§ Mr. HardyTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is his estimate of the area covered by permanent ice in Antarctica and in the British area of Antarctica; and what was the comparable area so covered 10, 20 and 30 years ago.
§ Mr. MaudeThe main Antarctic ice-sheet extends to 12 million sq km with attached ice shelves covering an additional 1.5 million sq km. Data are unavailable specifically for the British Antarctic territory. However, the Antarctic peninsula contains a grounded ice-sheet of 0.3 million sq km and ice shelves totalling 0.14 million sq km.
Comparisons with ice cover 20 and 30 years ago are not possible due to the rudimentary survey methods then employed. Satellite imagery since the mid-1970s indicates no discernible changes overall in the areas of grounded ice or ice shelves in the Antarctic. It is estimated, however, that ice shelves in the Antarctic peninsula have decreased by more than 750 sq km in the past 10 years, a reduction of around 0.5 per cent.