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Andermatt under wraps
Swiss technicians are to use a special insulating foam to wrap
up a glacier that has been shrinking under the summer sun, the ice-field
receding by about five metres a year.
Carlo Danioth, in charge of the slopes at the Andermatt resort in
central Switzerland, says the Gurschen glacier is to be partially
covered with 3000 square metres of PVC foam from the beginning of
May.
Mr Danioth says the aim is to halt the melting of the glacier, a
phenomenon that has been attributed to global warming. "If the trial
is a success, we'll wrap the other part of the glacier too," he
said.
Ice-loss accelerating
A study published last year by Zurich University estimated that
the country's glaciers had lost about a fifth of their surface area
over the past 15 years. The study, carried out using satellite data,
also found that the rate of ice-loss was accelerating.
A number of other Swiss ski resorts are reported to be considering
similar measures.
[Source: ABCnewsonline]
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