In Utqiaġvik, Alaska, the northernmost community in the United States, last winter’s temperatures were so warm that algorithms in weather monitoring stations were flagging them as false. Biologist Craig George says “the term is no longer ‘climate change’ in Utqiaġvik, it’s ‘climate changed.’” With Alaska and the rest of the Arctic warming twice as fast … Read more
Last year, I accompanied Yun Jianli on a surprise visit to a wastewater treatment plant in her hometown Xiangyang in Hubei Province. We were investigating river pollution and asked the plant’s environmental manager to show us the equipment. It was noon, we were standing out in the burning sun, and I was feeling too hot … Read more
It’s almost hard to fathom unless you’ve seen it in person. Black ribbons of salmon—wild, Alaska salmon—running up clear rivers through spectacular, unspoiled country as far as you can see. This is the natural wonder and unmatched economic powerhouse that is Bristol Bay. The watershed is home to largest wild sockeye salmon run in the world. … Read more
Good news this afternoon in London: The International Maritime Organization’s (IMO’s) marine environment protection committee just approved our coalition’s proposal to deal with the issue of dangerous heavy fuel oil in the Arctic. This means there will now be international rulemaking to mitigate risks of heavy fuel oil and, hopefully, phase out this dangerous oil in the Arctic. … Read more
Washington D.C., April 18th, 2017:- A report published today by the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT), Alternatives to heavy fuel oil use in the Arctic: Economic and environmental tradeoffs finds that using heavy fuel oil in Arctic shipping creates such great risks compared to the cost of moving to safer fuels, that transitioning to … Read more
The Arctic hosts one of the world’s most productive and most pristine marine environments. An oil spill of heavy fuel oil, which could devastate this fragile world and destroy food sources for arctic communities, is the top threat associated with increased Arctic shipping. Heavy fuel oil is extremely toxic and slow to degrade. Oil spill … Read more
A few months ago, the people of Karlsi, a small village high in China’s Tibetan Plateau, refused a lucrative offer from a construction firm eager to build roads and tunnels across the mountain grasslands. Why? Donchi, the leader of the community, says, “We didn’t sell our mountains because the mountains and grasslands are holy and … Read more
First published in Ship & Bunker Forty-five years ago, just two months after Neil Armstrong landed on the moon, another historic exploration milestone took place in Alaska. The icebreaking tanker SS Manhattan arrived at Barter Island, AK, on September 18, 1969. The ship had been commissioned by Humble Oil to test the feasibility of using … Read more
With climate change melting Arctic ice at an ever alarming rate, we know big changes are in store for this pristine environment. But what impact will the big meltdown have on people? I have talked with climatologists who say that one big impact will be erratic weather. High pressure tends to center over the coldest … Read more
Back in January, I was asked to present on the topic of food sovereignty and climate change for the International Funders for Indigenous Peoples conference. As I was mulling over what to say, it dawned on me that most issues and threats that indigenous communities are facing today are quite similar, regardless of where they live. Indigenous … Read more