Peruvian scientists have installed a station 5,180 meters above sea level on the Quisoquipina glacier in Cuzco department to measure the impact of climate change, the environment ministry said.
The Cuzco station is one of two that will be installed in Peru as part of the Adaptation to the Impact of the Accelerated Retreat of Glaciers in the Tropical Andean Region (PRAA) project, state news agency Andina reported.
PRAA has been implemented in the Andean region since 2008 and is funded through the Work Bank’s Global Environment Fund and the Japanese government.
The Cuzco station will be operated by the national meteorological and hydrological service Senamhi. The highest station in Peru is located 5,768 meters above sea level on the foot of the Huaytapallana glacier in Junin department.
The stations are part of a network of eight centers located at least 4,000 meters above sea level in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru.
They will allow scientists to study the retreat of the glaciers. The results of the study are intended to help them create plans for adapting to climate change.
Peru is home to some 70 percent of Earth’s tropical glaciers. The country’s glaciers, which feed hydroelectric plants and provide drinking water to Lima, the world’s second largest desert city after Cairo, Egypt, are in the process of accelerated meltdown due to global warming.
According to Peru’s National Resources Institute, or Inrena, the Andes Mountains have lost at least 22 percent of their glacier area since 1970.
