Western Canadian glaciers melting twice as fast as they did a decade ago, research shows

Brenna Owen · The Canadian Press

· Posted: Jun 25, 2025 9:07 PM EDT | Last Updated: 7 hours ago

Researchers accidental some glaciers in Western Canada and the United States mislaid 12 per cent of their wide from 2021 to 2024, doubling melt rates compared to the erstwhile decade.

The probe led by University of Northern British Columbia prof Brian Menounos says debased snowfall accumulation implicit winter, early-season vigor waves, and prolonged lukewarm and adust spells were contributing factors.

It says impurities specified arsenic ash from terrible wildfire seasons person besides "darkened" glaciers, causing them to sorb much vigor and triggering a feedback loop that volition pb to continued nonaccomplishment unless the crystal is covered by caller snow.

The study, published successful the peer-reviewed diary Geophysical Research Letters this week, examined glaciers in Western Canada and the United States, excluding Alaska and Yukon, arsenic good arsenic Switzerland, where glaciers lost 13 per cent of their wide implicit the aforesaid period.

The probe missive says glaciers in some regions mislaid wide doubly arsenic accelerated arsenic they did betwixt 2010 and 2020.

"Unfortunately, successful the past 4 years, we've seen yet different doubling of however overmuch h2o we're losing from our glaciers annually," helium told CBC Radio West host Sarah Penton.

To marque the point, helium said the yearly nonaccomplishment is astir equivalent to the entirety of B.C.'s Okanagan Lake — oregon the beds of a cardinal pick-up trucks.

LISTEN | Menounous outlines the interaction of glacier loss: 

Menounos says clime alteration and its effects, including vigor waves and changing snowfall patterns, are draining the "bank account" of caller h2o that glaciers contain.

"Doubling the magnitude of h2o that's mislaid from those glaciers, we're benignant of stealing from the future," said Menounos, who is besides the Canada Research Chair in glacier change. 

"We are conscionable pulling and pulling distant and making that slope relationship person to zero and possibly adjacent negative. We're not replenishing these glaciers," helium said.

The probe combined aerial surveys with ground-based observations of three glaciers in Western Canada, four glaciers in the United States and 20 successful Switzerland.

The investigation shows that betwixt 2021 and 2024, those glaciers experienced their highest rates of nonaccomplishment since monitoring began 60 years ago, Menounos says.

The probe missive says that successful Western Canada and the United States, achromatic c doubled aft astir 2010, reaching the highest level of deposition successful 2023 — coinciding with a terrible wildfire play across B.C. and Canada.

The survey did not see circumstantial information relating to wildfire ash connected each glacier, but Menounos says immoderate darker worldly volition sorb much vigor and heighten melting.

The researchers did zero successful connected the Haig Glacier in the Canadian Rockies, uncovering the debased reflectivity of the crystal contributed to 17 per cent of an unprecedented nonaccomplishment of wide successful 2022 and 2023. Summer vigor had the top effect, liable for 46 per cent of the loss, the missive says.

Current modelling for glaciers often doesn't see wildfire ash and different processes that could accelerate rates of nonaccomplishment successful the future, Menounos added.

"We deliberation that wildfire volition proceed to play an important role, and surely we request amended carnal models to task however these glaciers are apt to change."

WATCH | How melting glaciers volition interaction the world's h2o supply: 

Glaciers across the survey country are projected to mostly vanish by the extremity of the century, adjacent nether mean clime alteration scenarios. Only immoderate of the largest glaciers and icefields are expected to beryllium beyond 2100, the probe missive says.

Swiss glaciers represent astir 55 per cent of the full measurement of cardinal European glaciers, and findings determination whitethorn beryllium applied crossed the Alps, the missive notes.

From 2000 to 2023, the missive says Earth's glaciers collectively mislaid wide astatine a complaint of astir 273 gigatonnes per year, accounting for astir one-fifth of observed sea-level rise. One gigatonne represents 1 cubic kilometre of water.

The probe missive published Wednesday follows a 2021 survey published successful the peer-reviewed diary Nature that found glaciers outside the Greenland and Antarctic crystal sheets mislaid wide betwixt 2010 and 2019 astatine treble the complaint they did successful the archetypal decennary of this century. Menounos contributed to that study.

"The mode to possibly bring immoderate of the smallest glaciers back is, sometime successful the future, with reduced greenhouse state emissions," helium said.

"It's a planetary problem, and it does necessitate input from each countries."