The Impact Of Melting Glaciers On The Environment

Ehrlich says, “The retreat and disappearance of glaciers-means we’re burning libraries and damaging the planet…” (89). The author includes this deep thought burning quote to the reader to explain that there is a problem with the loss of all this environmental information these ice masses hold. Ehrlich makes this inference to repulse and further engage the reader into this natural disaster. Then follows step by step the effects melted glaciers would have upon the Earth. She starts with the Albedo effect, continues to the loss of ice and snow, and finishes with, “our sources of fresh water will disappear” (90). This addresses the effects aspect, but also appeals to audience, due to the fact that humans cannot live without freshwater. The author uses the human items of an air conditioner and sponge to dramatize the consequences of contraction glaciers.

The global mean surface temperature is projected to increase by around 0.3 to 4.8 degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial values by the end of the 21th century. Therefore, if we continue to not check the anthropogenic emissions, the increase may be around 8 to 10 degrees Celsius, which is incredibly damaging to various ecosystems internationally. It is difficult to determine the possible aftereffects of the ice sheets melting because the equilibrium-response timescales of them is longer than both the atmosphere and ocean. The ice-sheet/ice-shelf model shows that if the atmospheric warming increases 1.5 to 2 degrees Celsius above the present temperatures, the Antarctic ice shelves will collapse and trigger a centennial scale response –a never-ending

Collaborating on an international level remains important for conducting ice patch research due to the rapid melting of alpine ice and decay of valuable artifacts. The work conducted for this thesis included cooperation from Parks Canada. Ice patch research was conducted not only on the U.S. side of the international border, but also on the Canadian side of Chilkoot Pass. Parks Canada allowed me and KLGO archaeologists to use the Canadian warden cabin at the summit of Chilkoot Pass as a basecamp for the ice patch study (Figure 1.4). Working between two sovereign countries emphasizes the matter of climate change as a global issue and the importance in maintaining international relations. Maintaining international relations benefits the scientific community on a global scale and provides significant research opportunities.

In the essay, “Global Warming is Eroding Glacial Ice,” Andrew C. Revkin argues that global warming is the primary cause for many of the world’s natural disasters; including flash floods, climate change, and the melting of the polar ice caps. He includes multiple accounts of expert testimony as well as a multitude amount of facts and statistics to support his theory that global warming is a threat to the world. However, in the essay “Cold Comfort for ‘Global Warming’,” Phillip Stott makes the complete opposite argument. He argues that global warming is nothing to be worried about and the melting of the polar icecaps is caused by the interglacial period we are currently in. After reading both of these essays and doing

This problem could mark either the end of human civilizations or mark the beginning of the next era of human development. It would decide on our species survival, whether there will be another mass extinction like the one 65 million years ago. The question is “How might the breaking up and melting of continental ice in Greenland and the Antarctic affect Canada’s coastline?”. In the following sections, we have gathered an abundance of information from a variety of sources from which we will discuss, and analyze. We will find out how this data can help us understand the effect of melting glaciers on Canada’s coastline, as well as how and what we could do to stop or slow it down.

Whether it’s useful or useless. Because some day it will be gone forever and we will confront the problems of losing it. The evidences to support the author’s opinion is “ Snow and ice are the Earth’s built-in air conditioner-crucial to the health of the planet. Without winter’s white mantle, Earth will become a heat sponge. As heat escalates, all our sources of fresh water will disappear”. The quote explains the important role of glacier to keep the earth cool down, and deflect the heat from the sun,

Humans have been interacting with the Arctic tundra for centuries now. They have used the land to explore and race, for example, the infamous race between Admunsen and Scott to the South pole. However, the human civilisation on the Arctic tundra have had their implications, both severe and light. Humans have slaughtered whales and seals since very early days, for food as well as commercial and self-profiting purposes. The most recent and paramount problem is global warming and pollution, which is harming the Arctic Tundra far more than the sealing and whaling ever did.

Throughout the 20th Century, Glacier Melting has had a great impact all over the world. Glaciers are large sheets of snow and ice that are found on land. While melting glaciers are caused by global warming, glacier melting also impact the temperatures across the globe. Alot of things is threatened by glacier melting. There are many causes to Glacier Melting.

The Ice Chronicles is an in-depth look at one scientists story of drilling for ice cores in arctic climates. The book also describes how the ice cores are drilled and how the ice cores are processed. The team of scientists use the ice cores and the chemical composition of them to get a better grasp of past climates and climate changes. The main drilling mentioned is the Greenland Ice Sheet Project that was overseen by many agencies and supported by multiple higher-education institutions. The project took many seasons and the teamwork of many top scientists from many top universities and research organizations. The data recovered from the thousands of meters of drilled ice contained the answers to many questions pertaining to the climate of now and the way the world climate once was. The drill was positioned at the very top of a glacier in a spot that was studied closely to make sure the project could yield the most accurate data for observation. The project took place in the early 1990’s and was completed by the 2000’s, but the data collected will help serve the world population for lifetimes ahead. The research conducted proves that humans have had some impact on the global climate, and also proves that the world goes through natural climate changes that last longer than human population has ever inhabited Earth.

The world is in trouble, we were given an entire planet and we are slowly killing it; this is demonstrated to us in Sharon Olds’ “Geography”. Thanks to an increase in our carbon emissions, we have started global warming. The polar ice caps are melting, while more and more animals are joining the endangered species list. Poverty is an ever present danger; people are living in squalor on the streets. The percentage of the population that is homeless is only increasing; these people are going hungry and cannot help themselves. This can be caused by or lead to substance abuse. In order to cope with the situation they are in, whether it is homelessness or just the struggle for life, they turn to mind splitting and body numbing substances. This only creates more problems like increasing their own poverty, and causing them to do things they would not normally do. Olds uses intense imagery to show us the diseases we are suffering from; while biblical allusions show her desire for the world to be destroyed and recreated better than before.

The facts presented about the fast rate at which glaciers are wearing out are really scaring. With glaciers like Columbia Glacier melting at an alarming rate of 80 feet per day and it current thickness only standing at 1,300 feet after wearing down for the last 5 years, there is reason for humanity to be wary of the trends the world warmth is taking. The increasing temperatures are causing all these occurrences which are affecting both humans and animals.

The reading states that there were three theories that scientists proposed to be what caused the little ice age, and provides three reasons of support. However, the professor opposes this by saying unfortunately these three theories are outdated and scientists have been found new proposals, and refutes each of the author`s reasons.

Ehrlich on the other hand, has a very different approach to the way she talks about the issue. She uses a lot of sensory images and personal experience. She mentally paints a picture for us to see what is happening. She uses very intriguing vocabulary to describe the massive glaciers. In her essay, she uses subtle personification to describe the way the ice stands. Ehrlich talks about the way people go to see the glaciers fall and fail, but they are not interested in the strength it takes for them to hold themselves together. She makes an interesting statement of how glaciers are historians and archivists of our world. She describes how they hold everything from dust, to pollen and even gasses. This helps our world to look back and be able to see the way that the environment is changing over the years. She also makes a reference that the deterioration of the glaciers is a result of our “…smokestack and tailpipe society” (271). This seemed to be a harsh statement towards society as a whole. Without the new technologies, buildings, cars and everything that is grouped in with being considered a smokestack society, our world would not be anywhere near where it is today.

The ice cap helps balance the amount of water in the ocean. Due to climate change, the ice cap is no longer stagnant, instead it is increasingly melting. This cause floods in several coastal countries and territory. Due to elevated temperatures from global warming, drought will increase in some places. In addition to the negative impact climate change has on our environment, it also detrimental to our health. Some of the health issues which rise from climate change include mental health/stress, foodborne, Vector-borne, water-borne diseases, and weather-related morbidity and mortality. Climate change has also been link to mental health disorder such as suicidal behavior. Floods from climate change vector borne diseases such as malaria foodborne,

The world warmed by about 0.7°C in the 20th century. Every year in this century has been warmer than all but one in the last century (1998). If carbon-dioxide levels were magically to stabilize where they are now (almost 390 parts per million, 40% more than before the industrial revolution) the world would probably warm by a further half a degree or so as the ocean, which is slow to change its temperature, caught up. But CO2 levels continue to rise. All this affect the ice pack in the Arctic. As temperature rises, ice melts. This causes many problems.