Drilling in the Arctic Ocean

Royal Dutch Shell is putting billions of dollars into offshore drilling in the Arctic which is back by an Obama administration. Even though the project is being watched carefully the weather is not being gracious. They also have their own problems that are setting them back. A drilling rig slipped its anchor an almost hit land and Shell hasn't finished their spill-response vessel that they need under the federal regulations before they can even think about drilling. They were forced to cut back on the project. Shell has put $4.5 billion into this project and by the time everything is done the spill-response barge will have to travel for three weeks which may push the start date to drilling into September. One of the permits only lasts until September 24 and on October 31 is when the other ends. They expect to drill this summer though. It will be a major disappointment if they can't drive this year. The Obama administration wants this to go through after the oil spill. They want it to be a sign that they understand we need to drill. Environmentalists' are worried that the Arctic Ocean is to unpredictable for the oil company to take on. Me. Salazar stated Shell was to blame for most of the delays. Still the environmental concerns were very important. The last time someone tried drilling in the Arctic Ocean turned out to be a failure. Other companies are also interested in Arctic drilling. The Chukchi could produce 400,000 barrels of oil daily. The U.S. uses about 19 million barrels every day. Shell is coming up on the end of the Arctic summer and one of the drilling rigs may be heading up there soon.

I believe the Arctic Ocean is very unpredictable. I would not want to drill there. The icy water does what it wants when it wants. I believe they should drill somewhere a little less icy. What if an oil spill happened right there? It's hard enough up there without accidentally having an oil spill. If environmentalists are worried about the oil company's being able to handle it than I think we should listen to them.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390444233104577595623259417472.html

Arctic Environment At Risk

The environment in the Arctic is at risk. Rubbish, industrial and military waste reach even the remote areas, those areas uninhabited by humans. Plastic bags, barbed wire, beer bottles, fishing nets, and fuel tanks have washed up on shores where human visitation is rare; corroding aircraft batteries have been discovered in rivers on the Seward Peninsula in Alaska, and half-buried in the tundra canisters of mustard gas have been found. Stretching across tundra and mountain ranges are gas and oil pipelines- some of which are rusting and leaking. All of which remind us of the fragility of the Arctic environment.  Atmospheric and marine pollution, while less obvious are equally threats to the Arctic's environment. The pollution from the atmosphere and marine contaminant food chains at every level, and due to the lower temperatures of the Arctic, these pollutant's break down slower, posing a greater threat to the Arctic than they would in an area farther south.

In 1996 the Arctic Council was established; it was established to address subsistence activities, health , community, tourism, transport, communications, development, sustainable economic development, and environmental protection. The Arctic Council dealt with and provided these aspects for the Arctic states- also known as Iceland, Denmark, Canada Sweden, the Russian Federation, Norway, the United States, and Finland. To ensure permanent participations, indigenous organizations were also constructed.  The vast objectives of the Arctic Council were enacted through the creation of five programs; Protection of the Arctic Marine Environment (PAME), Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF), the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Program (AMAP), Sustainable Development Working Group ((SDWG), and Emergency Prevention, Preparedness, and Response (EPPR). The programs were established to focus on environmental problems, as the Arcitc Council's objectives were to protect the Arctic ecosystems- humans included- to incorporate traditional and cultural needs, values, and practices, as well as ensure the sustainable usage of renewable resources.

Unfortunately, despite the Arctic Council's intentions, there are barriers to the solutions they worked to achieve. One such barrier to the sustainability of the Arctic environment is that Arctic regions are affected by alterations in global economy; the unavoidable ebb and flow poses a distinctive barrier. The Arctic's dependence on economic global processes only adds to it's fragility. Another such barrier stems from developmental projects which are insensitive to the protection requirements and concerns of environmental sustainability.

I think that the contamination of rubbish and military and industrial waste is a problem- and not only in the Arctic. I think that this matter shouldn't be taken lightly; the Arctic and it's environment is important and shouldn't be corrupted by trash, corroding aircraft batteries, or canisters of mustard gas, among many others things. I think that it is a problem that should be actively addressed. I think that the proposed solutions that are being enacted are a good way to go. I think that be creating programs that will focus on these issues is a great way to try and protect the Arctic's environment. Granted there are several barriers to the potential solutions, but it's a start.

Dwindling Arctic Ice

Date: August 21, 2012

Title: Dwindling Arctic Ice

In the arctic there is ice called perennial sea ice which stays frozen throughout the entire year. This ice is beginning to thaw which poses a threat to animals that live on the ice and it shows the increased temperature of the earth. The melting of the ice could be due to global climate change and another contributing factor could be changing atmospheric pressure and wind patterns in the arctic. These could be factors because they control the movements of the ice and the movements warm the ice. These factors are likely to be caused by greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. The obvious solution to this problem is to reduce our release of greenhouse gases. We need to cut down on our use of certain things that release it into the atmosphere. Though the solution seems simple it is hard because things that release greenhouse gases are things we use everyday. Another stopper to the solution is that the harm has already been done. We cannot reverse the damage we have already done to the atmosphere. I think that we do need to lower our releasing of greenhouse gas because global warming can have serious consequences. We may not be able to reverse the damage that has been done but we can definitely prevent future damage from happening.

http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Features/ArcticIce/

Exploring Oceans: Arctic Summary

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umAeFKF2uxA

This video was about an overview of the Arctic Ocean and many different aspects related to the ocean. The video discussed things from the wildlife that occupies the ocean, to the North Pole which lies under the surface of the ocean. The wildlife is extremely diverse in the arctic and range from polar bears to arctic whales to tiny microorganisms that thrive in the ice. The North Pole is located 4,200 feet underwater. It was visited for the first time in August 2007 by six Russian explorers in two deep sea submarines. I always thought that the North Pole was a place that was located above sea level so I was surprised to learn that it was underwater. I also was shocked to find out that there were organisms that could live inside the ice located in the arctic. They also discussed how the polar ice caps are melting and that shipping industries are planning on using the Arctic Ocean as a reliable shipping pathway once the ice has completely melted. The best way to stop the melting of the polar ice caps is to stop emitting as mush carbon dioxide into the air. The problem with that is people emit carbon dioxide into the air everyday burning gas for their cars, so it would be extremely difficult to have everyone use alternative fuel sources. 

The Sea Change Chain Impact

The Arctic environment decline in sea ice is leading to more o-zone depletion and more mercury contamination. NASA has studied the Arctic Ocean and the layer of sea ice that has been thinning. The thin sea ice shows more cracks and is a result of the increased global warming in the past 50 years. 

Sea ice controls the way bromine escapes into the air, and when too much bromine escapes into the air it can turn an un-reactive form of mercury into a reactive form. The danger in all of this is that sea ice is declining and can ultimately have a chain effect that harms animals. If there is too much exposure to mercury, major nerves and brains cells can be harmed in the indigenous animals. When the sea ice melts, as a result of global warming, the sea ice can melt into the oceans and further affect the food web for arctic animals. At home you can slow down global warming by transitioning to CFL light bulbs and recycling house hold plastics, paper, and glass. The Arctic is being affected by the entire world and having an impact on animals. It is vital that humans take action to preserve a healthy atmosphere so the food web is not altered.  

http://www.climatewatch.noaa.gov/article/2012/a-sea-change-in-the-arctic-atmosphere

Arctic Sea Ice Likely To Hit Record Low Next Week

       A scientist from U.S. National Climate Data Center claims that ice the Arctic Ocean is to melt into record small size next week. The ice is predicted to fall below 1.5 million square miles this year,.16 million less than the record low of 2007. The Arctic Ice is very important to the global climate “characterized as the world’s air-conditioner”. Changes in climate can be seen in continental United States, with new records of heat being recorded this summer. The predictions over the record low Arctic ice this year are created from the rapid loss of ice in August; a month were ice melting usually slows down.  The rapid loss of Arctic ice can be blamed on the large amount of greenhouse-gases being released into the atmosphere. The only way to slow down the loss of Arctic ice is to reduce greenhouse-gases. This is done by using fuel-efficient cars and cutting back on uses of electricity in homes. This is a slow process since Americans do not have funds to purchase brand new fuel-efficient cars. With the World’s Climate at stake the ice of the Arctic Ocean must be preserved.

2. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/48730048/ns/us_news-environment/#.UDLCS2JIfqk

Rate of Arctic Summer sea loss higher than expected

Sea ice in the Arctic is disappearing at a far greater rate than previously expected, according to data from the first purpose-built satellite launched to study the thickness of the Earth's polar caps. Preliminary results from the European Space Agency's CryoSat-2 probe stated that 900 cubic kilometres of this summers sea ice has disappeared from the Arctic ocean over the past year. This rate of loss is 50% higher than most scenarios polar scientists had predicted. Global warming is so far, the most popular suggested cause. Rising greenhouse gas emissions is starting to have a major impact on this Arctic region. The loss of the Arctic ice coverage could be very severe. Without the caps radiant, white glare, sun can't be reflected back into space. This means the region will heat up even more than it's supposed to. This means ocean temperatures will rise and methane deposits on the ocean floor will more than likely melt. The Arctic is particularly vulnerable when it comes to the impact of global warming. The weather systems of the planet all work together so what happens in one place, affects us all.