Climate Change Threatens Italian Alps’ Biggest Glacier

The Adameil Glacier River, the largest of its kind in Italy's Alps, is slowly succumbing to the effects of climate change, with experts predicting its disappearance in less than a century.

According to Christian Ferrari, the head of the Glacier Rivers Committee at Tridentine Alpinists Society, the Glacier River has lost about 2.7 kilometers since the end of the 19th century. 

In the last five years, the average area loss has been 15 meters per year. However, in the past year alone (2022), the river lost a staggering 139 meters, as reported by France Presse.

Over the past four years, the Italian environmental association "Legambiente" has organized expeditions through the Alps to explore the impact of climate change on glacier rivers.

Like other glacier rivers in the Alps, the Adameil River is suffering from a decline in snowfall, which was 50 percent lower in the previous year.

The decreasing snow cover and longer summers with more heatwaves mean the river has less time to freeze. 

This leads to the glacier river splitting, exposing additional areas to hot air. As a result of the melting ice, rifles, and ammunition boxes used in the past have occasionally been revealed.