On the steep, dusty slopes of the Chacaltaya mountains, thousands of meters above sea level in the Bolivian Andes, the hardy farmers tending root crops or herding llamas have no need of scientists or climatologists to measure the impact of global warming.

For as long as anyone can remember, communities such as the village of Botijlaca have relied on melting ice flowing down from the Chacaltaya glacier as a source of drinking water, to irrigate their crops and water their animals.

Now the 18,000-year-old glacier -- once home to the world's highest ski resort -- has almost disappeared, reduced to a slither of snow and ice in the space of a few decades. Researchers say Chacaltaya has lost around 80 percent of its volume in just 20 years.

Source: CNN

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