THE PROJECT

 Beside the dramatic retreat of Alpine glaciers, climate change is also causing the degradation of mountain permafrost. Remarkably, thawing rock glaciers (RG) are becoming major hydroecological drivers in numerous deglaciating Alpine catchments, as RG export cold waters often enriched in trace elements (TE). However, both the hydrological drivers and the ecological effects of TE enrichment on RG-fed streams and on the downstream river networks are still almost entirely unknown.

The project will test these research hypotheses:

• Thawing RG export higher loads of TE than glaciers, relict RG and groundwater springs;

• TE in RG streams mainly originate from bedrock weathering, and a smaller amount derives from past/present atmospheric deposition;

• TE export and its ecological effects vary at multiple timescales in relation to seasonal and long-term dynamics of permafrost thawing;

• TE bioaccumulate in the stream foodweb, and their concentrations hinder sensitive taxa;

• RG microbial communities influence TE bioavailability and toxicity. Thawing RG release heavy metal (HM) resistance genes.