John Wheeler: As the sea level rises, some land is rising faster

FARGO — As land glaciers lose mass to melting from the warming climate, sea levels rise. However, some locations are experiencing the opposite effect. Iceland, which is presently about 10% ice-covered, is losing ice mass at a rate of about 10 billion tons a year.

This weight relief is causing the land to rise out of the water by an inch or so a year. The effect is more more dramatic on nearby Greenland, which holds the most land-based ice in the Northern Hemisphere.This ice was holding steady through the 1990s with snow added roughly equaling the ice that was melting.



However, Greenland is now losing ice mass at an average annual rate of 150 billion tons a year. Towns and villages all around the coast of Greenland are experiencing a sea retreat. The coastline is growing as more and more land is revealed by the rising subcontinent.

It is not that the sea level is not rising; it is; but the land is rising faster as the weight of the glacier decreases.]]>.