Iceland\u2019s Ice Is Melting So Fast That It\u2019s Boosting Hydropower<\/p>\n
Melting glaciers are creating a green energy windfall in Iceland\u2014but for how long?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
By Francisco “A.J.” Camacho<\/a> & E&E News<\/a><\/p>\n CLIMATEWIRE |<\/b> REYKJAV\u00cdK, Iceland \u2014 Few countries can compete with Iceland when it comes to renewable energy. The island nation gets nearly 100 percent of its electric power from green sources, and Iceland has championed the use of both geothermal energy and hydroelectricity.<\/p>\n That makes the country a model for a world trying to fight climate change \u2014 which is ironic because Iceland\u2019s electric grid is only going to get stronger as the world gets hotter.<\/p>\n The reason? Hydroelectricity. Or more specifically, melting glaciers.<\/p>\n If you’re enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing<\/a>. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.<\/p>\n Iceland gets more than 70 percent<\/a> of its power from hydroelectric stations fed by glacial meltwaters. So as the Earth heats up and glaciers melt faster, hydroelectric stations will have more water to spin turbines and power the grid \u2014 a silver lining for a country mourning its glacial decline<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen the glaciers melt, then it will be more production from hydro,\u201d said Gu\u00f0laugur \u00de\u00f3r \u00de\u00f3r\u00f0arson, minister of the Environment, Energy and Climate, in an interview with E&E News. \u201cWe have everything to be the mecca of green energy, and that’s what we want to do.\u201d<\/p>\n Climate change is already making a difference.<\/p>\n Nearly all of Iceland\u2019s glaciers have been shedding mass since the 1990s, and that\u2019s led to an increase in hydro inflow \u2014 a boost that the country\u2019s power system \u201chas been mostly able to utilize,\u201d according to a report<\/a> released by the European Union.<\/p>\n Locals see the potential, too.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are anticipating more for the next hundred years \u2014 more water flowing,\u201d said Gu\u00f0mundur Finnbogason, a project manager with Landsvirkjun, the national power company.<\/p>\n Hydro stations are \u201cliterally producing gold for us,\u201d said Finnbogason during a tour of the \u00cdrafoss Power Station, which is about 30 miles from Iceland\u2019s capital Reykjav\u00edk.<\/p>\n The boon in power, however, comes with two potential pitfalls.<\/p>\n The first is wasted energy. A group from the Arctic University of Norway cautioned that at-capacity stations were bypassing extra water<\/a> and throwing away potential electricity.<\/p>\n \u00de\u00f3r\u00f0arson, the energy minister, acknowledged the missed opportunity.<\/p>\n \u201cWe’ve got a bit complacent,\u201d he said. \u201cWe haven’t done that much when it comes to both hydro and geothermal in the last 15, 20 years.\u201d<\/p>\n But, he added, \u201cnow things are moving very fast.\u201d<\/p>\n The national power company plans to build more turbines to capture the climate-driven water surplus. Glacial runoff is expected to peak in about 40 to 50 years.\u201cWe are doing investments to be able to harness this increase of flow from the glaciers,\u201d said Landsvirkjun CEO H\u00f6r\u00f0ur Arnarson.The second \u2014 and more existential \u2014 problem for Iceland is what to do when its glaciers have melted away.The EU report warns that \u201calmost no Icelandic glaciers will be left in 2200.\u201dIt\u2019s a bleak long-term projection, but the expectation is matched by a second \u2014 and more optimistic \u2014 estimate.The Icelandic Meteorological Office projects<\/a> that precipitation will increase by 1.2 percent to 4.3 percent by the middle of the century, largely due to the effects of climate change.So even if the glaciers disappear, \u201cwe can expect more water coming to the power plants than we did in the beginning,\u201d said Arnarson, the Landsvirkjun CEO.But that wetter future is far from a given, and scientists caution it\u2019s challenging to predict a 2200 climate more than 150 years away. Ocean currents<\/a> that enhance precipitation in Iceland could be gone or significantly slowed by then, for example.The uncertainty is why \u00de\u00f3r\u00f0arson wants Iceland to diversify its grid from hydro and geothermal reliance to include wind, and possibly solar, tidal and rain power<\/a>.\u201cIf something happens, and it will happen in the near or distant future, then we always have a Plan B,” \u00de\u00f3r\u00f0arson said. “We cannot put all the eggs in the same basket.”<\/p>\n Reprinted from <\/i>E&E News<\/i><\/a> with permission from POLITICO, LLC. Copyright 2024. E&E News provides essential news for energy and environment professionals.<\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"Blue](\"https:\/\/static.scientificamerican.com\/dam\/m\/70b8e4521c8580bc\/original\/GettyImages-682104786-_web.jpg?w=600\")
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