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White House warned on imminent Arctic ice death spiral
Nafeez Ahmed, The Guardian
Senior US government officials are to be briefed at the White House this week on the danger of an ice-free Arctic in the summer within two years.
The meeting is being organised by a US brains trust on the Arctic consisting of Nasa’s acting chief scientist, Gale Allen, the director of the US National Science Foundation, Cora Marett, as well as representatives from the US Department of Homeland Security and the Pentagon.
This is the latest indication that US officials are increasingly concerned about the international and domestic security implications of climate change…
US national security officials have taken an increasing interest in the destabilising impact of climate change. In February this year, the US Department of Defense (DoD) released its new Climate Change Adaptation Roadmap, which noted that global warming will have:
"… significant geopolitical impacts around the world, contributing to greater competition for more limited and critical life-sustaining resources like food and water."…
While the DoD is also concerned about the Arctic, the focus is less on risks than on opportunities:
"The Department is developing cooperative partnerships with interagency and international Arctic stakeholders to collaboratively address future opportunities and potential challenges inherent in the projected opening of the Arctic."
Arctic "stakeholders" include US, Russian, Canadian, Norwegian and Danish energy firms, which are scrambling to exploit the northern polar region’s untapped natural wealth. The region is estimated to hold a quarter of the world’s remaining undiscovered oil and gas reserves, sparking concerted efforts by these countries to expand their Arctic military presence…
(2 May 2013)
Animation of Arctic Sea Ice Minimum Volume 1979-2012
Brendan Demelle, DeSmogBlog
Animation of Arctic Sea Ice Minimum Volume 1979-2012 (via Desmogblog)
If your roof is leaking, do you ignore it and hope it will fix itself? This new animation created by Andy Lee Robinson depicts Arctic Sea Ice minimum volumes reached every September since 1979. It’s a depressing sight, for sure. Andy makes it a little less difficult to view with his own piano sountrack…
