By Hannah Murphy
The Arctic experienced a record breaking heat wave this summer, with one Siberian town reaching a staggering reported 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit in June. The high temperatures have triggered rapid permafrost thawing, massive wildfires, and accelerated sea ice deterioration. “The Arctic is heating more than twice as fast as the global average, impacting local populations and ecosystems with global repercussions,” said World Meteorological Organization Secretary-General Petteri Taalals. “What happens in the Arctic does not stay in the Arctic. Because of teleconnections, the pole influences weather and climate conditions in lower latitudes where hundreds of millions of people live.” Scientists from the World Weather Attribution project have confirmed that the heat wave would not be possible without human-caused climate change, with it being 600 times more likely as a result. Also concerning is the duration of time that Siberia in particular is experiencing record temperatures. Since December 2019, temperatures have been around 9 degrees Fahrenheit above average due to a high pressure system being trapped over the region. While it is not uncommon for such a system to remain in place for a period, it is unusual for it to remain for so long. The record heat has led to increased dryness, resulting in massive wildfires. While wildfires are not uncommon in the Arctic, fires this year produced 244 megatonnes of carbon, an increase of more than a third of last year’s record 181 megatonnes. In perspective, the fires of the past two years have emitted more carbon dioxide than the previous 16 years combined. These wildfires have torn through millions of acres of mostly grassland and peat, causing high levels of carbon to be emitted as a result. Currently 1,400 gigatons of carbon are frozen in permafrost, compared to the 850 gigatons present in the atmosphere. As the permafrost continues to thaw rapidly due to a combination of higher temperatures and devastating wildfires, more carbon is released into the atmosphere in the form of carbon dioxide and methane. The thawing permafrost has not yet been a significant contributor to climate change since the warmer temperatures have caused a longer growing season, allowing Arctic plants to absorb the carbon emitted from the permafrost. Once the Arctic can no longer absorb what it emits, however, it will transform from being a carbon sink to a carbon source. Once this threshold has passed, it cannot be reversed. The thawing permafrost has also caused the Siberian landscape to become highly unstable and has posed a major threat to existing infrastructure. In one example, an oil tank in Norilsk, Siberia burst this past May after the ground it was situated on shifted due to the thawing permafrost. The resulting spill caused 21,000 tons of diesel to leak into Siberia’s Ambarnaya River. The record heat wave and wildfires have also impacted Arctic sea ice. According to the National Snow and Ice Data Center, as of July the extent of Arctic sea ice had fallen 846,000 square miles below the 1981 to 2010 average. By July 20 the Northern Sea Route had completely open waters, allowing for a sharp increase in ships able to travel the route without the need for icebreakers. These open waters are thought to be correlated with the Siberian heatwave. Russian officials hope to capitalize on the expanded ice-free window for the route, as earlier melting becomes the new normal.
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By Hannah Murphy
The Trump administration announced on August 17 that it will move forward with its controversial plan to open up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) for offshore oil and gas drilling. After sixty continuous years of protection, the process of auctioning off leases for the coastal plains region of the refuge will now begin. The ANWR is the largest remaining stretch of wilderness in the United States, covering over 19 million acres. Trump plans to open up 1.5 million acres in the coastal plains region for drilling. The coastal plains is vital to the ecosystem, as it is the site of porcupine caribou calving and a popular location for polar bears to make their dens. Thus while the region comprises only 8 percent of the total refuge, it is integral to the overall stability of the ecosystem. From the beginning of his administration, Trump has pushed domestic fossil fuel production in the aim of achieving global energy dominance. The coastal plains is considered one of the largest untapped onshore oil reserves in North America; however, that does not necessarily mean there are large quantities of oil in the region. Proponents of the Coastal Plain Oil and Gas Leasing Program include Alaskan lawmakers and several indegeous groups, who argue that the drilling would provide jobs that the Alaskan economy desperately needs. The Coastal Plain Oil and Gas Leasing Program is technically required by law, per the 2017 Tax Cuts Jobs Act. The act requires that at least two sales of a minimum of 400,000 acres must be made in the seven years following the 2017 signing. The sales process can now begin as the Department of the Interior has conducted the necessary reviews and has provided full approval for the plan. Once a lease is sold, it would be difficult for a future president to reverse the decision. Even if Democratic nominee Joe Biden--who is against drilling the area--won the election, he may not be able to prevent drilling from taking place if a lease was sold under the Trump administration. The program has faced fierce opposition from environmental groups and several Alaskan Native groups, such as the Gwich’in people, who have lived in the Arctic for thousands of years. These groups have already filed several lawsuits to stall the sale of leases on the grounds that the program violates the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act, the National Environmental Policy Act, the Wilderness Act, and the Endangered Species Act. “This proposed desecration of the coastal plain of the Arctic Refuge is an outrageous assault on its incomparable wildlife and habitat, the traditional lifestyle and culture of the Gwich’in Nation, and the overwhelming desire of the American people to preserve this intact ecosystem for future generations” said Dr. David Raskin, president of the Friends of Alaska National Wildlife Refuges. The reviews conducted by the Department of the Interior do note that drilling could be highly destructive to the local ecosystem. Several protections have been put in place in an effort to diminish some of these negative effects, such as limiting the use of heavy machinery during the caribou calving season and only using exploration rigs in the heart of winter. Environmental groups argue that these protections are inadequate and ignore scientific research on the effects of drilling on an ecosystem and the environment. Another concern is the possibility of an oil spill. The necessary infrastructure to deal with an oil spill is nonexistent in the isolated location, and would potentially be catastrophic. Beyond the environmental concerns there are doubts as to whether the program would even be profitable. Many countries are in the process of weaning off of fossil fuel dependency in favor of cleaner alternatives, and the current coronavirus pandemic has caused the price of oil to collapse. As a result, major banks such as Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan Chase have declared that they would not directly finance any drilling in the Arctic refuge. It is therefore uncertain how much interest there will be in the leases; however, Secretary of the Interior David Bernhardt predicts that a lease will likely be sold before the end of the year. |
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