Context:  Recently, a team of conservationists in Northern Italy has begun the process of laying vast tarpaulin sheets to cover over 100,000 sq metres of the Presena glacier to prevent it from melting due to global warming.
Issue

• Due to global warming, the permanent ice sheets of earth i.e. glaciers are facing the danger of melting.
• According to experts, this melting of glaciers may lead to extreme flooding, rise in sea level, recontamination of the environment, an upsetting of ecological balance etc which will prove detrimental to the environment in the long run. 

About the conservation

• The conservation project was first undertaken by Italian firm Carosello-Tonale in 2008 at which time only 30,000 sq. metres of the glacier was covered.
• Tarpaulin sheets are being used to cover over 100,000 sq. metres of the Presena glacier.
• Once they stretched over the snow, Bags of sand are used to weigh them down.

About Tarpaulin Sheets

• Tarpaulin is a large sheet of strong, flexible and water-resistant material, often coated and made of plastics such as polyethylene.
• Geotextile tarpaulins reflect sunlight, maintain a temperature lower than the external one, and thus preserve as much snow as possible.
• There are similar glacier cover systems on a few Austrian glaciers, but the surface covered by the tarpaulins is much smaller.

About the project:

• This is a  six-week process and it is repeated every year after the ski season is over and summer onsets. 
• It is a part of the conservation project by Italian firm Carosello-Tonale launched in 2008. In the beginning, only 30,000 sq metres of the glacier was covered and the area has increased manifold since then.
• About Glacier: A glacier is a big body of ice that is created from falling and accumulated snow over a period of time. They get created in areas where the temperatures are exceedingly low; these include areas that are at sea level and mostly in high altitude areas like the mountain tops. 
• About Presena Glacier: It is situated between the regions of Trentino and Lombardy in Northern Italy and is part of the Presanella mountain (Alps) group. It has a high altitude natural environment.