There are the expected repercussions of climate change, and then there are the more surprising ones—like two nations having to redraw their shared border due to ice melt.
That’s what’s currently happening in Europe, where Switzerland and Italy are remapping in the Alps, because “large sections” of the border between them are “determined by glacier ridgelines or areas of perpetual snow,” per the BBC.
Thanks to glaciers melting, the Swiss-Italian border has now shifted, and Switzerland on Friday officially signed off on the changes, already hammered out between the two countries last year.
Both outlets cite climate change as a contributing factor to the issue, and researchers don’t expect a drastic turnaround in the Swiss-Italy region in the near future.
Huss adds that although the border change is simply “one small side effect” of glacial melt, it gives more stark visibility to the issue when it “directly affects our world map.”
In addition to the more anticipated effects of climate change, there are also some unexpected ones, such as the need for two countries to realign their shared border as a result of ice melting. Because “large sections” of the border between Switzerland and Italy are “determined by glacier ridgelines or areas of perpetual snow,” the BBC reports that this is precisely what is happening in Europe right now. Switzerland and Italy are remapping the Alps. Thanks to glaciers melting, the Swiss-Italian border has now shifted, and Switzerland on Friday officially signed off on the changes, already hammered out between the two countries last year.
Italy hasn’t yet provided its final blessing. Once that approval is granted, the precise boundary adjustments will be disclosed; however, they will impact regions close to the Matterhorn, one of the most well-known mountains in the continent, and well-liked ski resorts like Zermatt. Switzerland’s glaciers lost 4% of their volume in 2023, according to data, following a 6% loss the year before. Although other nations have experienced even worse losses—Venezuela, for example, lost its last glacier earlier this year—Swiss scientists have calculated that roughly 1,000 small glaciers have vanished overall.
Researchers do not anticipate a significant improvement in the Swiss-Italian region anytime soon, despite the fact that both outlets attribute the problem to climate change. According to Matthias Huss, a glaciologist who oversees Switzerland’s GLAMOS glacier monitoring network, “in 2024, glaciers continued to lose ice at a high speed despite much snow in winter that was expected to bring some relief.”. It is actually happening that some glaciers are melting. Huss continues, saying that even though the border shift is just “one small side effect” of glacial melt, the fact that it “directly affects our world map” brings the problem into sharper relief. More anecdotes from Switzerland. ( ).
