Glaciers have historically determined the boundary between Italy and Switzerland in the Alps.
Glaciers have historically determined the boundary between Italy and Switzerland in the Alps. Now, their melting has led the two countries to redraw a small section of their border over the past year and revived concerns of how climate change might impact mountain communities around the world in the coming years.
Glaciers form the borders of many countries—ranging from those in the Andes that separate Chile from Argentina to the Siachen Glacier, which marks the northern point of the Line of Control in the disputed Kashmir region between India and Pakistan. Glaciers in the Alps define the borders between Italy and a number of countries, including Switzerland and Austria.
However, climate change is leading global temperatures to rise, and high-mountain areas are warming even more rapidly than the rest of the planet, with temperatures in the Alps rising twice as fast as the global average. Because of increased glacier and snow melt, many of the borders established by natural features for centuries no longer align with those features, sometimes fueling intense border disputes between nations.
Read More at: Columbia Climate School
Photo Credit: scozzy via Pixabay
