Thawing Permafrost Triggers Alarming Rockfalls Across the Alps

In recent days, the Alps region has experienced a concerning increase in rockfalls and landslides, with experts attributing the phenomenon to the thawing of permafrost due to climate change. Hundreds of hikers and tourists were evacuated and dozens of trails closed after a series of rockfalls on the slopes of Cima Falkner in the Brenta Dolomites in northern Italy.

Visitors reported hearing loud booms followed by rockfalls and thick clouds of dust rising from Monte Pelmo in the Val di Zoldo area and Cima Falkner, where experts say the entire area is undergoing a process of erosion linked to rising temperatures and the wider climate emergency. A technical inspection conducted on Tuesday by the geological service confirmed that the summit is affected by an ongoing geomorphological process, likely due to permafrost degradation.

Experts warn that this is not an isolated incident, as erosion and rockfalls are on the rise across the entire Alpine range. In 2022, a collapse on the Marmolada mountain sent an avalanche of ice, snow, and rock downslope, killing 11 people. Last year, Italian scientists predicted that the Marmolada glacier, the largest and most symbolic in the Dolomites, could melt completely by 2040 due to the climate crisis.

The melting of permafrost, which acts as a kind of cement holding the rocks together, is a major factor behind the increase in landslides and rockfalls in the Alps. As temperatures rise, this "glue" is disappearing, causing fractured rock to break off and tumble down the mountains more frequently.