Droppings of Arctic seabirds enrich the environment

A curious baby reindeer calmly grazed in our plot. The whole family did not seem to be shy of humans at all. Lena Bakker, Sigrid Trier Kjaer, Jana Rüthers When people think of the Arctic, most people think of an icy or rocky place with sparse vegetation, if any. ButContinue Reading

The Arctic is warming much faster, as climate change's impact grows

Placeholder while article actions load For residents of the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard, the United States’ recent success in clinching a major piece of climate change legislation may feel like too little, too late. Over the past 40 years, as the world’s largest historical emitter of greenhouses gases repeatedly failedContinue Reading

Plastic pollution accelerating the consequences of climate change in Canada’s Arctic, according to new research

As Canada’s Arctic continues to accumulate plastic, and climate change takes its toll on northern environments and communities, experts have evidence to suggest each threat is exacerbating the other, according to a recent paper published in Nature this month. As climate change affects temperatures and water patterns, says the review,Continue Reading

Plastics Europe. Plastics — the Facts 2020: An analysis of European plastics production, demand and waste data (Plastics Europe, 2020). Borrelle, S. B. et al. Predicted growth in plastic waste exceeds efforts to mitigate plastic pollution. Science 369, 1515–1518 (2020). Google Scholar  Brahney, J. et al. Constraining the atmospheric limbContinue Reading

Alaska air pollution holds clues for other Arctic climates

In the pristine expanse of Alaska’s interior lies a dirty secret: some of the most polluted winter air in the United States can be found in and around Fairbanks. The Fairbanks North Star Borough, which includes Alaska’s second largest city, routinely exceeds limits set by the US Environmental ProtectionContinue Reading