The Independent, Time, et al. - Glaciers in retreat around the world

The researchers had previously thought that they would not see peak water for a set of glaciers supplying water to a population of several million for at least 10 or 20 years. However, the speed at which some glaciers are disappearing has been faster than predicted, said Michel Baraer of McGill University in Montreal, Canada.

Millions of people who rely on water from the glaciers of a mountain range in Peru are experiencing what scientists have called "peak water" - the point at which the runoff from the glaciers becomes progressively weaker even though the ice continues to melt.

Scientists believe it is the first time that they have been able to document the important threshold that marks the transition from an increased flow of water, when the glacier first starts to retreat, to an ever-diminishing discharge that will eventually lead to severe water shortages.