Photos reveal surreal scenes from global effort to grow ice in the desert: 'It's a matter of survival'
Ski resort snowmaking crews might want to keep an eye on a United Nations team working in Kyrgyzstan. That's because experts from the agency's Food and Agriculture Organization are creating glaciers, according to The Times of Central Asia.
The fascinating project is meant to ease the impact of our planet's overheating by providing a reliable source of water for rural communities. NASA reported that as Earth warms, heat waves are becoming more intense, making some places uninhabitable.
Seven artificial glaciers were successfully created in 2024, amassing 59.2 million cubic feet of ice. During the summer, the stored water can irrigate more than 4,324 acres of farmland, which can be increased greatly with improved irrigation systems, per the report.
"The key is to choose the right location," U.N. water-saving expert Matraim Jusupov said in the Times report. "We channel water from a mountain spring through a pipeline ending in a vertical pipe 10-15 meters (32.8-49.2 feet) high. The elevation difference generates pressure, which allows us to spray water into the air. At sub-zero temperatures, it freezes and gradually forms an ice cone."
According to the report, the planet's 275,000 glaciers, along with ice sheets, store 70% of our fresh water. However, they have been vanishing more rapidly during the last six years. Glaciers continue to melt as the world warms, and the ice loss is astounding.
The World Meteorological Organization reported that 9 trillion tons of glacial mass has trickled away since 1975, not including continental sheets in Greenland and Antarctica. This, in turn, contributes to sea-level rise.
The higher tides are endangering communities on each U.S. coast. It's evidenced by more flooding being reported, per the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
To build the Kyrgyzstan glaciers, per the Times report, the team put in 22,821 feet of pipe. Experts oversaw a work team of local residents who will enjoy the stable water supply. They are among the hundreds of millions of people whose freshwater sources are jeopardized by disappearing ice fields once considered eternal.
Now, scientists fear they might not make it through the century.
Israeli company Nostromo is also using stored ice to provide a resource for later use. In the case of the company's IceBrick, frozen water is stored in a rooftop system using renewable energy. At night, the ice can provide air conditioning during peak-use hours, cutting down reliance on the grid and reducing air pollution.
Do you think America does a good job of protecting its natural beauty?
Definitely
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I'm not sure
Click your choice to see results and speak your mind.
Discussing the amazing innovations and ideas is a great way to start conversations with friends and family about our planet's health.
Most homeowners can benefit from some easy upgrades, especially if they have an old HVAC system or other appliances. Heat pumps, for example, serve as a heat and AC source with efficient service that can lower the power bill. What's more, tax breaks to reduce the initial expense are still available.
In Kyrgyzstan, the U.N. team plans to continue making glaciers, with efforts started in other regions, per the Times.
"Preservation of glaciers is not just an environmental, economic, and societal necessity. It's a matter of survival," WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo said in the organization's report.
Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
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