The Athabasca glacier in the Canadian Rockies will melt at an increased rate throughout the 21st century. (Photo credit: Peter M. Graham, flickr.com)

The Athabasca glacier in the Canadian Rockies will melt at an increased rate throughout the 21st century. (Photo credit: Peter M. Graham, flickr.com)

Glaciers in western Canada are projected to lose 70 per cent of their ice volume by 2100, relative to 2005, according to a new study.

Using simulations which model the effect of global warming, researchers demonstrated that Canadian glaciers will experience the same shrinkage as mountain glaciers in other places around the world. A few glaciers will remain intact in the Interior and Rockies regions, but coastal glaciers, particularly those in northwestern British Columbia, will exist in a diminished state.

Original research paper published in Nature Geoscience on April 6, 2015.

Names and affiliations of selected authors

Garry Clarke, University of British Columbia, British Columbia