The melting of glaciers in the Arctic archipelagoes provides glacier runoff, which must be considered when assessing river flow. Glacial runoff, as a component of the total river flow, directly affects the thermal and ice conditions of the bays, the productivity and species composition of the marine biota. Also, this process is broadly related to the livelihoods of the Arctic villages. Furthermore, it acts as the important factor for the development of transport and tourism. Melted water of Svalbard glaciers is a significant contribution in total runoff of the local rivers. The issue of this study is to assess this contribution. Grønfjord Bay was selected for assessment because of the fact of regular measurements of water discharge in the river estuaries from June to October. Among 7 rivers flowing into the bay, 6 have glacial runoff. Despite the fact that only small mountain glaciers are common in this area, its melting largely determines the water regime of the rivers. The value of the glacier runoff in Grønfjord Bay was calculated based on an estimation of the glaciers melting by average summer air temperature in 2017 and 2018. Comparison of the amount of glacial and total flow was carried out on the rivers flowing into the Grønfjord Bay.The comparative analysis of the glacial and total river flows size along the 6 rivers of the Grønfjord Bay: Grøndalselva, Grønfjorddalselva, Bretjørna, Aldegonda, Brydebekken, Vasstakelva showed significant differences in the glacier runoff content depending on the area of glaciation in the catchment of rivers. The content of glacial runoff in the total freshwater discharge by rivers into the bay in 2017 and 2018 vary from 20 to 90 %. The largest glacier runoff is observed on the Bretjørna river — 90 %, the Grøndalselva, Brydebekken and Vasstakelva have the smallest glacier runoff — 20 %. The average total glacial runoff of the rivers varied from 41 to 53 % of the total discharge of the rivers of the gulf.

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Aldegondabreen is a relatively small (5.3 km2) land-terminating glacier located in Nordeskiöld Land of Svalbard, ~10 km southwest of Barentsburg. Cumulative mass balance during 2002–20 equalled −21.79 m w.e., which corresponds to 37% of the total mass loss. The annual mass balance (Ba) varied from −0.24 to −2.19 m w.e., while the winter mass balance (Bw) ranged between 0.36 and 0.85 m w.e. Ba and Bw were strongly correlated with the positive degree-day sums and solid precipitation amounts, respectively, measured at the Barentsburg weather station. There was also a strong correlation (r = 0.76) between Ba and Bw, which shows that winter accumulation amplifies the consecutive summer ice melt by changing the surface albedo. The trend in both observational series is not detectable because the period from 2005 to 2013 was characterized by relatively high Bw and not very negative Ba values. This was also observed on the other Svalbard glaciers, and was related to prevailing north-westerly flows over Svalbard during the summer. Therefore, the decadal periodicity of the Aldegondabreen mass balance follows general archipelago patterns that are determined by regional-scale factors. Thus, the surface mass-balance time series, which is now the longest one in the central part of the Spitsbergen Island, is representative for the archipelago.

The paper discusses periglacial lakes, which were formed after the Little Ice Age due to the reduction of Spitzbergen (Svalbard) glaciation. A method for inventorying the periglacial lakes in Spitzbergen (Svalbard) is proposed based on the Norwegian Polar Institute cartographic materials and remote sensing methods. Such lakes have been formed due to deglaciation in Svalbard since the beginning of the 20th century after the Little Ice Age. Three morphological features of the periglacial lake were used as selection criteria: the lake is in contact with the glacier, the lake is located within the terminal moraine or borders on it, each of which is sufficient.As a result of the inventory, 705 periglacial lakes have been found in Spitzbergen (Svalbard). The largest number of lakes is located in the northeastern part of the archipelago, where the relief is poorly dissected. The largest clusters of lakes are found on the moraines of mountain-valley glaciers located on the warmer western coasts. The periglacial lakes were divided into 5 types: glacier-dammed lakes (19 %), lakes in contact with the glacier front (30 %), thermokarst lakes on the moraine (27 %), moraine-dammed lakes (15 %) and lakes in contact with the terminal moraine (9 %). The most numerous were periglacial lakes adjoining the glacier (about 50 %). Their total area is 162 km2 and accounts for 87 % of the total area of all periglacial lakes. The other half of the lakes have formed shores, and their transformation is likely to be much slower in the future. The quantitative ratio of lake types testifies to the active phase of the process of lake expansion in the archipelago. This ratio of lakes by groups can be a clear indicator of climate change in the archipelago.