Iceberg heading toward isle could endanger its wildlife
An iceberg roughly the size of Delaware that is headed toward the subAntarctic island of South Georgia has experts worried about the possibility of it blocking wildlife from food sources and threatening the island’s ecosystem.
T he iceberg, known as A68a, was about 250 miles away from the coast of the British island territory of South Georgia as of Wednesday, the British Antarctic Survey said.
The iceberg may run aground near the island and be a few weeks out from the island’s coast, said Andrew Fleming, a remote sensing manager with the survey.
The iceberg broke off from the Antarctic Peninsula in 2017 and is about 100 miles long and 30 miles wide. The trajectory of the iceberg could change and steer clear of the island.
It’s unpredictable what could happen if the iceberg were to run aground near South Georgia, said M Jackson, a glaciologist who is an explorer with the National Geographic Society.
There is a chance that if A68a does run aground, it could disrupt part of South Georgia’s ecosystem, affecting some of the areas and paths that animals travel to hunt and gather
food.
“Essentially, seals and penguins birth on land, then commute back and forth into the ocean to source and return with food to feed their young,” Jackson said. “The iceberg might disrupt this, and seals and penguins might not be able to source and deliver food to their landbased pups and chicks, potentially triggering widespread starvation.”
If the iceberg breaks close to the island’s coast, there’s the potential that it could displace large amounts of seawater “that can inundate coastal communities,” Jackson said.
This kind of hazard is something experts have
had to grapple with as climate change has led to ice melting and ice systems breaking at significant rates.
“I am doubtful given the increasing rate of ice melt worldwide that this is the last time we’ll see this,” Jackson said. “I wouldn’t be surprised in the years to come if we continue to see bigger icebergs presenting bigger hazards to communities of people and wildlife alike.”