MiddletownJournal.com

Austrian glaciers melting due to warm weather

VIENNA — Experts say that a majority of Austria's glaciers in the Alps are melting due to warm weather.

The Austrian Alpine Association says 85 of the 93 glaciers it monitored between the fall of 2008 and the fall of 2009 had receded, while seven stayed the same and one grew.

The Innsbruck-based group says in its annual report released Friday that the Niederjochferner glacier in the Oetztal Alps melted the most and shrank by 46 meters (151 feet).

It says the average loss among all glaciers was 14.4 meters (47 feet), and 10 glaciers melted more than 30 meters (98 feet).

The association's 2007-2008 report says 83 glaciers had receded during that year out of 94 monitored, seven stayed largely unchanged and four showed slight growth.

___