Switzerland Is Covering Glaciers With White Geotextile Blankets to Reflect Sunlight and Reduce Summer Melting; Technique Cuts Losses By 50% to 70% but Raises Concerns About Microplastics and Cost

Written by Noel Budeguer

Published on 13/01/2026 at 21:31

Updated on 13/01/2026 at 21:32

A estratégia usa lonas brancas para refletir o sol, preservar gelo em pontos específicos e manter atividades econômicas ligadas à neve nos Alpes.

5 pessoas reagiram a isso.

Switzerland has started covering parts of its mountains with huge white blankets to try to slow down the melting of glaciers in the summer. In the Alps, white no longer comes only from snow but also from the geotextile material applied over the ice.

At the Rhone Glacier, one of the oldest and most visited in Europe, the measure has become an annual routine and changed the landscape. The idea is to protect strategic sections, even with the accelerated loss of volume in surrounding areas.

What Has Changed at the Rhone Glacier with the White Covers

The covering creates a visible contrast between the protected ice and the rest of the glacier. While the covered area remains more preserved, exposed regions continue to melt rapidly during the warmer months.

ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW

Major Oil, Gas, and Energy Event Will Take Place in Brazil: Macaé Energy Will Gather Petrobras, Equinor, Prio, Among Other Suppliers and Energy Executives for Business, Networking, and Employment Opportunities

The Technical Agenda and the Fair in the City of Macaé Should Boost Discussions on Investments, Energy Transition, and Development of the Oil, Gas, and Energy Chain in the National...

Paulo Nogueira

The practice began as an experiment nearly two decades ago and is now repeated every year. The goal is to keep essential points functioning longer, mainly related to tourism.

How the Albedo Effect Helps to Hold the Ice in Heat

The strategy relies on the albedo effect, which defines how much a surface reflects sunlight. When the ice darkens due to dust and pollution, it absorbs more heat and melts faster.

The covers act as a shield, blocking direct radiation and reflecting some light. As a result, the melting of snow and ice beneath the cover decreases by 50% to 70%.

What Are the Geotextiles Used in the Alps

The blankets are made with polyester and polypropylene fibers, designed to withstand UV radiation and extreme weather. They allow the passage of some moisture but reduce direct heating on the ice.

In practice, the cover helps maintain a lower temperature in the covered area. The result is localized preservation, without preventing the total loss of the glacier.

Why the Operation Is Expensive and Requires Manual Labor

Installation takes place in the spring when teams ascend to the highest areas to unroll and adjust the covers. After that, they are sewn and secured with sandbags and stones to withstand storms and strong winds.

In the fall, the material needs to be removed before winter snow. If it freezes with the ice, it can be damaged and increase costs even further.

How Much It Costs and Why the Focus Is on Tourism and Ski Slopes

The cost ranges between $60,000 and $85,000 per hectare per year, which limits application in large areas. Therefore, the measure focuses on commercial points, such as ski slopes and tourist areas.

One of the protected locations is the ice cave of the Rhone Glacier, which generates income for the region. The blanket helps keep this attraction active longer.

Microplastics and Scale Limit Increase Criticism

With wear, the covers may release fibers that become microplastics, affecting the ice and following with the meltwater to rivers and alpine ecosystems. This raises questions about the environmental impact of the solution.

Furthermore, Switzerland has about 1,400 glaciers, and covering all of them would be unfeasible. In the past two years, Swiss glaciers have lost 10% of their total volume, showing that the technique protects only small areas while the larger problem continues to advance.

0 Comentários

Mais recente

Mais antigos Mais votado

Feedbacks

Visualizar todos comentários

Switzerland Is Covering Glaciers With White Geotextile Blankets to Reflect Sunlight and Reduce Summer Melting; Technique Cuts Losses By 50% to 70% but Raises Concerns About Microplastics and Cost

What Has Changed at the Rhone Glacier with the White Covers

Major Oil, Gas, and Energy Event Will Take Place in Brazil: Macaé Energy Will Gather Petrobras, Equinor, Prio, Among Other Suppliers and Energy Executives for Business, Networking, and Employment Opportunities

How the Albedo Effect Helps to Hold the Ice in Heat

What Are the Geotextiles Used in the Alps

Why the Operation Is Expensive and Requires Manual Labor

How Much It Costs and Why the Focus Is on Tourism and Ski Slopes

Microplastics and Scale Limit Increase Criticism

At just 14 years old, a boy creates a system without energy, using steel pipes buried in the ground, that irrigates seedlings with moisture from the air, to combat the water scarcity threatening reforestation in northern China.

Where there was only sand and wind at 40 degrees, China built a megacity of 500,000 inhabitants with farms, wineries, and universities in the middle of the desert using melted glacier water from hundreds of kilometers away.

At over 8,800 meters above sea level, the summit of Mount Everest is made up of rocks that originated at the bottom of an ocean about 500 million years ago and were pushed to the highest point on Earth by the collision of tectonic plates.

A couple builds a system to bring water from the spring to their land, climbs a hill with materials on their backs, and creates a simple, cheap, and sustainable solution to ensure their own water supply.

The end of total solar eclipses has a deadline: the Moon is moving away from the Earth at about 3.8 cm per year, and in approximately 600 million years, it will no longer completely cover the Sun, ending one of the rarest coincidences in the Solar System.

With 40% of all the gold on the planet buried in a single geological basin that is 2.7 billion years old in South Africa, the Witwatersrand still hides R$ 3 trillion in unreachable reserves.

In the depths of the African forest, these rare and terrifying native species dominate rivers, swamps, and treetops with venom, brute strength, lethal teeth, and behaviors that seem impossible in the heart of the wild.

iPhone 17 reaches historic low price with 256 GB, 120 Hz display, and drops to R$ 5,703 on Shopee, featuring A19 chip, dual 48 MP cameras, battery life of up to 30 hours, and advanced AI features.

6 sources of free fertilizer that you are throwing away every day and can transform your garden without spending anything.

Couple shows how they built a retaining wall on their property using 400 old tires: sloped land turned into plateaus, tires are aligned, filled, and compacted with layers of soil, with grass helping in support and at almost zero cost.

Trip to Mars getting closer: Pulsar Fusion, from the UK, advances with plasma ignition in fusion engine and could drastically reduce space travel time, making crewed missions faster, safer, and economically viable.

Made with recycled plastic, a Lego-inspired brick builds a 180 m² house in 15 days, providing thermal comfort, preventing moisture, and turning waste into income, kits, and accelerated construction in the country.

Switzerland Is Covering Glaciers With White Geotextile Blankets to Reflect Sunlight and Reduce Summer Melting; Technique Cuts Losses By 50% to 70% but Raises Concerns About Microplastics and Cost

The Strategy Uses White Covers to Reflect the Sun, Preserve Ice in Specific Areas, and Maintain Economic Activities Related to Snow in the Alps.

What Has Changed at the Rhone Glacier with the White Covers

Major Oil, Gas, and Energy Event Will Take Place in Brazil: Macaé Energy Will Gather Petrobras, Equinor, Prio, Among Other Suppliers and Energy Executives for Business, Networking, and Employment Opportunities

How the Albedo Effect Helps to Hold the Ice in Heat

What Are the Geotextiles Used in the Alps

Why the Operation Is Expensive and Requires Manual Labor

How Much It Costs and Why the Focus Is on Tourism and Ski Slopes

Microplastics and Scale Limit Increase Criticism

At just 14 years old, a boy creates a system without energy, using steel pipes buried in the ground, that irrigates seedlings with moisture from the air, to combat the water scarcity threatening reforestation in northern China.

Where there was only sand and wind at 40 degrees, China built a megacity of 500,000 inhabitants with farms, wineries, and universities in the middle of the desert using melted glacier water from hundreds of kilometers away.

At over 8,800 meters above sea level, the summit of Mount Everest is made up of rocks that originated at the bottom of an ocean about 500 million years ago and were pushed to the highest point on Earth by the collision of tectonic plates.

A couple builds a system to bring water from the spring to their land, climbs a hill with materials on their backs, and creates a simple, cheap, and sustainable solution to ensure their own water supply.

The end of total solar eclipses has a deadline: the Moon is moving away from the Earth at about 3.8 cm per year, and in approximately 600 million years, it will no longer completely cover the Sun, ending one of the rarest coincidences in the Solar System.

With 40% of all the gold on the planet buried in a single geological basin that is 2.7 billion years old in South Africa, the Witwatersrand still hides R$ 3 trillion in unreachable reserves.

In the depths of the African forest, these rare and terrifying native species dominate rivers, swamps, and treetops with venom, brute strength, lethal teeth, and behaviors that seem impossible in the heart of the wild.

iPhone 17 reaches historic low price with 256 GB, 120 Hz display, and drops to R$ 5,703 on Shopee, featuring A19 chip, dual 48 MP cameras, battery life of up to 30 hours, and advanced AI features.

Trip to Mars getting closer: Pulsar Fusion, from the UK, advances with plasma ignition in fusion engine and could drastically reduce space travel time, making crewed missions faster, safer, and economically viable.

Made with recycled plastic, a Lego-inspired brick builds a 180 m² house in 15 days, providing thermal comfort, preventing moisture, and turning waste into income, kits, and accelerated construction in the country.

Iron foundry in Senegal reveals a pile of 100 tons of slag, 35 furnace bases, and a rare technique that has remained stable for centuries.

iPhone 17 reaches historic low price with 256 GB, 120 Hz display, and drops to R$ 5,703 on Shopee, featuring A19 chip, dual 48 MP cameras, battery life of up to 30 hours, and advanced AI features.

6 sources of free fertilizer that you are throwing away every day and can transform your garden without spending anything.

Couple shows how they built a retaining wall on their property using 400 old tires: sloped land turned into plateaus, tires are aligned, filled, and compacted with layers of soil, with grass helping in support and at almost zero cost.

Trip to Mars getting closer: Pulsar Fusion, from the UK, advances with plasma ignition in fusion engine and could drastically reduce space travel time, making crewed missions faster, safer, and economically viable.

Made with recycled plastic, a Lego-inspired brick builds a 180 m² house in 15 days, providing thermal comfort, preventing moisture, and turning waste into income, kits, and accelerated construction in the country.