I think it all comes down to the larger interpretations. I saw this in the print issue of Science, so it wasn't just an abstract.

Obviously, even if there is a net accumulation of ice/snow on Greenland itself (and the data of the article seem quite clear in this regard), this is a tiny fraction of all the Arctic ice.

What they seemed to be saying is that, even though sea and coastal ice is clearly declining, this can lead to what might intuitively be thought to be paradoxical increases in inland ice and snow, thus the comment that this is a "wild card" in the whole global warming picture, which may mitigate against some of the concerns about rising sea levels.
The mistake would be to take this as an indication that sea levels are probably not going to rise -- the balance between sea and land ice is the key issue.
Greg P | Homepage | 11.21.05 - 9:11 am | #