Earthquakes linked to melting of glaciers

January 3, 2010: Another earthquake measuring 5.5 on the Richter scale was felt on Thursday evening.While the September 21, 2009 earthquake has left a scar in eastern Bhutan, an environmental consultant said that frequent earthquakes happening in Bhutan may be attributed to the melting of glaciers.
Scientists say melting glaciers could stimulate tectonic activity.
According to the research into prehistoric earthquakes and volcanic activity, the melting of ice and water run offs lead to the lifting of tremendous amounts of the earth’s crust. When the newly freed crust settles back to its original pre-glacial shape, it causes seismic plates to slip and stimulate volcanic activity.
The Himalayan glaciers are retreating faster than in any other part of the world which puts a mountain ecosystem like Bhutan at great risk.
In Bhutan, the Luggye Tsho retreated by 160 m yearly from 1988 to 1993 resulting in rapid growth of the Luggye Tsho. The Raphstreng Tsho retreated 35 m every year on average from 1984 to 1998 but from 1988 to 1993 the retreat rate almost doubled to 60 m per year.
Although many do not believe that earthquakes happen due to climate change, there is a substantial reasoning that the pressure of ice sheet suppresses earthquakes and the removal of the ice sheet contributes to tectonic activities.
An environmental officer from the National Environment Commission said most geographical disasters are a direct or indirect result of environmental changes due to climate change.
However, he said there is no data or research done on if the occurrence of earthquakes is related to climate change in Bhutan.
“Bhutan has felt a number of earthquakes in recent times and statistics prove that the glaciers have been melting at a rapid pace,” he said. “I truly believe that earthquakes are a result of melting of the glaciers.”
An article in the Science Journal states that when ice sheets retreated some 10,000 years ago, volcanoes became more active.
A geoscientist in North Carolina who studied the phenomenon analyzed an 800,000 year record of volcanic activity and found out that the peaks of volcanic activity occurred when the ice was retreating globally.
Many scientists later found out evidences that climate does affect volcanism.
Researchers attending the conference on Climate Forcing of Geological and Geomorphological Hazards in London suggested that climate change could tip the planet’s delicate balance and unleash a host of geographical disasters.
There have been evidences of a link between climate change and the rumblings of the earth’s crust for many years, with more researchers and scientists concluding that the link prevails.