Climate Change to Make Arctic Unrecognizable |
15 October 04 |
Climate change will soon make the Arctic regions of the world nearly unrecognizable, dramatically disrupting traditional Inuit and other northern native peoples' way of life, according to a new report that has yet to be publicly released by the Arctic Climate Impact Assessment (ACIA).The assessment was commissioned by the Arctic Council, an intergovernmental body involving the eight Arctic nations - Canada, Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Iceland, Norway, Russia, and the United States. The Inuit and other Arctic peoples also participate in the Council and contributed to the ACIA report, along with over 600 hundred scientists from around the world. The report will be made public and presented to governments at a conference in Reykjavik, Iceland, Nov. 9-12, 2004. The report predicts depletion of summer sea ice, which will push marine mammals like polar bears, walrus and some seal species into extinction by the middle of this century. The Arctic is warming twice as fast as anywhere else because of global air circulation patterns and natural feedback loops such as less ice reflecting sunlight, leading to increased warming at ground level and more ice melt. Computer projections also show that trend will continue with the Arctic warming by an average of 6 degrees Celsius by the end of the century - even if the Kyoto Protocol commitments to reducing greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide go into effect on a global scale. View the Inter Press Service article Visit the Arctic Climate Impact Assessment web site Visit the Inuit Circumpolar Conference web site Visit the Arctic Council web site Source: Inter Press Service
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