ARCTIC: Good News, Nunavut & more – 23rd Jan 2024

Góðan daginn from Keswick Village! This is the Rorshok Arctic Update from the 23rd of January twenty twenty-four A quick summary of what’s going down North of the Arctic Circle!

Let’s kick things off this week in Canada’s northern region of Nunavut, which has a newly independent future. On Thursday the 18th, Justin Trudeau, the Canadian Prime Minister, formally signed a devolution agreement granting the Arctic territory control over its reserves of precious metals and rare earth metals. Nunavut suffers from issues such as poor education, treacherous weather, and infrastructure underinvestment, which have stunted the economic growth of the region. Nunavut Premier Piyai Akeeagok said that Nunavut will be able to manage its own resources and invest more money into infrastructure and public services. There was traditional dancing and singing at the agreement signing ceremony, with Trudeau joining in on the festivities.

More good news came to Nunavut on Tuesday the 16th. A scientific group from the University of Ottawa traveled to the town of Iqaluit and announced a $3.5 million Canadian dollar, or a $2.5 million US dollars, five-year research program that will improve Nunavut’s tuberculosis screening programs. The study will develop a method of detecting the disease in wastewater, finding the bacterial infection soon, and treating it before it reaches the populace. This is a serious health issue as the Public Health Agency of Canada has found that the rate of tuberculosis is 290 times higher among Inuit than the general population. Hopefully, this study will create a new early warning system that can lower the infection rate.

As the Arctic warms, one of the most concerning consequences is the melting of permafrost. This permanently frozen land not only traps harmful greenhouse gasses but, according to a Guardian report published on Sunday the 21st, keeps ancient viruses away from humans. Strains of these Methuselah microbes, or zombie viruses have been found within Siberia’s permafrost. They are 50,000 years old and if thawed, they can infect other organisms. The report warns that Russian oil and gas exploration will be drilling into this permafrost, risking suddenly releasing vast amounts of pathogens. The University of the Arctic is working to create quarantine facilities and medical procedures to contain outbreaks locally, before any infection spreads.

A ferry trip away from Iceland to Greenland, where climate change is affecting the many glaciers of Greenland much more than previously thought. A NASA study measuring the speed at which ice is melting in Greenland was published in the journal Nature, on Wednesday the 17th. It found that Greenland has lost 20% more ice than previously estimated, with 30 million tonnes of ice melting every hour. The report details that this massive amount of water being added to the Atlantic Ocean every hour risks causing a collapse of the Atlantic Ocean currents, with severe consequences for humanity.

Remaining in Greenland where on Friday the 19th, Denmark pledged $400 million US dollars to strengthen its Arctic defense monitoring and surveillance. Denmark’s total new defense investment is about $2.4 billion US dollars. The Greenlandic government reacted to the investment announcement with disappointment, saying that the investment was not enough and that Greenland was left out of defense settlement negotiations. Vivian Motzfeldt, Greenland’s Foreign Affairs Minister, has welcomed the chance to participate in upcoming meetings, involving Greenland, that can satisfy all parties.

Speaking of Arctic military action, Russia’s continued war in Ukraine is having a disproportionate effect on small Arctic Russian communities. In the Komi republic, the number of military casualties was over 400 on Tuesday the 16th, with most of them coming from villages of less than a thousand residents. On Monday the 15th, military recruitment officers raided the small town of Pechenga looking for migrants to be forcefully recruited and sent to war. There have been reports of migrants forced into military service across the Arctic since the war began. These stories highlight how Russia is avoiding recruiting citizens from its richer cities and instead seeks people from a poorer and less educated background who will be more desperate to join Russia’s war.

Turning our attention to Alaska… Following the end of the legal battles to get the Willow and Pikka oil projects running on Alaska’s north slope, a state production forecast presented to lawmakers on Wednesday the 17th projected that oil production will increase by 30% by twenty thirty-two. Oil production in Alaska has declined over the last five years so government officials have welcomed this forecast as they hope to attract further investment in the region.

Speaking of oil investment, Norway is vastly expanding its oil and gas exploration drilling. On Tuesday the 16th, the Norwegian government awarded sixty-two exploration permits for oil and gas, up from forty-seven awarded last year. In a conference on Tuesday the 16th, the country's energy minister said that the increase includes drilling permits in the Arctic Barents Sea and the adjacent Norwegian Sea. Norway became Europe’s biggest gas supplier in twenty twenty-two and seeks to increase its supplies of oil and gas as many European countries look for an alternative supplier to Russia.

Along with oil and gas, sanctions against Russia have given Norway more customers for another crucial resource: seafood. Data from the Norwegian Seafood Council released on Friday the 19th revealed that seafood exports increased by over 40% from twenty twenty-two to twenty twenty-three, earning record revenues of over $16 billion US dollars. The US has ended its seafood trade with Russia and turned to Norway to satisfy its needs for cod, king crabs and salmon, leading to record exports and earnings in Norway’s fishing sector, which shows no signs of slowing.

In Sweden, battery manufacturer Northvolt announced in a press release on Wednesday the 17th that it has secured its largest financing to date, raising $7 billion US dollars. The funds will be used to expand its battery factory in Skellefteå, northern Sweden, and the adjacent battery recycling facility, Revolt One. The financing involves twenty-three commercial banks from around the EU. Northvolt sees it as Europe's largest green debt financing deal, marking a milestone for the European energy transition.

Let’s go back to Russia for a minute, as it needs to bounce back from economic sanctions and one of its main strategies is to build a new fleet of Arctic icebreaker vessels and dominate the Arctic Ocean. On Friday the 19th, the General Director of the State Transport Company or JSC announced that thirteen new Arctic vessels are planned for construction at a cost of 22 billion rubles, about $250 million US dollars. The National Welfare Fund will provide the money and the first ships should be ready by twenty twenty-five.

Finally, this week, the Tromsø International Film Festival will be showing a rich variety of films from across all eight Arctic nations. Hosted in Norway’s oldest cinema, this festival annually provides a voice for Indigenous artists who otherwise do not get recognition in the film industry. Among the many films is Je’ vida, the first-ever feature film in the Skolte Sámi language, a language at serious risk of extinction. The festival runs until Sunday the 21st, To check out the program of the festival, follow the link in the show notes!

That’s it for this week! Thanks for joining us!

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