4 ms·
The problem with the speed of the melting is that neigter we, nor the nature has time to adapt. For anybody arguing that it has happened before, it did take hun
by rspoerri 3y ago
The problem with the speed of the melting is that neigter we, nor the nature has time to adapt. For anybody arguing that it has happened before, it did take hunderts or thousands of years. In this time plants were able to change theyr location by natural groth and migration. With the speed it is happening now, large areas might loose important plants.
For example the swiss mountains are quite heavily populated. Those areas are often protected from loose rocks using forests. If it gets to hot for a type of tree, they might die. Those protections need to be replaced by safety constructions, which cost millions. Also the construction takes time.
The same thing happens with water reservoirs. In other countries all water in the summer comes from glaciers. If the glaciers are gone, all rivers will dry up.
On the bright side, we currently have negated the next ice age that comes in 10'000 years. We wont get glaciers hunderts of kilometers long all across switzerland. If we survive that long...
- eulgro 3y agoI was surprised to learn the other day that in some parts of the world, a 7ºC rise in 50 years was observed during the Younger Dryas period. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Younger_Dryas https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Younger_Dryas
- rspoerri 3y agoI guess it wasn't the best time to be living in either. Funnily, one of the older stories that is still told today speaks of a bunch of people that get on a boat, and everybody else drowns.
- OrvalWintermute 3y ago> On the bright side, we currently have negated the next ice age that comes in 10'000 years No. We are still coming out of a glacial maximum.
- olalonde 3y ago> The problem with the speed of the melting is that neigter we, nor the nature has time to adapt. It sounds like a theory that could be easily verified since Switzerland already lost 50% of its glaciers. Have there been deaths associated to it? Did rivers dry up? Did forests disappear? Did people lack time to adapt?
- littlestymaar 3y ago> Did forests disappear? Did people lack time to adapt? Tree are dying in a huge number in the Alps due to lack of water, and the wood production industry is still wondering which species to plant instead of the native ones that aren't reaching maturity anymore, so the answer to these two questions is a clear yes.