Swiss glaciers suffer 'disastrous' year of ice loss, threatening water supplies

Swiss glaciers suffered a near-record loss of ice in 2026, shedding about 5.5% of the country's remaining glacier mass over 12 months after a mild winter and a series of intense spring and summer heatwaves. Early snow melt exposed dark glacier ice, which absorbs more solar energy and accelerated melting; researchers estimate roughly 2.2 trillion litres of meltwater ran off between July and September. That runoff temporarily eased irrigation, hydropower and river navigation pressures but also helped drive historically low Rhine flows and represents an unsustainable depletion of long-stored freshwater.

The rapid thinning is increasing hazards: ice loss destabilises slopes and raises the risk of landslides and flash floods, and observers found no surviving snow at some sites as high as 3,500 m, with up to four metres of ice lost at summit measurement points. Smaller glaciers are unable to replenish and some, such as Plattalva, have already disappeared. Many Alpine glaciers are now in clear decline; only sharp cuts to greenhouse gas emissions can preserve large ice masses - especially in the Himalayas and polar regions - and limit future sea-level rise.