Putnam talks with Reuters about retreating glaciers

Reuters spoke with Aaron Putnam, a University of Maine assistant professor in the School of Earth and Climate Sciences and the Climate Change Institute, about the causes and implications of China’s retreating glaciers. According to the story, rapid melting has caused devastating flooding and unreliable water availability for downstream farmers — a preview of the crippling water crisis that may arrive in as few as ten years once melting peaks. “Those glaciers are monitoring atmospheric warming trends that apply to nearby glaciated mountain chains that contribute runoff to the upper Yellow and Yangtze Rivers,” Putnam said. CNN shared the Reuters story.