The Arctic This Week Take Five: Week of 11 December, 2023
Canada to Acquire P-8A Poseidon Aircraft to Patrol the Arctic
As was reported by High North News on December 8, Canada announced it would purchase 14 P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft from the United States. These aircraft should arrive in Canada by late 2027 and will replace the CP-140 Aurora maritime patrol aircraft that Canada has used for the last 40 years. The P-8A Poseidon is capable of covering large sea areas at a time and has an array of sensors and weapons. It can also support a range of operations, including search and rescue and maritime policing. (High North News)
Take 1: Canada’s decision to update its air defense capability by purchasing the P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft confirms its commitment to maintaining a strong Arctic presence and illustrates that investing in defense is a priority for the current federal government. Canada has long been criticized for falling behind on asserting its sovereignty in the North—famously, by Governor General Mary Simon, who wrote in 2007 that Canada was “asleep at the post in the Arctic”—especially as both the United States and Russia have increasingly focused on the region. In June, the Senate’s Standing Committee on National Security, Defence and Veterans Affairs summarized its newest report on Arctic security by saying that while world powers are increasingly interested in Arctic resources and transportation opportunities, “Canada’s North is militarily exposed, economically underdeveloped and threatened by climate change.” While climate change, the housing crisis, and unequal access to services for the Inuit remain pressing issues in the Canadian Arctic, the P-8A Poseidon aircraft purchase demonstrates Canada’s growing attention to its military exposure and capabilities in the North. As the Senate committee found, the region is assuming a position of central strategic importance, and Canada’s security in the Arctic depends on the modernization of its air defense system. In addition to improving Canada’s contributions to NORAD (the North American Aerospace Defense Command, a joint air defense organization with the United States) and NATO, this purchase also opens new opportunities for wider Arctic cooperation, most importantly with Norway, whose Arctic coastlines and waterways are also being challenged by Russia’s sovereignty claims and increasing military presence. (High North News, Hill Times, Senate of Canada, The Walrus)
Norway Approves New Oil Drilling in the Barents Sea
As The Barents Observer wrote on December 7, the Norwegian government has approved a new round of oil drilling in the Barents Sea. The newly approved well is in an area controlled by the company Vår Energi at 72 degrees North and is expected to be highly profitable. This decision comes during an ongoing trial in which the environmental organizations Greenpeace Nordic and Natur og Ungdom (Young Friends of the Earth Norway) are suing the Norwegian government for approving new oilfields. (The Barents Observer)
Take 2: Norway’s decision to approve more oil drilling in the Barents Sea is evidence of the country’s unwavering support for the offshore oil industry, even as it emphasizes its strong environmental commitments. Norway has long signaled its support for renewable energy development and the importance of cutting carbon emissions, but this decision—as well as the timing of its announcement, which fell during the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28)—is a clear sign that there are no plans to phase out offshore drilling at this time. Norway’s ongoing focus on increasing its oil production capabilities may be an indication of clashing environmental and defensive priorities. After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, most European countries, which were highly dependent on Russian oil and gas, sought to break off their reliance on Russia. Norway has already replaced Russia as the European Union’s biggest supplier of pipeline gas. The environmental organizations Greenpeace Nordic and Natur og Ungdom (Young Friends of the Earth Norway) have called Norway’s continuing development of new offshore oilfields “climate hypocrisy,” and this characterization is further emphasized by the fact that Norway provides more than 90% of its own energy by hydropower, but is one of the world’s largest exporters of both oil and natural gas. The government’s decision is only the latest in a series of announcements expanding natural resource developments in the Arctic. As the region continues to warm rapidly, Norway will need to address the discrepancy between its rhetoric and actions to fulfill its responsibilities to the Arctic environment. (European Parliament, The Arctic Today, The Barents Observer, Reuters)
Russia Insists on Territorial Expansion in the Arctic
As industry magazine The Maritime Executive reported on December 10, Admiral Nikolai Yevmenov, the commander-in-chief of the Russian Navy, delivered a speech at the Arctic Forum reiterating Russia’s intentions to expand its Arctic boundary onto the continental shelf and beyond the 200-mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ). According to Yevmenov, this is a forced measure against the increasing US and NATO presence in the Arctic. The international forum took place last week and was held in St. Petersburg. (The Maritime Executive)
Take 3: This development is the most recent and perhaps most assertive iteration of Russia’s long-standing efforts to re-draw the northern boundaries in the Arctic. Since at least 2001, Russia has attempted to officially assert sovereignty over large areas of the Arctic, including the North Pole. These attempts would assign portions of the continental shelf well beyond the 200-mile boundary—the current limit of a country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ)—to Russia. Other Arctic countries have also aimed to expand their continental shelf boundaries—or at least to assert their own claims to counter Russia’s actions. For example, in the 2019 addendum to its original submission to the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf, Canada identified overlapping continental shelf claims with Denmark, Russia, and the United States. Territorial claims on continental shelves—areas of shallower water adjacent to coast lines—are particularly significant because of prospects for resource exploitation, such as the exploration of offshore oil and gas deposits, and for overriding the current rule of a 200-mile EEZ. Yevmenov’s statement points to Russia’s ongoing and increasing ambitions to maximize its sovereignty claims in the Arctic and the strategic importance of the region for Russia’s national security. The remarks also highlight the central role of the continental shelf in Arctic geopolitics and the growing concerns over Russian activity in the region from the other Arctic littoral states (Canada, the United States, Norway, and, through Greenland, Denmark). (Government of Canada, Polar Journal, The Maritime Executive)
Experts Call to Address Inequalities between Southern and Northern Researchers in Canada
As reported by CBC News on December 8, a new report was released by an expert panel of academics and researchers at the Council of Canadian Academies that highlights the power imbalance in Arctic and Northern research. The report noted that research is almost exclusively carried out by Southern researchers and institutions, leading to a strong bias towards Southern methodologies, perspectives, and research questions. To address this inequality, the panel recommended that more research funding be sent directly to Northern institutions, translating data into Indigenous languages, and using Indigenous ethics systems as bases for research. (CBC)
Take 4: The report points out long-standing South-North inequalities in both participation in research and access to research findings and data. While Arctic and Northern research are rapidly growing priorities for Canada, these inequalities are only slowly being addressed. The panelists emphasize the need for the North to become a leader in Northern research, rather than continuing to host Southern researchers. They emphasize the importance of not only recognizing Indigenous knowledge systems but also endorsing them through Indigenous-led accredited research programs, with the additional recommendation that these programs and institutions should be funded as directly as possible, rather than allowing the majority of funding to remain in Southern institutions. While the recently-announced partnership among ArcticNet, Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, and Polar Knowledge Canada (POLAR), which will bring about $50 million in federal funding to Inuit Nunangat, is a step in the right direction, it needs to be followed by long-term and sustainable investments into Northern research institutions. Yukon University, which was granted university status in 2020, is an example that it is possible to build Northern institutions that are accessible to students across large, remote areas and produce competitive research. The report outlines a way for Arctic research to move beyond extractive models of knowledge towards those affirming Indigenous rights, as put forth in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) and by Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC). In addition to more equitable research governance in the North, focusing on Indigenous-led Arctic expertise would also enable more focus on horizontal cooperation across the Arctic, rather than relying on the South-North vertical model that is currently defined by restrictive nation-state borders. (Arctic Focus, CBC, Council of Canadian Academies, Nunatsiaq News)
2023 Arctic Report Card Notes Hottest Year on Record, Extreme Weather, and Importance of Indigenous Knowledge
As reported by the Anchorage Daily News on December 12, the United States’ National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has published its annual Arctic Report Card for 2023. The Card provides concise peer-reviewed information on the most significant developments in the Arctic environment. In 2023, the authors noted the warmest Arctic summer since 1900, combined with exceptionally wet weather and low levels of sea ice. The late-summer wildfires in Canada’s Northwest Territories were unprecedented in their scale of destruction. Collaboration with Arctic Indigenous peoples was emphasized in 2023, such as in the much-needed research on fluctuating salmon numbers. (Anchorage Daily News)
Take 5: The Arctic Report Card provides a comprehensive overview of the most significant environmental developments in the Arctic. Its highly accessible language underlines NOAA’s commitment to ensuring public understanding of these trends, reinforcing the value of clear communication in environmental science. In 2023, the Arctic experienced some of its most extreme conditions on record: the region was the warmest it has been since 1900, unusually wet, and continued to see a significant loss of sea ice. The historically high summer air temperatures in the Arctic were accompanied by extreme weather phenomena, including the wildfires that destroyed the largest area of the Northwest Territories in 44 years of records. However, while the Northwest Territories experienced an above-average wildfire season, other areas saw less wildfire damage than average. Therefore, it would be premature to draw any conclusions about the Arctic region as a whole based solely on this year’s fires. Outside of Canada, early snowmelt meant that precipitation was above average, which also contributed to a relatively low annual mass loss from the Greenland Ice Sheet. Furthermore, the report also focuses on an especially complicated regional trend: the divergence in salmon numbers. In 2023, the numbers of Chinook salmon in the Yukon River were at a record low, while those of sockeye in Bristol Bay were at a record high. Even though climate change likely plays a role, further research, including by Indigenous Knowledge Holders, is needed to better understand the impacts on the many communities that rely on salmon. While the report primarily focuses on the overall impact of climate change in the Arctic, it also underscores the necessity of understanding how different Arctic regions are uniquely affected. (Anchorage Daily News, NOAA, The Conversation, The New York Times)