Turkiye’s glaciers fall victim to climate change

Kemal Ozdemir looked up astatine the bare peaks of Mount Cilo successful Turkiye’s southeast: “There were glaciers 10 years ago,” helium recalled nether a cloudless sky.

A upland usher for 15 years, Ozdemir past turned towards the torrent carrying dozens of blocks of crystal beneath a slope covered with writer and rocks – a motion of glacier nonaccomplishment being exacerbated by planetary warming.

“You tin spot that determination are rather a fewer pieces of glacier successful the h2o close present … the crushed wherefore the waterfalls travel truthful lushly really shows america however accelerated the crystal is melting,” helium said.

The glaciers of Mount Cilo, which rises to 4,135 metres (13,566 feet) successful the state of Hakkari connected the Iraqi border, are the 2nd largest successful the state down those of Mount Ararat (5,137 metres / 16,854 feet) – 250 kilometres (155 miles) further north.

As planetary temperatures emergence amid human-caused climate change, caller sections of the mountains that were erstwhile capped successful crystal are melting rapidly twelvemonth aft year.

Turkiye, which is experiencing punishing heatwaves, drought and wildlfires, adjacent registered a record temperature of 50.5 degrees Celsius (122.9 degrees Fahrenheit) connected Friday successful Silopi, immoderate 200 kilometres (124 miles) from Hakkari.

“The melting process is faster than we expected. According to our research, successful the past 40 years, we person mislaid astir 50 percent of this continuous snowfall and crystal screen successful this place,” said Onur Satir, a prof astatine Yuzuncu Yil University and specializer successful geographical accusation systems successful the eastbound state of Van.

“Some places melt faster than others, truthful really it’s showing america which places indispensable beryllium protected, but we person nary accidental to screen the full crystal area,” Satir said.

In caller years, respective glaciers successful the Alps person been covered with achromatic tarpaulins successful an effort to hold their demise.

According to the United Nations, glaciers successful respective regions of the satellite volition not past the 21st century, threatening the h2o proviso of hundreds of millions of people.

The surrounding scenery is simply a delight for walkers, galore of whom person flocked to the Hakkari mountains since the guns fell soundless successful caller years successful the region, wherever fighters from the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) person agelong challenged the Turkish state.

The ongoing peace process with the PKK, which has begun a disarmament process, suggests that tourism volition accelerate successful the area, which became a nationalist parkland successful 2020.

But melting crystal has made definite areas dangerous. In July 2023, 2 walkers were killed erstwhile they were swept distant by a artifact that broke disconnected from a glacier.

“People should not locomotion connected the ice,” Ozdemir warned, voicing concerns astir the information of walkers and the preservation of glaciers.

“This portion is 40–50 kilometres (25–31 miles) distant from the city, but determination was nary roadworthy successful the past. Now, with the operation of the road, much vehicles are coming present and the summation successful the fig of radical coming present really accelerates the melting a small bit,” said the 38-year-old guide.

A UN study connected desertification worldwide estimates that 88 percent of Turkey’s territory is astatine risk: rainfall is expected to alteration by 30 percent by the extremity of the century, portion temperatures are expected to emergence by 5 to 6C (9 to 10.8F) compared with averages recorded betwixt 1961 and 1990.