Melting of continental glaciers contribute to raising sea level globally. This factor is second only to thermal expansion of ocean water as the dominant factor causing sea levels to rise. Arent et al (2002), using laser altimetry to estimate volume change of 67 Alaskan glaciers from the 1950s to the 1990s, reported that glaciers are thinning by about half a meter per year, and the rate has increased to 1.8 m/y in the last 10 years. This finding causes a revision of estimates of the contribution of continental glaciers to sea-level rise. Meier and Dyurgerov (2002) confirm the significance of this finding.
References
Arend, A.A., K.A. Echelmeyer, W.D. Harrison, C.S. Lingle, and V. B. Valentine, 2002: Rapid wastage of Alaska glaciers and their contribution to rising sea level. Science, 297, 382-386.
Meier, M.F., and M.B. Dyurgerov, 2002" How Alaska affects the world. Science, 297, 350-351.