New land rises as glaciers melt
Parts of Alaska are rising over 3 inches a year due to relieved pressure caused by melting glaciers. Ecosystems are changing quickly as new land is created.
Photo: MostlyBurds/Flickr Melting glaciers served as a giant paperweight on the spongy ground, as those glaciers melt, the pressure they exerted down is relieved and the land rises back up like a mattress after someone gets out of bed.
On the surface, this sounds like a good thing -- new land is created and the rising seas are pushed back, sometimes miles across the newly minted acres. But with the new land brings new problems: water flows are disrupted and swamps and wetlands are drying out. Rivers and waterways are being filled with silt from the increased meltwater, disrupting fish runs and shipping routes.
Global warming is here; it's real, and as we're sure to see more and more, is happening in some places in very quick order indeed.
link:
| Previous Post Obama will cut dirty energy industry tax breaks | Next Post Thanks for blogrollin' MNN |

























