agreement, actions for adaptation to climate change and compliance with the objectives of the Climate Action Agenda.
Fractures such as the one in the Gray Glacier will be part of an inevitable and irreversible global warming scenario. As mentioned before, the main affected by this phenomenon of rising sea levels will be coastal cities due to an increased risk of flooding.
The most immediate negative effect that the fracture of this glacier has is the difficulty it causes in navigation.
A negative balance can be found in all the glaciers in the world. That is to say, More ice is being lost by melting than is being gained by accumulation of snow. This trend is not only affecting the Gray glacier, but there are glaciers that have lost up to thirteen kilometers in little more than three decades.
This trend will continue every year if global warming is not stopped.