Glaciers in 50 iconic UNESCO World Heritage sites will be gone by 2050

Humanity may not be able to savour the sights of some of the world’s iconic glaciers as they will disappear due to climate change by 2050, according to a new analysis by UNESCO. A new study by UNESCO, in partnership with the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, says that glaciers in a third of 50 World Heritage sites are condemned to disappear by 2050, regardless of efforts to limit temperature increases. These include glaciers in the Yellowstone National Park in the United States seen here. Photo: iStock

The study, titled ‘World heritage glaciers: sentinels of climate change’, found that the glaciers at the 50 sites had been retreating at an accelerated rate since 2000 due to CO2 emissions, which are warming temperatures. The glaciers of Mount Kilimanjaro, seen here, as well as Mount Kenya, will also be gone by 2050. Photo: iStock

The glaciers are currently losing 58 billion tonnes of ice every year – equivalent to the combined annual water use of France and Spain – and are responsible for nearly five per cent of observed global sea-level rise. Mount Everest, located on the Nepal-Tibet border, will also lose its glaciers. Here, mountaineers are seen on Everest’s summit. Photo: iStock.

“This report is a call to action. Only a rapid reduction in our CO2 emissions levels can save glaciers and the exceptional biodiversity that depends on them. COP27 will have a crucial role to help find solutions to this issue,” said Audrey Azoulay, UNESCO’s director-general, said in a statement. Here, Pyrenees National Park, straddling the Franco-Spanish border is shown. It will also lose its glaciers by 2050. Photo: iStock

Glaciers in Peru’s Huascaran National Park, seen here, have shrunk by 15 per cent since 2000, according to the report. Photo: iStock