ARCTIC: Wildefires & more – 2nd July 2024

Góðan daginn from Keswick Village! This is the Rorshok Arctic Update from the 2nd of July twenty twenty-four. A quick summary of what’s going down North of the Arctic Circle!

During the long summers in the Arctic, the midnight sun lights the sky through the night. However, the other thing lighting up the Arctic summers is the wildfires. Copernicus, the EU’s climate agency, published a report on Thursday the 27th of June measuring the wildfires currently plaguing the European Arctic. The report shows that so far in twenty twenty-four the wildfires are already the third worst in the last twenty years, with only twenty nineteen and twenty twenty proving worse.

The fire season stretches to North America, with wildfire destruction and evacuations happening across Canada and Alaska every day. Last year was an especially terrible year for Canadian fires, and on Thursday the 27th, scientists at the World Resources Institute published a report showing that those fires were responsible for creating polluting emissions four times higher than the entire global air travel industry in twenty twenty-three. As emissions continue to be released, the likelihood is that these destructive wildfire seasons across the Arctic will only increase.

Monday the 1st of July marks a significant day for the Arctic with the opening of the Northern Sea Route, Russia's crucial shipping lane along its northern coast. Despite severe hindrances from US and EU sanctions, which have limited the construction of ice-class vessels, Russian energy company Novatek has received approval from Russia’s government to deploy twelve non-ice-class vessels in the Arctic starting from the 1st of July. Novatek projects a doubling of oil shipments across the Arctic this year compared to twenty twenty-three. This surge in oil transport and the reduction in ice-class vessels has alarmed environmentalists, who warn of the heightened risk of oil spills and other ecological disasters.

In more shady moves by Russia, according to an investigation conducted by Bloomberg and reported on Thursday the 27th of June, there are signs that the country is assembling a dark fleet. This is a fleet of unregistered and illegal vessels used to circumnavigate international sanctions. Bloomberg found that small shipping firms from Dubai have been acquiring ice-class vessels from Russia in the last three months, and all of them have received permission from the Russian government to pass through the Russian Arctic this summer. Many of these vessels are unregistered, which means that although they are operating illegally, they can’t be sanctioned by other countries. So Russia may be finding ways to make money even under international sanctions.

The Atlantic Council has written a full breakdown of the Russian dark fleet problem. To check it out, follow the link in the show notes.

The Arctic Ocean is set to see more than just an increase in shipping, as it could face a new wave of deep-sea mining. In January, the Norwegian government approved plans for deep-sea mining in its Arctic region. On Wednesday, the 26th of June, the Norwegian government announced the first steps, including an auction date in early twenty twenty-five for private companies to purchase seabed blocks totaling twice the size of Denmark. Public consultations will run from now until September. Environmental groups and members of the EU Council have strongly criticized this move. Greenpeace and the World Wildlife Foundation issued immediate responses labeling the decision as irresponsible and potentially disastrous for the Arctic ecosystem.

Want to know more about this story? Check out the Rorshok Ocean Update with the link in the show notes!

More about Norway as on Monday the 24th of June, the Norwegian Energy Directorate announced plans for eleven new renewable energy projects in Finnmark, Northern Norway. This might seem like good news; however, many of these projects are set to be built on Sami land and within reindeer herding routes. In response, the Sami Parliament filed a lawsuit against the Norwegian government on Wednesday the 26th of June, arguing that the government is legally required to consult with the Sami Parliament on land use issues in Sami areas, a step they said that the executive ignored. While these projects aim to reduce Norway's climate gas emissions by 850,000 tons per year, the Sami Parliament insists that this should not come at the expense of their culture.

However, Alaskan tribes received positive news on Indigenous rights in the US. On Wednesday the 26th of June, a federal judge in Alaska ruled that Alaskan Native communities can now place their land into a trust with the US Interior Department. Previously, Native corporations owned most Alaska Native land and were subject to state and federal laws. The new ruling allows land to be put into trust, bringing it under tribal law and shielding it from sale or taxation by city and state officials. This effectively creates independent tribal territories under sovereign Native governments. If unchallenged, this ruling could grant tribes a level of independence not seen since the nineteen seventy-one Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, which granted land and money to native communities in return for relinquishing their own claim over the land.

Speaking of Alaska, its transport and energy projects received a significant boost this week. On Wednesday the 26th of June, the US government announced nearly $300 million dollars in funding for major Alaskan projects. Among the transport projects benefiting from this funding are the revitalization of the harbor in Wrangell and repairs to Alaska's main highway, which has been damaged by climate change. In addition, the energy project funding is primarily allocated to the production of electrical battery facilities designed to store energy produced by renewable energy projects. This funding aims to enhance infrastructure resilience and support Alaska's transition to sustainable energy sources.

Over the border in Canada, a mine collapse in the Yukon, on Monday the 24th of June, has raised serious health concerns. The Victoria’s Gold Eagle mine in northern Canada reported that their metals processing facility suffered a collapse, leading to the entire workforce being sent home for at least three months. Jamie Kneen, the co-leader for the watchdog group MiningWatch Canada, told news agency CBC News that there is serious concern for local wildlife and residents. The collapsed facility was using cyanide and other toxic chemicals to process the gold ore, and there is a high risk that these chemicals could contaminate the water system. If this occurs, the local water system could become toxic and potentially fatal. The federal government has announced an investigation in cooperation with local tribal governments to assess and mitigate any potential damage.

In Iceland, ice is under threat. According to a report published on Thursday the 27th of June by Iceland's Glacier Research Society, Iceland’s glaciers are shrinking by approximately forty square kilometers or about fifteen square miles per year. That’s equivalent to fifteen New York’s Central Park every year. The report notes that the only way to prevent Iceland from having no ice is to reverse global warming.

Records for wildfires and melting glaciers are being set regularly, but some positive records are being set, too. In Sweden, the Piteå Summer Games took place from the 28th to the 30th of June. This is one of the largest youth football tournaments in the world and was bigger than ever this year, with almost 900 football teams from around the world. The Swedish charity Access funds teams from some of the poorest areas to play in Sweden. This year children from shanty towns in South Africa were able to travel across the world to play football above the Arctic Circle.

And to wrap up this edition, if you wanted to buy a piece of the Arctic, you might be out of luck. In May, the last privately owned area of the Norwegian islands of Svalbard went up for sale for over $300 million US dollars. Bids were expected from around the world, but on Monday, July 1st, the Norwegian government announced it would have final approval on any buyer of the land. The government stated that Norway needs to prioritize national security and would not allow any potential buyer to challenge or disrupt Norwegian legislation and protection regulations in Svalbard. The land is still available for purchase, so as long as you are deemed safe by Norway, you might still have a chance to own a piece of the high Arctic.

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

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