冰層融化，毯子救急

四川 魯莎莎

瑞士最受歡迎的一處滑雪區一直使用布料覆蓋山區，以減少夏季時的冰層融化。

One of Switzerland's most popular skiing areas has been covering mountain areas with cloth material in an effort to reduce ice melting over the summer.Workers have placed large blankets of material around Mount Titlis, a skiing area near the Swiss mountain town of Engelberg. The area contains a glacier that has been losing large amounts of ice over the past 20 years. The protective cloth, made of polyester （聚酯纖維）material, is designed to block the sun.

Putting the blankets over the glacier provides a natural protective shield.Decreasing snow cover resulting from higher temperatures presents a serious threat to skiing areas across Europe.Having a glacier can provide some protection from climate change. It can help keep large snow supplies on the mountain year-round. This snow can later be moved to fill in areas where it is needed.

But the Swiss government has predicted that 90 percent of the country's remaining 1,500 glaciers will disappear by the end of this century if nothing is done to cut man-made pollution emissions （排放）. The government has to continually increase the size of the blankets over the glacier in recent years to save what is left.A small group of employees works over five-to-six weeks to cover parts of the glacier. At the end of the summer, the workers spend weeks removing the covers.

Currently, the reflective material covers about 100,000 square meters, which is about the size of 14 football fields. The blankets help get the sun's energy back into the atmosphere.

Reading Check

When will the remaining 1,500 glaciers probably disappear if no measures are taken to reduce man-made pollution emissions according to the Swiss government?

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