ARCTIC: Pollution & more – 4th Jun 2024

Góðan daginn from BA! This is the Rorshok Arctic Update from the 4th of June twenty twenty-four. A quick summary of what’s going down North of the Arctic Circle!

The long-term health of Russia’s Arctic is in serious trouble. On Monday the 27th of May, The Moscow Times revealed that old Soviet-era nuclear submarines and submarine bases dumped into the Arctic Ocean are spreading nuclear pollution. Before Russia's twenty twenty-two invasion of Ukraine, many European countries collaborated with Russia to clean up this contamination. However, no work has been undertaken since the invasion. The Moscow Times' report highlights two nuclear submarines at the bottom of the Arctic Ocean, which contain 1 million curies of radiation, about a quarter of what was released in the first month of the twenty eleven Fukushima disaster. This radioactive material is currently held behind a temporary sealant expected to last until twenty thirty-two.

Russia’s Arctic coast may be in danger, but the country has big plans to develop the area. On Friday the 31st of May, the Maritime Congress was held in Vladivostok where Yury Trutnev, the deputy Prime Minister, and Gadzhimagomed Guseynov the Deputy Minister for Development of the Arctic, spoke on the future of shipping along the northern coast of Russia. Trutnev said that cargo shipping is expected to double from twenty twenty-three to twenty twenty-four, reaching over 70 million metric tons this year and totaling almost 2 billion tons by twenty thirty-five. Then Guseynov confirmed that winter navigation, previously blocked due to ice, will proceed for the first time this year to enable year-round shipping through the Arctic Ocean. While profitable for Russia, the rate of ice melt to allow this is a worrying sign for the environment of the Arctic.

The US also has big plans to make money in the Arctic. The US Geological Survey published a report on Wednesday the 29th of May which studied the North Chukchi Basin, Northwest Alaska, to look for undiscovered oil and gas sites. The report estimates that the Basin contains almost 2 billion barrels of oil and over 100 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. Even though this is a huge amount of fuel to be gathered, there are no energy projects in the North Chukchi Basin due to the remoteness of the region. The report predicts that even with these discoveries, energy companies will not seek to exploit these resources because of the difficulties in operating so far north.

With the Arctic undergoing such rapid changes, it needs a dedicated guardian to ensure its protection. In Canada’s Yukon, the three largest Indigenous communities have created a charter to ensure they manage the land in a protective and traditional manner. The Carcross First Nation, the Kwanlin Dün First Nation and the Ta’an Kwäch’än Council all gathered and renewed this joint charter, committing them to another two years of land management.

This charter is called How We Walk with the Land and Water; it is a beautiful example of traditional values being used to protect the land. To know more, follow the link in the show notes!

There's a lot of money being spent on defense in the Arctic, and Finland is joining in. On Wednesday the 29th of May, Antti Häkkänen, the Finnish Defense Minister, visited a NATO military exercise site in northern Lapland. In his speech, he announced that the Finnish government is investing over $300 million US dollars into defense in the country’s northernmost region this year. Since joining NATO last year, Finland has already seen record levels of military spending. This additional investment underscores how seriously Finland is taking the need to establish a strong military presence in its Arctic region, especially by the Russian border.

Finland may be investing in its military, but the environment is not getting the same treatment. On Wednesday the 29th of May, the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry revealed a draft bill to make it easier to hunt wolves, lynx, brown bears, and wolverines. Under current law, if a predator kills livestock, the owner can kill that specific animal. The proposed law would allow the owner to kill any wolf in retaliation if a wolf takes a sheep. The Finnish Society for Nature and Environment criticized the bill, stating it is not based on science or reason and is purely a political move to gain support from the farming sector. With the Ministry aiming to fast-track this bill to a vote, Finland’s large mammals may soon face an uncertain future.

Over the border in Norway, an important legal fight has gone against the Indigenous Sami people. On Friday the 31st of May, the Norwegian Supreme Court ruled that the area of Karasjok in Norway’s northern Finnmark region will remain under the ownership of the federal government rather than passing into Sami management. The case focused on the history of the area and whether Karasjok ever legally passed into Norway’s control or if it was taken away from the Sami illegally. The court was divided and only passed in favor of the government by six votes to five. After the ruling, local Sami leader Ragnhild Nystad stated that the government does not respect Sami rights and called this the darkest day in Norwegian legal history.

Control was the word of the day in Norway on Friday the 31st of May. Emilie Enger Mehl, the Minister of Justice, announced the executive’s plan to increase control over the northern islands of Svalbard. This region is Norwegian but shares land with Russia and allows residents worldwide to settle without visas. The Norwegian government now views the islands as a security risk and will impose stricter measures, such as limiting population growth in its northernmost territory.

In Iceland, the Sundhnúkur volcano erupted again on Wednesday the 29th of May, plaguing the town of Grindavik in southern Iceland. The previous eruption took place a month ago, with Wednesday’s causing further damage to power and water infrastructure. While Grindavik has been evacuated since last November, residents have been allowed to return, despite the serious risks. The Icelandic Meteorological Office reported that the lava flow, initially dangerous, quickly slowed down. On Friday the 31st, the local police chief stated that residents could return to Grindavik for short periods but not overnight.

The Icelandic eruption will be one of the biggest jobs for Iceland’s newest President. After the nation voted on Saturday the 1st of June, Halla Tómasdóttir will be the seventh President of Iceland. She won by a large margin, winning thirty-five percent of the votes, with the runner-up former Prime Minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir getting twenty-five percent. Tómasdóttir will be the second woman to hold the presidency after Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, who was the first woman in the world to be democratically elected as president in nineteen eighty.

While we’re talking about the Nordic countries, on Monday the 3rd of June the Swedish renewable energy company Skyborn submitted an application to the Swedish government to be allowed to build a massive wind farm in Sweden’s Arctic. The location will be far offshore at the northernmost point of the Baltic Sea and is expected to generate ten terawatt hours upon completion, which would be enough to power seven percent of Sweden’s needs. Niclas Broman, the CEO of Skyborn, said the project would help expand business and energy developments across the country, but especially in the underserved north.

Let's finish off the week in Greenland. The national football team of the country is not currently recognized by FIFA and cannot play in competitive games or tournaments. However, on Tuesday the 28th of May, the Football Association of Greenland officially applied to FIFA to become a member of Concacaf, the governing body for football in Central and North America and the Caribbean. If successful, the Greenlandic national football team could soon compete on the global stage, bringing the world's biggest sport to Greenland.

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

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

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