Erosion in the Alps due to Climate Change

Erosion is always a large problem in mountainous reigns. In the recent decade climbers have begun complaining about year round rock falls on the north face of the Eiger, which wasn’t an issue when it was first climbed in 1838. There has also been multiple massive rock falls in the past decade: in 2004, three boulders in the Dolomites in Northern Italy came loose and blocked a trail and in 2006, a rock the size of the Empire State Building broke off the Eiger.

There is also evidence from glacial records that European precipitation is strongly linked to changes in the climates global mean temperature. In 2002 and 2005, there was an abnormal amount of storms and flooding. This has made people worry that erosion from runoff may speed up the erosion of the Alps and reek havoc on the locals. However there is no long-term trend towards higher precipitation in the Alps. http://www.unige.ch/climate/Publications/Beniston/GRL2006.pdf


ClimChAlp has created a map of the intensity of soil erosion in the Alps, presently and in the future using the RUSLE model. http://eusoils.jrc.ec.europa.eu/library/themes/erosion/ClimChalp/


The Causes
The main reason for the current rock fall issues is that, with the receding glaciers and snowlines, rocks and dirt that used to be held in place by snow and ice is now falling off the steep slopes. In addition these areas which used to be eternally frozen, or at least rarly thoughed out, are now thawing and freezing multiple times per year, so the ice is prying the rock apart.

What's being done
The Action Plan on Climate Change in the Alps as adopted by the tenth Alpine Conference has 24 objectives in 9 strategic areas.

1. Spatial and land planning
-Ensure efficient space management, promote urban densification
-Promote CO2 efficient urbanisation and planning
-Promote an integrated approach to adapt Alpine space to new climatic conditions and more particularly to:
* Better control natural hazards and limit their consequences
* Ensure sustainable development in terms of housing and economic activities
2. Energy: heating energy, a key sector in the Alpine space
-Significantly reduce CO2 emissions
-Promote the use of renewable energy sources
3.Transport: shift traffic towards more eco and climate-friendly means of transportation
-Significantly reduce CO2 emissions linked to transports
4. Tourism
-Reduce CO2 emissions produced by tourist activities and ensure travel professionals offer the option of sustainable transports
-Promote Alpine holidays offers that are «climate neutral »
Adapt winter tourism and diversify the tourism offer
5. Enhancement of mountain forests and development of forestry
-Favour the adaptation of forest stands to climate change by keeping the Alpine forests in a good ecological state and by increasing their biodiversity
-Develop forestry so that wood can be used as a material and as an energy source that would benefit the economic development of local populations
-Reinforce the role played by the forests in preventing natural hazards
6. Preservation of biodiversity
-Create an ecological continuum in order to facilitate the migration of Alpine fauna and flora species
-Preserve the biodiversity of protected areas and maintain ecosystem services
-Ensure habitat preservation for species that are representative of the Alps
-Support quality agriculture which contributes to the protection of the environment and to the stability of biodiversity
-Maintain peatlands as CO2 sinks and biodiversity reservoirs
7. Water and water resources
-Reinforce the implementation of the Water Framework Directive
-Prevent water shortage
-Steer the development of hydropower plants according to the ecology of water streams
8. Mountain farming
-Support mountain farming as a contribution to the environment, the maintenance and the attractiveness of Alpine territories
9. Applied research & Awareness-raising
-Improve knowledge to better understand the impact of climate change on a local level, particularly as far as water, natural hazards and socio-economic balance are concerned
-Reinforce cooperation in order to gain common knowledge of the existing risks
-Reinforce public awareness, especially among the youth areasw.alpconv.org

To see the complete text of the Action Plan on Climate Change in the Alps go to http://www.alpconv.org/

Source Articles:
"Erosion fears as Alps braced for huge rockfall." Scotland on Sunday [Edinburgh, Scotland] 9 July 2006: 8. Global Issues In Context. Web. 21 Oct. 2010.
"Climate change was major factor in erosion of Alps 6 million years ago." Health & Medicine Week 4 Sept. 2006: 415. Global Issues In Context. Web. 21 Oct. 2010.