Glacial retreat in the the U.S: One of Montana's most majestic places will be gone in a little over two decades, and 99% of Alaska's glaciers are shrinking.
Glacier National Park may soon need a name change. One of Montana's most majestic places is fast disappearing; at least its glaciers are—at a clip of 90 feet every year. The park's remaining glaciers will be gone in a little over two short decades.
Perhaps there is no better confirmation that the earth is heating up than the glacial retreat taking place in this northwestern corner of Big Sky country. As a teenager I used to venture through the park in search of wilderness and solitude. A chance to catch a glimpse of a Canada lynx, my favorite bobtailed wildcat, was worth the risky journey through these treacherous Rocky Mountain ranges.
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Times have surely changed. Those glaciers I took for granted 15 years ago have now mostly vanished, leaving barren rock behind as their earthly tombstones. In the late 19th century, when conservationist George Grinnell dubbed this place the "Crown of the Continent," there were approximately 150 glaciers. Today, less than 30 remain. And sadly their deaths are imminent.
Glaciers in the park have been slowly melting since the 1850s, with a cooling period during the 1940s-1970s, but since then the pace has been a rapid, perpetual decline. It's a tale Westerners are becoming accustomed to these days. Our wilderness is dying and the species it cradles are evacuating, or going extinct as a result.
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http://www.alternet.org/environment/145258/glacier_national_park_may_need_a_name_change_soon/
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