Major glaciers including Mount Kilimanjaro and Dolomites to disappear by 2050, UN report says

Mount Kilimanjaro’s ice cap is among some of the world-famous glaciers predicted to disappear by 2050 due to global warming, according to a UNESCO report.

The United Nations cultural agency UNESCO monitors around 18,600 glaciers across 50 of its World Heritage sites.

In a new report, it says a third of those glaciers are set to disappear in the next three decades – including those in the Dolomites in Italy and the Yosemite and Yellowstone parks in the US – whatever the temperature rise scenario.

UNESCO predicts that around 50% of World Heritage glaciers could almost entirely disappear by 2100 – while some may be possible to preserve by keeping global temperature rise below 1.5C (2.7F).

World Heritage glaciers as defined by UNESCO make up around 10% of the world’s glacier areas overall.

They include some of the world’s best-known glaciers, which are gradually melting in very public view as they are focal points for global tourism.

The report’s lead author Tales Carvalho said that World Heritage glaciers lose around 58 billion tonnes of ice every year on average.

This is equivalent to the total annual volume of water used in France and Spain together – and contributes to almost 5% of the global observed sea-level rise.

Carvalho added that the single most important protective measure to prevent major glacier retreat worldwide would be to drastically reduce carbon emissions.

Agencies