Overview

• DPA’s August 2025 repeat-photography at fixed Alpine, forest and lake sites provides a visual record of locally visible climate impacts under Germany’s 2.6°C warming.
• Experts warn that Watzmann, Blaueisgletscher and Nördlicher Schneeferner could lose their glacier status by the decade’s end as their ice masses shrink in accelerating steps.
• A 2024 federal forest survey and the latest Bundeswaldinventur reveal four out of five common tree species are diseased and that woodlands now emit more carbon than they absorb.
• Hydrologists and researchers at the Potsdam Institute report that some lakes in eastern Germany are falling to levels lower and faster than predicted, threatening recreation and aquatic habitats.
• Projections indicate that continued glacier melt will initially boost runoff and flood risk but will ultimately lead to summer water shortages and increased rockfalls as permafrost thaws.