Circumpolar Musings: May11

People first in Arctic?

Amanda Graham — Tue, 24 May 2011 01:39:17 GMT

(UPI, 13 May 2011) -- NUUK, Greenland - Despite international recognition of the environmental importance of the arctic, officials at a Greenland conference suggested human interests prevail. The eight-member Arctic Council agreed to its first legally binding agreement over multilateral interests in the region. With melting sea ice exposing areas thought to be rich in natural resources, Moscow is trying to convince the international community that it has a greater claim to the arctic. A 1982 convention gives bordering nations the right to extend arctic claims if the government can prove its continental shelf extends beyond a 200-mile limit. Nevertheless, Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt said political conflict over the region was a thing of the past, the EUobserver reports.

Surprise archeological find from Iceland’s settlement

Amanda Graham — Thu, 19 May 2011 21:54:46 GMT

Archeological remains that were found during an excavation in Urridakot in Gardabaer, a neighboring town of Reykjavík, were much older than archeologists had assumed. They date back to the settlement of Iceland in the 9th century AD while Urridakot is first mentioned in written sources from the 16th century. Excavation has been ongoing in Urridakot in the past years because of planned construction in the area. In 2006 the local authorities asked the Institute of Archaeology to fully complete the registration of archeological remains within the town limits, Fréttabladid reports. “The first test dig was made in Urridakot in 2007 and last year the excavation was to be completed at which point I decided to dig in the area between those that had been tested,” said archeologist Ragnheidur Traustadóttir. “Nothing could be seen on the surface and there are no sources on anything in the area but then we discovered a magnificent cowshed from the Settlement Era,” she described, adding that they also found a lodge, storage room, pantry and a cooking hole from the 9th to 11th century; further research is required to determine how old the remains are exactly. Click here to read more about archeological discoveries in Iceland.

Ecologists say too early to estimate impact of Barents Sea oil slick

Amanda Graham — Thu, 19 May 2011 21:46:27 GMT

(RIA Novosti, 12 May 2011) -- Ecologists have warned that it is too soon to judge what environmental impact an oil slick in the Barents Sea has had. The oil spilled into the sea in the Kandalaksha Bay, off the northern Russian port city of Murmansk, after melt water carried oil from beneath the soil offshore on May 7. Officials say the oil is up to 5 millimeters thick in places. An area of the sea covering 210,000 square meters is polluted, the latest satellite data indicates. Scientists say it is too soon to gauge the full extent of the incident. "It is still hard to assess the consequences of the oil slick for animals and birds of the Kandalaksha wildlife park," Ivetta Tatarenkova, a scientist at the park, which is situated on the coast, told RIA Novosti on Wednesday. "The spill may pose a threat to eider ducks," she said. "The invertebrates - mussels, small crustaceans and others - may also suffer at the hands of the spill," she added. Efforts are underway to clean up the slick.

Sweden takes over Arctic Council chairmanship

Amanda Graham — Tue, 17 May 2011 21:49:15 GMT

(BarentsObserver, 13 May 2011) -- Denmark handed over its chairmanship role in the Arctic Council to Sweden on Thursday during the biennial ministerial meeting in Nuuk, Greenland. The council's member states also signed a legally binding treaty to cooperate in search and rescue efforts in the event of a disaster in the Arctic. The treaty calls for council members to demonstrate and live up to their capacity to cooperate in search and rescue efforts after a plane crash, an oil spill, a ship sinking or other disaster. Foreign affairs ministers from Norway, Russia, Sweden, Finland, Iceland and Denmark as well as U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and former health minister of Canada Leona Agglukkaq signed the treaty at a ministerial meeting in Nuuk, Greenland on Thursday. Member nations also pledged to develop international standards for oil spill prevention and response preparedness to be modeled after the search and rescue treaty. The intergovernmental forum is expecting increased shipping traffic and offshore oil and gas activity in the region as the extent of summer sea ice in the Arctic Ocean diminishes, offering easier navigation routes. Sweden will chair the Arctic Council until 2013.

Swedish Minister for Trade to attend opening of Parliamentary Barents Conference in Luleå

Amanda Graham — Tue, 17 May 2011 21:40:52 GMT

(Sweden Ministry for Trade press release, 17 May 2011) -- The Swedish Riksdag, with the Speaker acting as host, has announced that the Fifth Parliamentary Barents Conference will be held in Luleå on 19-20 May. Environmentally sustainable economic growth, industry and trade, and also infrastructure, are on the agenda. About one hundred parliamentarians from Finland, Norway, Russia and Sweden will attend the conference. Minister for Trade Ewa Björling will give the opening address as representative of the Swedish Chairmanship of the Barents Euro-Arctic Council. The event is intended for members of national parliaments and representatives of counties and regions within the Barents region, as well as indigenous peoples' organisations and relevant organisations connected to the parliamentarians and governments. Sweden is organising the conference in its capacity as Chair of the Barents Euro-Arctic Council in 2009-2011. The previous conference - the Fourth Parliamentary Barents Conference - was held in Syktyvkar, Russia, in 2009 by the Russian State Duma.

First Arctic terns arrive in Iceland

Amanda Graham — Tue, 17 May 2011 21:38:36 GMT

(IcelandReview, 17 May 2011) -- The first Arctic terns of the season have arrived in Iceland. Four birds were spotted near Gardur in southwest Iceland on May 10. These birds seem to be habitual because in the past years they have always arrived at the same place at the same time, mbl.is reports. Since then, the tern has been spotted in other locations in Iceland but due to a sudden cold spell after a warm period it hasn’t been out and about much, according to Morgunbladid reports. “I have seen it sitting on the airstrip, but after the chill it hasn’t been around much,” commented Bjarni Magnússon, district commissioner on Grímsey island, Iceland’s northernmost inhabited island which lies directly on the Arctic Circle. More birds have been sighted in the north and east than the south and the west this spring. Magnússon said the terns have flocked to Grímsey in the past two summers and that the nesting had proven successful; there is plenty of food in the waters around the island. Nesting has not been as successful in Arctic tern colonies in other regions in the past years. He expects the bird to arrive in large flocks as soon as the temperatures rise again. Yesterday, Grímsey only had a temperature of 2°C (36°F) and a cold wind was blowing in from the northwest. The outlook for the entire country is not promising. According to the Icelandic Meteorological Office, temperatures will remain low and they might even drop below the freezing point in the north, accompanied by sleet.

A railway to Arctic riches: economic boom, environmental threat?

Amanda Graham — Mon, 16 May 2011 18:59:38 GMT

(Paul Waldie/The Globe and Mail via CTV News, 14 May 2011) -- A handful of people shuffle into the community hall in Kimmirut, Nunavut, a tiny outpost on the southern coast of Baffin Island. It’s early December, and the small group shakes off the cold winter air and settles into folding chairs to hear a presentation about something completely foreign to Baffin Island – a railway. “I have never seen a railway before,” a woman named Joannie tells the gathering, according to minutes of the meeting. “Could you give a better idea of what the train will look like?” Nobody else has seen a railway on Baffin Island either. No one has built one this far north, anywhere. But now – thanks to an insatiable global demand for minerals, and climate change that has opened up northern shipping routes – a rail line across part of Baffin Island is about to become a reality. It’s also a sign of things to come.

Arctic nations take small step toward cooperation

Amanda Graham — Mon, 16 May 2011 17:52:14 GMT

(AP via Anchorage Daily News, 13 May 2011) -- NUUK, Greenland - The United States, Russia and other nations agreed Thursday to coordinate Arctic search-and-rescue missions, a small step toward international cooperation in a fast-changing frontier threatened by looming fights over resources and military dominion. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said the agreement among the eight-nation Arctic Council highlights the growing importance of the Arctic, where climate change is creating new shipping routes, fishing grounds and oil and gas drilling opportunities. Russia, which has laid disputed claim to much Arctic territory, participated in the very limited agreement to help stranded fishermen and the like. A warming planet could open up vast amounts of wealth to be exploited, but dramatically alter life as we know it. Over the coming decades, rising sea levels are expected to change coastlines and inundate small islands, while altering the habitats of plants and wildlife. Low-lying areas from Bangladesh to Florida could be among the hardest hit. Clinton said the U.S. and the other countries would pursue new tourism, shipping and industrial avenues "in a smart and sustainable way that preserves the Arctic environment and ecosystems." She said she looked forward to "continued collaboration in the years to come." The United States has said it wants the cooperation pact with Russia, Canada, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark and Iceland to be a template for agreement on more pressing national security issues. ... The biennial Arctic Council meeting is tiptoeing around the tougher questions of territorial claims, while looking at ways to lessen the effect of greenhouse gases that are making the Arctic region warm faster than the rest of the world.

Arctic states meet in Greenland to discuss resources

Amanda Graham — Mon, 16 May 2011 17:37:34 GMT

(BBC News, 12 May 2011) -- Eight states with interests in the Arctic are meeting in Greenland to discuss management of natural resources and the impact of climate change. Rising temperatures threaten the livelihoods of traditional communities but are also set to create new openings for commercial exploitation. Experts believe the Arctic has more than a fifth of the world's undiscovered oil and gas reserves. A Wikileaks release has shed light on the race to carve up the region. The whistleblower website published secret US embassy cables which, among other things, suggest that Danish Foreign Minister Per Stig Moeller joked with the Americans, saying "if you stay out, then the rest of us will have more to carve up in the Arctic". US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who arrived in Greenland on Wednesday, said before the talks that the eight states were "going to raise the visibility of Arctic issues". She was speaking on a boat tour of a fjord in the Danish territory's capital, Nuuk, along with other foreign ministers. The US, Russia, Canada, Norway, Finland, Iceland, Sweden and Denmark are all attending the talks together with indigenous inhabitants of the region. They are due to sign an Arctic Search and Rescue Agreement, which the US state department says will be the first binding international agreement among the eight Arctic Council states. Mrs Clinton said she would tell the council that Washington's ratification of the law of the sea treaty was important, calling the move "way overdue".

Swedish strategy for Arctic region adopted

Amanda Graham — Fri, 13 May 2011 03:02:12 GMT

(Sweden Ministry for Foreign Affairs press release, 12 May 2011) -- The Government adopted a Swedish strategy for policy in the Arctic region on Thursday, the same day that Sweden formally takes over the Chairmanship of the Arctic Council, a cooperation organisation for states with territory and borders north of the Arctic Circle. The Chairmanship runs for a two-year period. The purpose of the Government's Strategy for the Arctic region is to present Sweden's relationship with the Arctic, together with the current priorities and future outlook for Sweden's Arctic policy, proceeding from an international perspective. The strategy particularly concerns three areas: climate and the environment, economic development and living conditions for people in the region. This is the first strategy the Government of Sweden has adopted on the Arctic as a whole. The region is in a process of far-reaching change. Climate change is creating new challenges, but also opportunities, on which Sweden must take a position and exert an influence. New conditions are emerging for shipping, hunting, fishing, trade and energy extraction, and alongside this new needs are arising for an efficient infrastructure.

Secretary Clinton signs Arctic search and rescue agreement with other Arctic nations

Amanda Graham — Mon, 16 May 2011 17:58:27 GMT

(US Department of State, Office of the Spokesman press release, 12 May 2011) -- On May 12, 2011, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton joined representatives of the other seven Member States of the Arctic Council (Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, the Russian Federation, and Sweden) in signing an Agreement on Cooperation on Aeronautical and Maritime Search and Rescue (SAR) in the Arctic (Agreement). The Agreement is the first legally binding instrument negotiated under the auspices of the Arctic Council. It coordinates life-saving international maritime and aeronautical SAR coverage and response among the Arctic States across an area of about 13 million square miles in the Arctic. The SAR Agreement will improve search and rescue response in the Arctic by committing all Parties to coordinate appropriate assistance to those in distress and to cooperate with each other in undertaking SAR operations. For each Party, the Agreement defines an area of the Arctic in which it will have lead responsibility in organizing responses to SAR incidents, both large and small. Parties to the Agreement commit to provide SAR assistance regardless of the nationality or status of persons who may need it. The Arctic Council launched this initiative at its 2009 Ministerial Meeting in Tromsø, Norway, establishing a Task Force, co-chaired by the United States and the Russian Federation. The Task Force proceeded in a highly collaborative spirit, meeting five times (in Washington, Moscow, Oslo, Helsinki and Reykjavik). The signature of the SAR Agreement in Nuuk is a positive step toward building partnerships in the Arctic. In particular, it reflects the commitment of the Arctic Council States to enhance their cooperation and offer responsible assistance to those involved in accidents in one of the harshest environments on Earth. This Agreement illustrates one of the most successful negotiations to date to address emerging issues in the Arctic. Arctic Council participants approached SAR negotiations with collaboration and dedication to a positive outcome. The United States congratulates its colleagues in this effort and looks forward to further collaboration on the vital issues facing the rich but fragile Arctic region.

New report: Megatrends in the Arctic

Amanda Graham — Thu, 12 May 2011 23:43:46 GMT

(Norden, 12 May 2011) -- A new report from the Nordic Council of Ministers looks at the long term development in the Arctic region. The report focuses on the current and the likely future situation in the Arctic by going through the challenges and tendencies at work in the region. The current pace of global change has already had a decisive impact on the Arctic. To understand the current and likely future situation in the Arctic it is important to acknowledge the pre-conditions, challenges and tendencies at work in the region. Some of these developments should be characterized as megatrends because they overarch and impact on everything else. They are trends deemed so powerful that they have the potential to transform society across social categories and at all levels, from individuals and local-level players to global structures, and eventually to change our ways of living and thinking. The report Megatrends in the Arctic looks at the development in the Arctic through this lens and presents a long-term perspective on this crucial region.

Wikileaks cables show race to carve up Arctic

Amanda Graham — Thu, 12 May 2011 19:29:23 GMT

(Meirion Jones and Susan Watts/BBC News, 12 May 2011) -- Secret US embassy cables released by Wikileaks show nations are racing to "carve up" Arctic resources – oil, gas and even rubies – as the ice retreats. They suggest that Arctic states, including the US and Russia, are all pushing to stake a claim. The opportunity to exploit resources has come because of a dramatic fall in the amount of ice in the Arctic. The US Geological Survey estimates oil reserves off Greenland are as big as those in the North Sea. The cables were released by the Wikileaks whistleblower website as foreign ministers from the eight Arctic Council member states – Russia, the United States, Canada, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Sweden and Iceland – met in Nuuk, Greenland on Thursday to sign a treaty on international search-and-rescue in the Arctic and discuss the region's future challenges. The cables claim the Danish Foreign Minister Per Stig Moeller joked with the Americans saying "if you stay out, then the rest of us will have more to carve up in the Arctic". Greenland is an autonomous Danish dependent territory with limited self-government however, the cables show that US diplomats believe Greenland "is on a clear track to independence" and see this as "a unique opportunity" for American gas and oil companies to get a foothold. The then-US Ambassador to Denmark James P Cain said in the cables that he introduced Greenland's government to New York financiers "to help the Greenlanders secure the investments needed for such exploitation".

Russian Analytical Digest: Russian policy options in the Arctic

Amanda Graham — Thu, 12 May 2011 18:07:56 GMT

(RAD, No. 96, 12 May 2011) -- Russia’s Northern Policy: Balancing an ‘Open’ and ‘Closed’ North, by Elana Wilson Rowe, Norway; The Demographic Challenges of Russia’s Arctic, by Marlene Laruelle, Washington; Russia’s Arctic Security Strategy, by Dmitry Gorenburg, Cambridge, MA. Also, Documentation: International Law of the Sea, Oil and Gas Resources of the Arctic, The Russian Flag Below the Arctic (2007). Download from here.

Harper should look northward again

Amanda Graham — Tue, 10 May 2011 23:08:15 GMT

(Anita Dey Nuttall/Edmonton Journal, 8 May 2011)** -- Defining itself as "the True North Strong and Free," Canada has moved in recent years to assert that its national and international identity is that of a northern circumpolar country. The Northern Strategy was a cornerstone of the previous Conservative government, yet, curiously, in the run-up to the recently concluded federal election, the leaders of the main parties did not engage in any national discussion on the Arctic or on northern issues. Issues of concern to northern residents hardly featured during any debate, nor did the priorities identified in the Northern Strategy, i.e., sovereignty, environment, social and economic development and governance. The North remained remote and irrelevant to the majority of Canadians who posed questions to the main party leaders. The pulse of the nation seemed to beat mainly south of 60 degrees N. ... While Canada's colonial history may have placed a certain burden of culpability and responsibility that clouds how Canada's south and north relate, our political leaders missed an opportunity to engage in a new and enlightened dialogue that redefines and rebuilds this relationship for the country as a whole, not just between a handful of government departments and northern communities. The outcome of this election has meant a major realignment of the country's political landscape. The shift in the political thinking of the electorate is a measure of a Canadian society that is quickly evolving and changing. ... Canada's international leadership on Arctic issues can only be sustained in a credible way insofar as its domestic policies in the North are carried through successfully. If inaccessibility, remoteness and cost are issues that stop the rest of Canada from engaging with the North and for those in the North to connect with the South, it then becomes especially vital for this new Conservative government to address these limitations. A place is only peripheral and remote if it is allowed to be so.

Inuit Type 2 diabetes gap worsens

Amanda Graham — Tue, 10 May 2011 21:49:21 GMT

(CBC News, 10 May 2011) -- Type 2 diabetes, once considered rare in Inuit communities, is now comparable to rates in the general population, researchers have found. The Inuit Health Survey was conducted as part of International Polar Year to help fill in gaps on health data for Canadian Inuit, who requested the information on their people. The new findings showed 28 per cent of Inuit were overweight, 35 per cent were obese and nearly 44 per cent had what is considered an unhealthy waist size based on standards for Caucasians, according to the study published in this week's Canadian Medical Association Journal. "Long time ago my parents didn't know anything about diabetes," recalls Flossie Oakoak, a 62-year-old Inuk originally from Cambridge Bay who has Type 2 diabetes. "When there was no white man here, there was only caribou, char. Most of the people are getting bigger and bigger." Oakoak now lives in Yellowknife, where she watches her diet, passing on dessert and opting not to cave in to a craving for pizza hot from an oven over lunch at a downtown women's centre. For the study, researchers from McGill University in Montreal and the University of Toronto looked at data on 2,595 randomly selected participants in 1,901 households in the Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Labrador to understand the prevalence of high blood sugar levels.

Canada sending Aglukkaq to Arctic Council meet

Amanda Graham — Tue, 10 May 2011 02:18:49 GMT

(CBC News, 9 May 2011) -- Re-elected federal cabinet minister Leona Aglukkaq will represent Canada at a high-level meeting of Arctic nations later this week. Prime Minister Stephen Harper has asked Aglukkaq, who was most recently health minister, to attend the Arctic Council's ministerial meeting in Nuuk, Greenland, on Thursday, federal officials confirmed to CBC News on Monday. will be joined by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, and foreign affairs ministers from Russia, Norway, Iceland, Finland, Sweden and Denmark.

Who Owns the Arctic? A Resource Guide

Amanda Graham — Tue, 10 May 2011 01:32:02 GMT

(Canadian Studies Center, University of Washington) -- The Center co-sponsored the February educator workshop, Who Owns the Arctic?, with the World Affairs Council (WAC). WAC produced a tremendous resource guide downloadable here with extensive resources on Arctic studies.

Leaking nuclear icebreaker escorted out of ice covered Kara Sea

Amanda Graham — Sat, 07 May 2011 20:49:26 GMT

(BarentsObserver, 6 May 2011) -- UPDATED: Taimyr was Friday evening escorted by the the nuclear powered icebreaker "Rossia" into a bay on the Vaigach island. "Ongoing leakages of cooling water from the reactor can evolve into a serious accident with potential for radioactive leakages," says nuclear physicist Nils Bøhmer in Bellona. The nuclear powered icebreaker was earlier this week escorting vessels on the Yenisei river north of the port-town of Dudinka when increased levels of radiation were detected in the air ventilation system of the reactor. The icebreaker aborted its mission and started Thursday to sail back towards the homeport in Murmansk on Russia’s Kola Peninsula.

Report says reducing black carbon would have immediate effect on climate

Amanda Graham — Sat, 07 May 2011 20:32:41 GMT

(Steve Heimel, APRN – Anchorage via APRN, 6 May 2011) -- The United Nations Environment Project is looking at a report that suggests a short-term fix for climate warming – controlling black carbon and ozone. The report say that unlike controlling carbon dioxide, which appears to be politically difficult and would take years to make a difference, dealing with black carbon would have an immediate effect on climate warming.

Inuit cultural school opens in Nunavut

Amanda Graham — Fri, 06 May 2011 07:28:36 GMT

(CBC News, 5 April 2011) -- Young Inuit can now learn about their language and traditions at a new cultural school that opened this week in Nunavut. The Piqqusilirivvik Inuit Cultural School officially opened Wednesday in Clyde River, Nunavut, a hamlet of about 820 on the coast of northeastern Baffin Island. Developed by the territorial government, the school aims to preserve the Inuit culture in Nunavut, where 84 per cent of the population is Inuit, by teaching youth the Inuktitut language and traditional activities such as hunting, craft-making, and Arctic outdoor survival. "It's not only the first for Nunavut, it's the first in our country," Nunavut Premier Eva Aariak said at the opening ceremony. The first set of 26 students — one selected from each community in Nunavut — are expected to begin classes with 14 instructors in September. The students will stay in dormitory-style rooms inside the school, which also has several open-concept classrooms, a wood shop and a sewing room. Semesters will be about three to four months long, matching the length of the seasons, according to officials. "Knowing who you are, as an Inuk, is just so incredibly important," said Becky Kilabuk, youth programs coordinator with the Qikiqtani Inuit Association in Iqaluit.

Northern nations gear up for Arctic Council meet

Amanda Graham — Fri, 06 May 2011 04:04:46 GMT

(CBC News, 5 May 2011) -- Arctic search and rescue and the environment will be among the topics that leaders from eight northern nations, including Canada, are set to discuss in Nuuk, Greenland, next week. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov are among the high-level leaders who are expected to attend the Arctic Council's ministerial meeting next Thursday. The Canadian government has yet to say who will represent Canada at the ministers' meeting. The most recent foreign affairs minister, Lawrence Cannon, lost his seat in Monday's federal election. Representatives from Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland and Iceland will also be in Nuuk. Senior Arctic officials will meet before the ministers, starting on Monday. Many items are on the Nuuk meeting agenda, including the signing of an Arctic search and rescue coordination treaty. The treaty will require member nations to co-ordinate with each other in the event of a plane crash, cruise ship sinking, big oil spill or other major disaster in the Arctic. Once signed, the treaty will become the first legally binding agreement to be reached by the Arctic Council's eight member countries.

Whaling season off to strong start [mp3]

Amanda Graham — Thu, 05 May 2011 21:25:17 GMT

(Jake Neher/KBRW – Barrow via APRN, 4 May 2011) -- Whalers in Northern Alaska are off to a strong start for the 2011 spring season. Crews have been in full gear since the first leads opened up in the Arctic Sea ice. [mp3]

Rubles for the Arctic Council

Amanda Graham — Thu, 05 May 2011 19:10:41 GMT

(Barents Observer, 5 May 2011) -- Russia allocates €10 million to the Arctic Council over the next two years. The Russian Government will today discuss the question of concluding a treaty between Russia and the Nordic Environment Finance Corporation on participation in the Arctic Council’s Project Support Instrument (PSI), B-port reports. Signing of the agreement will take place during the Arctic Council’s Ministerial Meeting in Nuuk, Greenland on May 12. Russia’s contribution to PSI will be €10 million in the period 2011-2013. The Project Support Instrument (PSI) was established by the Arctic Council in March 2005, and is a financial initiative that aims to focus on actions preventing pollution of the Arctic. The PSI is a mechanism for financing specific priority projects already approved by the Arctic Council, NEFCO’s website reads.

As Greenland melts faster into sea, researchers forecast up to 5-foot rise in ocean levels

Amanda Graham — Thu, 05 May 2011 18:54:35 GMT

(AP via Washington Post, 5 April 2011) -- STOCKHOLM - The ice of Greenland and the rest of the Arctic is melting faster than expected and could help raise global sea levels by as much as 5 feet this century, dramatically higher than earlier projections, an authoritative international assessment says. The findings “emphasize the need for greater urgency” in combating global warming, says the report of the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Program (AMAP), the scientific arm of the eight-nation Arctic Council. The warning of much higher seas comes as the world’s nations remain bogged down in their two-decade-long talks on reducing emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases blamed for global warming. ... The new report, whose executive summary was obtained by The Associated Press, is to be delivered to U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and foreign ministers of the other seven member nations at an Arctic Council meeting next week in Greenland. It first will be discussed by some 400 international scientists at a conference this week in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Airlifted Canadian bison sent to Russia to boost species' survival

Amanda Graham — Thu, 05 May 2011 06:30:24 GMT

(Randy Boswell/Postmedia News, 4 May 2011) -- Canadian wildlife officials have delivered a shipment of 30 wood bison from a national park in Alberta to a historic buffalo stomping ground in sub-Arctic Russia — part of a unique, intercontinental gift of natural heritage aimed at boosting the species' long-range chances of survival. The bison airlift, carried out in late March, was the second transplant of the Canadian beasts in the past five years to the Siberian republic of Sakha, where Russian biologists are trying to recreate a long-vanished ecosystem once dominated by the related steppe bison before its extinction about 10,000 years ago. The remarkable wildlife export — made possible with a heavy Russian transport aircraft that required special permission to land at the Edmonton airport — is a showcase project this year for Parks Canada, which is celebrating the 100th anniversary of its creation as an distinct branch of the federal government. ... The arrival of the Canadian animals is a "huge deal" for wildlife specialists in Sakha, said Shury, "because bison haven't been present in that part of the world for over 10,000 years." The first transfer of 30 bison in 2006 was successful, he said, but the additional animals are necessary to achieve enough genetic diversity for the Siberian herd to become self-sustaining. "Once they build up enough of a breeding population," Shury said, "they'd like to release bison into the wild and restore a large herbivore into that landscape that hasn't been there for a long, long time."

Shell tries to calm fears on drilling in Alaska

Amanda Graham — Mon, 02 May 2011 06:48:38 GMT

(Clifford Krauss/New York Times, 1 May 2011) -- SAVOONGA, Alaska — Shell Oil will present an ambitious proposal to the federal government this week, seeking permission to drill up to 10 exploratory oil wells beneath Alaska’s frigid Arctic waters. The forbidding ice-clogged region is believed to hold vast reserves of oil, potentially enough to fuel 25 million cars for 35 years. And with production in Alaska’s North Slope in steep decline, the oil industry is eager to tap new offshore wells. Shell has led the way, working for five years to convince regulators, environmentalists, Native Alaskans and several courts that it could manage the process safely, protect polar bears and other wildlife, safeguard air quality for residents and respond quickly to any spill in the region. But BP’s Deepwater Horizon disaster a year ago put a chill on new offshore drilling. Shell’s renewed application will pose a test for President Obama, who promised to put safety first after the BP spill. But he has also reiterated his support for offshore drilling amid voter worries about rising gasoline prices. Environmental groups say a spill in the Arctic’s inaccessible waters could be even more catastrophic than the Gulf of Mexico accident. Republicans, meanwhile, are threatening to excoriate the president for turning his back on energy security if he says no to Shell. “Americans are reeling from staggering prices at the pump,” said Representative Cory Gardner, a Colorado Republican on the House Energy and Commerce Committee. “So the president has to justify to the American people why we are not replacing Saudi Arabian oil imports with U.S.-produced oil.” Whatever the administration decides, it will anger somebody. “If the Obama administration approves drilling in the Arctic, it will demonstrate that they have learned nothing from the gulf spill,” said Brendan Cummings, senior counsel at the Center for Biological Diversity, which is suing to stop Shell.

Icy weather surprises Icelanders

Amanda Graham — Mon, 02 May 2011 04:27:14 GMT

(AFP via Vancouver Sun, 1 May 2011) -- Iceland saw its first May snowfall for almost a decade over the weekend, with more than 16 centimetres falling on the capital Reykjavik, meteorologists said Sunday. "We recorded 16.4 centimetres of snow in the Reykjavik area and the small town of Hvalfjoerdur (a few kilometres north of the capital) received 18 centimetres," Thorsteinn Jonsson from the Icelandic Meteorological Office said. "It's the first time since 1993 that it has snowed in May (in Reykjavik)," he said, adding that it was the second most significant May snowfall since 1987, when 18 centimetres fell on the capital. "We did not see it coming and we were as surprised as everyone else in Reykjavik," he added. The snow fell from Saturday evening through Sunday morning on Iceland's west coast, where "an air mass... brought temperatures below zero and turned the rain into snow," said Mr Jonsson, who said the spell looked to be over. "This afternoon and this evening it will return to rain, and perhaps we'll wake up to summer tomorrow with some sun," he added.