4 out of 5 glaciers may disappear by 2100 if fossil fuel use continues: Study

The study noted that even in a best-case scenario, where global average temperature increases are limited to 1.5 °C relative to pre-industrial levels, more than 25 percent of glacier mass would be lost. It said that about 50 per cent of the number of glaciers is estimated to disappear.

The study said that although most of these glaciers are small, their disappearance could have an impact on local hydrology, tourism, glacier hazards and cultural values.

Small glaciated regions such as central Europe and western Canada and the US would be disproportionately affected by a temperature increase of more than 2 °C, the study said. At an increase of 3 °C, glaciers in these regions almost completely disappear.

Even if the rate of emissions to the environment is cut today, it will not eliminate the greenhouse gases present in the environment. Even after completely curbing emissions, it would take 30 to 100 years to be reflected in the rate of glacier mass loss, the study said.

The study by David Rouse, assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, US, details how the models account for different types of glaciers, including tidewater and debris-covered glaciers.

While tidewater glaciers refer to those that terminate in the ocean, debris-covered glaciers are those that are covered with sand, rocks, and boulders.

Earlier work by David Ross has shown that the thickness and distribution of debris cover can have a positive or negative effect on the rate of glacial melt, depending on their thickness.

(with agency inputs)