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The Harvard University Gazette (February 28, 2007) reports on a talk given by James McCarthy, the Alexander Agassiz Professor of Biological Oceanography. Professor McCarty noted that the Arctic region would be among the earliest, and most affected areas due to climate change. His talk covered the recent IPCC report, mentioning some difficulties he saw in their sea-level rise predictions:

"One glaring omission in the [recent IPCC] report, McCarthy said, is that the IPCC's projections of sea-level rise are based merely on the expansion of existing seawater due to warmer temperatures. Left out because the data was too recent, he said, was additional information that melting glaciers and land-based ice would likely significantly contribute to rising seas. McCarthy cited one study that projected a sea level rise of between a half a meter and 1.4 meters by 2100.

The melting of land-based ice can have a considerable impact on sea levels, McCarthy said, because of the sheer volume still locked up in glaciers on Greenland and Antarctica. An estimated 85 percent of the Earth's surface fresh water is frozen in Antarctica, McCarthy noted, with an additional 10 percent of the world's fresh water frozen in Greenland's glaciers.

McCarthy emphasized that no one is predicting that all of Greenland's ice will melt, but if it did, it alone would cause global sea levels to rise 21 feet.

Although nobody is predicting a total collapse of Greenland's glaciers, they're less sure what exactly will happen there, McCarthy said. It has become apparent in recent years that Greenland is melting much more rapidly than previously thought and the process seems to be accelerating."

You can read the whole article here:

Arctic hit by global warming first: Effects on poles will be felt at lower altitudes