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Glaciers Retreating in Washington State

100 degree weather makes a difference in melting.

At this point in time I don’t think I’ll be alive to know what the real impacts will be and how the politics of water will play out in Washington state.

The water reservoir for much of Washington is the snow pack that accumulates in the mountains over the winter. People watch that carefully since an extremely low annual snowfall can lead to water restrictions — even today.

Then there is the population gains the state has been seeing and the fact that when you look at climate change impacts, Washington could have even more significant gains from people looking to escape the more extremes of climate change in other states. More people means more water demand.

The following article comes from the Seattle Times. There is some science in the article but it is more of a direct observation by people who climb glaciers frequently and are observing the rapid changes.

“In North Cascades, researchers, climbers watch Washington’s snowpack quickly melt, exposing glaciers’ retreat”
Eric Holdeman is a contributing writer for Emergency Management magazine and is the former director of the King County, Wash., Office of Emergency Management.