ARCTIC: Deep-Sea Mining Halted & more – 9th Dec 2025

Góðan daginn from BA! This is the Rorshok Arctic Update from the 9th of December twenty twenty-five. A quick summary of what’s going down North of the Arctic Circle!

It must be Christmas season because we’ve good news for the Arctic!

On Wednesday the 3rd, the Norwegian government announced it will not move forward with plans to issue deep-sea mining licenses in the Arctic. Under pressure from green opposition parties in Norway, and environmental organizations such as Greenpeace, the ruling Labor party has ended its mining plans.

Criticism of deep-sea mining comes from environmental advocates who believe the practice poses a serious threat to the health of oceans worldwide. As only a small fraction of the deep sea has been explored by humans, we can’t risk harming or disturbing something that may have huge consequences for the rest of the world.

But the good news didn’t stop there. On Wednesday the 3rd, the EU Council announced it has struck a deal with EU member states to end the import of Russian liquefied natural gas (or LNG) by the end of twenty twenty-six.

With most LNG imported by the EU originating in the Russian Arctic, at either the Yamal or Arctic LNG2 facilities, this will have huge consequences for the north. Unless Russia can find a replacement for its biggest customer, there will be far fewer ships travelling through the north next year, reducing pollution and environmental disturbances. There may also be less money for Russia to build new Arctic gas plants, slowing the growth of heavy industry in the fragile north.

While Russia’s growth in the Arctic is slowing down, China continues to be the newest northern power. According to a report published by the US Department of Homeland Security on Monday the 1st, this year saw a surge of Chinese military and research vessels in Arctic waters, with the Department calling the activity unprecedented. In the last year, China has expanded its icebreaker and submersible fleets, overtaking the US’s marine capability in the Arctic. The US government considers China’s increased presence along the edge of Alaska a threat to American sovereignty and intends to bolster its own ice-capable fleet to counter it.

To read further into China’s complex efforts to gain influence in the north, check out the link in the show notes.

Acting quickly against security threats in the Arctic is important because the prospect of a northern conflict is becoming very real. In an interview with Major General Søren Andersen, commander of Denmark’s Joint Arctic Command, published by Danish Defence Magazine Honnør on Friday the 5th, Andersen said that once Russia’s war in Ukraine ends, the Russian military will turn its attention to arming the Arctic.

Of particular concern is the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard, which hosts several Russian communities. Due to its remote nature and established Russian presence, the Danish military believes Svalbard is at risk of being on Russia’s list of targets.

The commander says European allies need to spend much more time training in the north, to be ready for the worst-case scenario of war.

Norway and the UK are taking threats from Russia very seriously. On Friday the 5th, the Norwegian government announced it has signed a defence agreement with the UK, their most extensive in recent times. British forces will now play a large role in the defense of Norway, both on land and at sea, with northern Norway hosting a significant number of British forces and infrastructure.

The two allies will also work to create a combined fleet of nearly identical navies, meaning sailors and soldiers will be able to move freely between Norwegian and British navies, creating a more seamless alliance in defending the European north.

Defending the Arctic will need a lot of building materials, and Europe thinks it can find what it needs in Greenland. On Wednesday the 3rd, the Greenlandic Public Broadcaster, KNR, reported that the EU has created a new mining strategy and will, for the first time ever, directly finance a mining project in Greenland.

The European Investment Bank will send money to the Malmbjerget project in Northeast Greenland, where deposits of molybdenum and magnesium are viewed as strategically important for European defense.

Mining in the Arctic is one of the north’s fastest-growing industries, but it now faces a costly threat from a familiar foe: climate change. As reported by Alaska’s Northern Journal on Tuesday the 2nd, the Red Dog zinc mine in Northwest Alaska may be forced to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to address problems triggered by thawing permafrost.

The mine must treat its wastewater before releasing it back into the environment, but melting ground around the site is flushing long-trapped minerals into its system, sharply increasing contamination levels. Teck, the mine’s owner, says upgrading treatment facilities will require massive investment. And with Red Dog being one of the few steady employers in this remote region, balancing jobs and environmental protection may become one of Alaska’s biggest challenges in the year ahead.

Just over the border, in the Canadian Yukon, an Indigenous community is suing the government over its own mining concerns. The First Nations’ Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in filed a suit against the government of the Yukon on Thursday the 4th. They seek damages due to the local government’s violation of treaty agreements signed thirty years ago. The government and the First Nation have an agreement where the government can mine minerals it finds on the First Nation’s land, as long as they manage the land properly. However, the Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in said the government has left the land it has developed for minerals damaged, causing significant economic losses for the First Nation.

Darren Taylor, Chief of the First Nation, says his community has attempted many times to negotiate directly with the territorial government, without response. Now, they are taking this fight to the courts.

Indigenous justice is coming to Finland too. On Thursday the 4th, Finland’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which has investigated injustices against the nation’s Sami community, released its recommendations to strengthen Sámi rights and overhaul the country’s approach to Indigenous affairs.

Petteri Orpo, the Finnish Prime Minister, responded by saying his nation should issue an official apology for the systematic abuse and discrimination experienced by the Sami people in Finland over time.

Among the seventy recommendations in the report are the creation of a State Secretary for Sámi Affairs, giving the Indigenous community its strongest ever presence in national governance.

Meanwhile, in the smallest Arctic nation, the Faroe Islands, a huge legal decision has been taken. On Friday the 5th, the BBC wrote that the Faroese Parliament has voted to legalize abortion until the 12th week of pregnancy, overturning a complete ban on the medical procedure in most cases.

This previous stance made the Faroe Islands the European nation with the most restrictive abortion policies. But following a tense debate and narrow vote, the reform bill passed. Ingilín Didriksen Strømm, one of the MPs behind the bill, called this a historic day for the country, granting women newfound autonomy over their bodies.

A short ferry ride away, in Iceland, a controversial practice is coming to a close. As reported by national newspaper, RUV, on Friday the 5th, fur farming is almost over in Iceland. Southern Iceland has five farms that breed, kill and harvest the fur from mink. However, with fewer people buying fur and the farms losing money, four of the five will close shortly. Unfortunately, the departing farms will be slaughtering the existing animals. But as the industry continues to shrink, the number of mink being raised only for their fur will only fall as time moves on.

And for our final story, a roundup of the twenty twenty-five wildfire season. The EU’s Climate Monitoring Service, Copernicus, published its annual wildfire report on Wednesday the 3rd. Canada is the headline nation this year, with a third massive wildfire season in a row resulting in the nation’s second-highest emissions on record.

The rest of the Arctic was spared when compared to Canada, with the only other region suffering notably being the Russian north, with major fires breaking out in the Sakha Republic, but these occurred in areas with few residents.

While the global trend for wildfires continues to increase, the Arctic in twenty twenty-five could breathe a sigh of relief and hope for a calm year to come.

Aaand that’s it for this week! Thank you for joining us!

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