Italian glacier unwrapped
Monday September 13, 2010 - Email this article to a friend

Resort officials claim it may have saved a surface depth of around 1m. That's 90,000 square metres of ice.

The reason it was put down was not so much to preserve the glacier itself, but so the T-bar can continue to run on it in the same fashion.

Similar strategies have been carried our in other ski resorts in recent years including Andermatt and Verbier in Switzerland.

In Verbier it was done at the bottom of the Mont Fort run on the way down to La Chaux to prevent people having to walk uphill to continue with the run.

It had limited success and the idea was abandoned. Part of the covering can now be seen flapping in the wind during the summer.

Already the main T-bar on the glacier at Mont Fort has had to close due to the retreat of the glacier.

At Presena though officials are claiming success and looking forward to the coming season that should start towards the end of the month if the snows come.

It is estimated that 70% of the alpine glaciers will disappear with the next few decades if the temperature rises continue.

The one thing that is for certain though is that covering the alpine glaciers is not a practical and widespread solution to the problem.

See this PlanetSKI video below on the shrinking glaciers, made last summer on the glaciers above Saas-Fee.

For the spirit of the mountains

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