Today was yet another busy day as part of my study abroad trip to Iceland. One of today’s stops was a visit to the Sólheimajökull glacier. This glacier was very beautiful; you could see volcanic ash create patterns in the dark blue ice.
Unfortunately, this glacier has been experiencing significant retreat due to global warming, so severe that the runoff from this glacier has created a lake at the base of the glacier that is almost 90 meters deep. This causes several problems for the local community. Firstly, the melting glacier and its resulting runoff create a lot of water that has to go somewhere. This runoff water can possibly flood nearby neighborhoods. Furthermore, this water must go somewhere eventually, and will make its way to the sea, further increasing the rise in sea levels which has already affected many coastal populations. Another issue is the effect on the species that rely on this glacier for the arctic environment. Without it, their habitats will be destroyed, and may lead to a significant decrease in these populations.
In order to slow this glacial retreat and global warming overall, it would be possible to investigate several carbon offset options. The promotion of reforestation programs could result in enough vegetation that would be present to absorb carbon dioxide and decrease the levels of this greenhouse gas. It could also be possible to investigate several geoengineering options, one of them being a method to artificially shield the ice from solar radiation in order to directly prevent the glacier from melting.
Swanson School of Engineering 