The Ecosystem of the Swiss Alps

The first image one gets when one thinks of Switzerland is that of the Swiss Alps; a beautiful, mountainous landscape complete with ski-resorts, cute cottages and of course, mountain goats. However, very rarely do we consider how glaciers and glacial ecosystems play an integral role in maintaining this image of Switzerland. In this post we explore the Swiss Alps – particularly its glacial ecosystem and its relationship with the Swiss Alpine community. We begin with a brief introduction to glaciers in general, focus our attention to a more specific scale with the Swiss Alpine Glaciers and discuss the human impacts, future prospects and possible conservation methods in order to preserve this unique environment.

Glaciers – A brief introduction

Think of a glacier as a large lump of ice moving across land – particularly land in high elevations. A glacier is formed when the rate of snow piling up on a particular land area exceeds that of its melting rate. As more snow piles up, the snow begins to compress and become denser, forming firn through the process of firnification. These denser firns continue to pile on top of each other as well, forming a mass of solid ice. As this ice becomes heavier, its own weight causes it to move through a process called compression melting. Basically, the glaciers own weight exerts so much pressure that it melts without an increase in temperature, causing it to move across lands with the help of gravity. With such an intricate process, it is no wonder that climate change can have such a significant impact on these ecosystems.

The Swiss Alps

The Swiss Alps are part of a larger mountain range known as ‘The Alps’ that stretch across eight Alpine countries including but not limited to Austria, Slovenia, Germany, Lichtenstein, France and Italy. It stretches approximately 1,200 kilometers and is the youngest and highest mountain system in Europe. The Swiss Alps specifically border about 200 kilometers of ‘The Alps’ and contain one of the most well known glaciers in the world, namely the Rhonegletscher, famous for its ice tunnels.

A Changing Ecosystem

In the beginning…

Alpine communities in the Swiss Alps started out as farming communities that used the resources the land gave to them. The rich soil and water supply from the mountains made this environment ideal for growing crops such as barley, oats, and rye. Popular as well were small dairy farms, producing products such as cheese and milk. These farming locations were remote, small and had little impact on the environment. Many of the farming practices in early Swiss Alpine communities were also largely sustainable and helped integrate humans with their environment. For example, the use of guard dogs to protect farming areas helped protect farmers from large carnivores such as bears, lynx and wolves without having to kill or exterminate them.

Farming community in the Swiss Alps

However, despite the sustainability and lack of environmental impact, living in the Alps was also extremely dangerous due to this remoteness and isolation. The extreme cold weather made living conditions very uncomfortable and desperate. In addition, the lack of urbanization and development made access to resources and trade very difficult, as farmers would have to travel long distances in the winter to sell their produce, earn an income and obtain goods to sustain them during through the cold days.

Historical image of the Swiss Alps (1900)

Times, they are a-changin’…

The realization of the immense resources the Alps had to offer, these humble farming communities soon became areas of rapid developed and urbanized communities, with humans exploiting the land as much as possible to accommodate for the rapidly growing economic climate. Below are some of the changes in this ecosystem:

· Agriculture. Remote farming was replaced by intensive agriculture, with a decrease in biodiversity and an increase in monoculture practices in addition to the use of fertilizers.

· Urbanization. Increased urbanization, road building, and factory set-ups threaten the natural habitat of much of the wildlife here due to air pollution and land excavation. The removal of forests for development also contributes to the overall problem of global warming and climate change.

· Winter Tourism. The Swiss Alps are famous for its beautiful ski resorts, attracting millions of tourists every year. Skiing and winter tourism, already an activity that has a significant impact on the glacial environment by putting stress on the ice, further damage the ecosystem by creating a greater demand for urbanization.

A typical Swiss Ski Resort

The effects of this change in ecosystem are extremely concerning. The increase in industrialization, attracting more and more tourists and investors, are largely depleting the natural resources around these glacial ecosystems due to unsustainable practices. The habitat loss along with an increase in pollutants brought in by this changing ecosystem contributes largely to global warming, disrupting the balance of this glacial ecosystem by expediting the rate of the glacier melting process. It is estimated that between the years 1850 and 2005, the total glacier surface area shrank by 40% and the volume reduced by 60%, according to the Swiss Academy of Sciences. Currently the glaciers are retreating at an average rate of 3% a year (swissinfo.ch).

Rapid melting sees a decline in ice mass in glaciers

This rapid melting rate increases dangerous phenomena such as glacial lake outburst floods and avalanches in the higher regions. An example is the 1996 Gutz Glacier avalanche occurring near Grindelwald, Switzerland, causing immeasurable damage to infrastructure and injury to peoples. Furthermore, the glacial water runoff due to this increase in temperature threatens the usually reliable water reservoirs these glaciers provide, as water that would normally be available for later use is melting and being used up now. This would also affect the sustainability of the hydroelectric power produced by glacial damns that currently power almost 50% of Swiss electricity as this water depletion continues. Below is a Landsat TM aerial imagery of the Mischabel Mountain range in Switzerland, highlighting the rapid decrease in glacial mass:

The image above depicts the rapid decline of the glaciers in the Mischabel Mountain range. The red highlight indicates the total glacier recession between the years 1985-1998. The blue outline showcases the official glacier outline for 1973. The green portrays the new glacier outline in 1998.

Too little too late?

Only recently has the dire effects of glacier melting been brought to attention, with winter tourism possibly suffering the worst consequences – how would a Ski Resort survive without snowy glaciers? The lack of snowfall due to climate change has forced resort owners to think of ways to slow down this rapid decline in the already present ice. One method that has come up is to wrap the glacier with blankets to trap the cold and prevent melting. Pitzal Resort is spending an estimated $121,000 to cover the Pitzal Glacier with white blankets. The Rhone Glacier, one of the most rapid declining glaciers in Switzerland, famous for its underground tunnels, has also been covered.

Image of the Rhone Glacier covered in white blankets in efforts to preserve its underground tunnels

However, this method does come with its consequences, making the investment in it highly questionable. It is clearly a short-term solution – a further increase in global temperature would render the coverings useless. In addition, the aesthetic beauty of the Alps during off-season is taken away. The natural habitat of these glacial ecosystems are affected by habitat loss, as species are forced to move out of and are unable to use these areas that are covered.

Future Prospects for the Swiss Alps

Increased urbanization, traffic, and tourism in the Swiss Alps are major threats to the ecosystem.

However the most pressing issue in the Swiss Alps is glacier water runoff. Almost 60 billion cubic meters of water are stored in these glaciers. Because of climate change and melting glaciers, water runoff will increase in the wintertime and decrease during the summertime. As these glaciers melt, water runoff will increase, but once they have melted the runoff will stop. At this point in time there is more water available because the glaciers are melting, however that will soon change and there will not be enough water during the summer months. There will also be changes in the ecosystem’s biodiversity due to landscape and habitat fragmentation. As the climate changes there will be increased plant species. The number of species in the low uplands is expected to decrease. The uplands however, which are usually species deficient, will be invaded by uncommon species due to a decrease in the land’s moss coverings. Also deciduous trees will increase and coniferous trees will decrease, which will have effects for the timber industry. Although there will be “immigrant” plant species in the Swiss Alps, there will be an overall loss of animal species. A specific example of this is water insects. When water habitats are fragmented by standing bodies of water some insects are not be able to cross the lakes or reservoirs and cause population isolation, which leads to potential changes in genetic diversity.

Needed Improvements

In order to improve this human impacts on this ecosystem step are being taken to increase sustainable development and protect biodiversity. Sustainable development is defined as “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” Sustainable development can be reached through a balance of both action (production and preservation) and restraint (necessity and opportunity). The Swiss Alps contain a high diversity of plant and animal species because of its altitudinal belts, topography, geologic variety, and climatic influences. By protecting this diversity we hope to mend the negative human impacts. With the improvements so far we have seen the reemergence of certain animals in the Swiss Alps, such as the chamois, ibex, marmot, and alpine salamander