In recent weeks, media coverage of two alarming issues in Canada's northern reaches have chronicled the intersection of the drastic climate changes taking place, the local communities surviving through them, and the machinations of political entities that hope to benefit from them.
Issue Number One: The Northwest Passage
A clear path through the ice across the top of North American continent would be a huge boon for global business. Hundreds of years ago, the potential for such a passage drove the exploration of the north, but hopes went unrealized as impassable ice made the journey perilous in the extreme.
What humanity couldn't achieve reliably with icebreakers, however, were succeeding handily at with carbon dioxide. Shorter cold seasons and receding ice are making the Northwest Passage real - and the political squabbling over its exploitation has begun in earnest.
Canada asserts that we have full ownership over the passage - and regulatory rights to control who and what go through it. In a minor controversey, the former US Ambassador to Canada tentatively agreed with Canadian control - and then promptly stepped down. The stepping down was in turn promptly followed by a statement from the Bush Administration that straits of this type should be international territory open to all. The squabbling continues.
Issue Number Two: Winter Roads
"Winter Roads" are roads "built" on frozen lakes and rivers - essentially a path is cleared on frozen bodies on which vehicles can drive. In the spring, the roads melt away until the next winter. Winter roads are a critical lifeline for isolated northern communities, who take advantage of their seasonal availability to restock on goods that can't be flown in - deisel fuel, construction materials, etc.
As the Northwest Passage is thawing, so are the winter roads. In the case of the roads, however, the melt is cutting people off. There's no easy answer here: building highway infrastructure is (a) damaging to the environment, (b) staggeringly expensive for a limited population, and (c) subject to rapid degredation from melting permafrost. Airships capable of hauling cargo may be one answer, abandoning communities (and ways of life) may be another.
That's it for moment. BTW - the title references the arctic circle - which I believe is at 66 degrees north - If I'm wrong let me know!
Photo by Withrow on Flickr.
