Melting glaciers?

Phrases such as "like a glacier" or moving at a "glacial pace" typically conjure up images of things that go very slowly. Perhaps, though, these cliches may need to be revised thanks to a new report on some surprisingly rapid changes to glaciers across the western U.S., and in particular those in the Southern Cascades.

A new study found that some glaciers in our region may have lost as much as 50 percent of their volume since 1958, with even some Alaska glaciers shrinking as much as 15 percent. The study, conducted by U.S. Geologic Survey scientists in Tacoma, was conducted using five decades of measurements. Not surprisingly, global warming gets the nod as the likely culprit behind the rather dramatic change.

As a utility, news like this gets our attention on a couple of fronts, in part because the mountain snowpack is the fuel for our hydro system, and the receding glaciers are a possible sign that more of the precipitation in the mountains is falling as rain, and not snow. Rain may be helpful for greening up our area during the spring and summer, but it doesn't do much for us in the winter, as rain runs downhill and downriver and out to sea -- whereas mountain snow sticks around and slowly melts, giving our dams a power source right through the dry season.

One other key point for a utility is the spector that a changing climate may lead to changing demand for electricity, perhaps causing greater summer time energy use in a region that has traditionally seen its winter peaks be much larger than its warm weather peaks, a situation that could conceivably be reversed over time.

And, it means that we'll continue to look at new forms of renewable energy (such as the solar array seen above with Mt. Rainier in the background) and greater energy efficiency to get the most of out any future power resource.