scholarly journals Assessment of transboundary risks and global effects of climate change and economic activities in the basins of the arctic seas

Author(s):  
B. A. Morgunov ◽  
A. A. Terentiev ◽  
M. L. Kozeltsev

Contemporary challenges and threats to sustainable development including safe use of transboundary resources of rivers and Arctic seas in condition of climate change are connected with cumulative impact of numerous factors. Ongoing environmental changes have transboundary nature and will have significant impact in international scale. In case of overlapping of factors of impact their nature and synergetic effect, mechanisms of their interrelated influence and possible negative consequences for global economy, environment and human health are not adequately known. Among the main obstacles to mitigation of climate change impact on the state of big river basins in the Arctic and Arctic seas are: the lack of critically important information and data, absence of modern concepts of climate change mitigation measures connected with impact on Arctic seas, uncoordinated and inefficient regulation and management, absence of unified interstate tools of marine spatial planning. The article contains the analysis of risks and global consequences of the ongoing climate change for water resources; characteristic of priority issues and their underlying root causes. It also contains the results of the analysis of risks connected with melting of permafrost and increase in thermal coast erosion, assessment of the role of transboundary cooperation in the Arctic for sustainable regional development. The authors also propose some measures for addressing the above issues based on the Strategic Program of Actions on the Protection of the Russian Part of the Arctic developed by the Ministry of Economic Development of Russia.

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
G.I. Bykova ◽  
M.A. Grippas

The article covers the specifics of land development and construction in the Arctic North. This requires the effective use of climate information to select optimal solutions for preventing unjustified overpricing of facilities, increased heat loss, low thermal resistance, and durability, affecting the overspending of capital investments. Recent trends in dynamic climate change leading to rising global sea levels, which could flood coastal areas of the Arctic seas, are considered. This can come along with the destruction of the coastal area and pose a great danger to infrastructure facilities.


2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 138-158
Author(s):  
Umer Khayyam ◽  
Rida Bano ◽  
Shahzad Alvi

Abstract Global climate change is one of the main threats facing humanity and the impacts on natural systems as well as humans are expected to be severe. People can take action against these threats through two approaches: mitigation and adaptation. However, mitigations and adaptations are contingent on the level of motivation and awareness, as well as socio-economic and environmental conditions. This study examined personal perception and motivation to mitigate and adapt to climate change among the university students in the capital city of Pakistan. We divided the respondents into social sciences, applied sciences and natural sciences, using logistic regression analysis. The results indicated that students who perceive severity, benefits from preparation, and have more information about climate change were 1.57, 4.98 and 1.63 times more likely to take mitigation and 1.47, 1.14 and 1.17 times more likely to take adaptation measures, respectively. Students who perceived self-efficacy, obstacles to protect from the negative consequences of climate change and who belonged to affluent families were more likely to take mitigation measures and less likely to take adaptation strategies. However, mitigation and adaptation were unaffected by age, gender and study discipline.


2021 ◽  
pp. 137-142
Author(s):  
Klaus Dodds ◽  
Jamie Woodward

‘Arctic futures’ discusses the future of the Arctic that starts in the Norwegian territory of Svalbard wherein the Global Seed Vault functions as an Arctic sanctuary for the genetic diversity of crops. The Svalbard archipelago is a hotspot of Arctic amplification as rapid warming has been keenly felt by the small community. However, the environmental changes, no matter how stark and widespread, will not dampen interest in economic development and strategic posturing. Arctic states and northern peoples remain eager to improve their social and economic conditions as well as adapt to ongoing climate change. The Arctic is a haven of international peace and cooperation as the Arctic Council is cited as a governance model that others could emulate.


2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 20180834 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charmain D. Hamilton ◽  
Jade Vacquié-Garcia ◽  
Kit M. Kovacs ◽  
Rolf A. Ims ◽  
Jack Kohler ◽  
...  

Global warming is inducing major environmental changes in the Arctic. These changes will differentially affect species owing to differences in climate sensitivity and behavioural plasticity. Arctic endemic marine mammals are expected to be impacted significantly by ongoing changes in their key habitats owing to their long life cycles and dependence on ice. Herein, unique biotelemetry datasets for ringed seals (RS; Pusa hispida ) and white whales (WW; Delphinapterus leucas ) from Svalbard, Norway, spanning two decades (1995–2016) are used to investigate how these species have responded to reduced sea-ice cover and increased Atlantic water influxes. Tidal glacier fronts were traditionally important foraging areas for both species. Following a period with dramatic environmental change, RS now spend significantly more time near tidal glaciers, where Arctic prey presumably still concentrate. Conversely, WW spend significantly less time near tidal glacier fronts and display spatial patterns that suggest that they are foraging on Atlantic fishes that are new to the region. Differences in levels of dietary specialization and overall behavioural plasticity are likely reasons for similar environmental pressures affecting these species differently. Climate change adjustments through behavioural plasticity will be vital for species survival in the Arctic, given the rapidity of change and limited dispersal options.


2017 ◽  
Vol 91 (4) ◽  
pp. 387-408 ◽  
Author(s):  
K.V. Galaktionov

AbstractThis review analyses the scarce available data on biodiversity and transmission of helminths in Arctic coastal ecosystems and the potential impact of climate changes on them. The focus is on the helminths of seabirds, dominant parasites in coastal ecosystems. Their fauna in the Arctic is depauperate because of the lack of suitable intermediate hosts and unfavourable conditions for species with free-living larvae. An increasing proportion of crustaceans in the diet of Arctic seabirds would result in a higher infection intensity of cestodes and acanthocephalans, and may also promote the infection of seabirds with non-specific helminths. In this way, the latter may find favourable conditions for colonization of new hosts. Climate changes may alter the composition of the helminth fauna, their infection levels in hosts and ways of transmission in coastal communities. Immigration of boreal invertebrates and fish into Arctic seas may allow the circulation of helminths using them as intermediate hosts. Changing migratory routes of animals would alter the distribution of their parasites, facilitating, in particular, their trans-Arctic transfer. Prolongation of the seasonal ‘transmission window’ may increase the parasitic load on host populations. Changes in Arctic marine food webs would have an overriding influence on the helminths’ circulation. This process may be influenced by the predicted decreased of salinity in Arctic seas, increased storm activity, coastal erosion, ocean acidification, decline of Arctic ice, etc. Greater parasitological research efforts are needed to assess the influence of factors related to Arctic climate change on the transmission of helminths.


2009 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 296-316 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan H. Adler

The dominant approach to environmental policy endorsed by conservative and libertarian policy thinkers, so-called “free market environmentalism” (FME), is grounded in the recognition and protection of property rights in environmental resources. Despite this normative commitment to property rights, most self-described FME advocates adopt a utilitarian, welfare-maximization approach to climate change policy, arguing that the costs of mitigation measures could outweigh the costs of climate change itself. Yet even if anthropogenic climate change is decidedly less than catastrophic, human-induced climate change is likely to contribute to environmental changes that violate traditional conceptions of property rights. Viewed globally, the actions of some countries—primarily industrialized nations—are likely to increase environmental harms suffered by other countries—less developed nations that have not (as of yet) made any significant contribution to climate change. It may well be that aggregate human welfare would be maximized in a warmer, wealthier world, or that the gains from climate change will offset environmental losses. Yet such claims, even if demonstrated, would not address the normative concern that the consequences of anthropogenic global warming would infringe upon the rights of people in less-developed nations. As a consequence, this paper calls for a rethinking of FME approaches to climate change policy.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Graham A. Colby ◽  
Matti O. Ruuskanen ◽  
Kyra A. St. Pierre ◽  
Vincent L. St. Louis ◽  
Alexandre J. Poulain ◽  
...  

AbstractTemperatures in the Arctic are expected to increase dramatically over the next century, yet little is known about how microbial communities and their underlying metabolic processes will be affected by these environmental changes in freshwater sedimentary systems. To address this knowledge gap, we analyzed sediments from Lake Hazen, NU Canada. Here, we exploit the spatial heterogeneity created by varying runoff regimes across the watershed of this uniquely large lake at these latitudes to test how a transition from low to high runoff, used as one proxy for climate change, affects the community structure and functional potential of dominant microbes. Based on metagenomic analyses of lake sediments along these spatial gradients, we show that increasing runoff leads to a decrease in taxonomic and functional diversity of sediment microbes. Our findings are likely to apply to other, smaller, glacierized watersheds typical of polar or high latitude / high altitudes ecosystems; we can predict that such changes will have far reaching consequences on these ecosystems by affecting nutrient biogeochemical cycling, the direction and magnitude of which are yet to be determined.


Author(s):  
GULBARSHYN CHEPURKO

The purpose of the article is to clarify the essence of global risks. Global risks are considered in terms of the ratio of the likelihood and consequences of adverse events that can cause harm or damage, while being global in nature and impact. The systemic nature of global risks has been identified as a defining feature of their current manifestation. A systematic approach to determining the source of modern global risks is used. It is defined that the main risks of the last decade are the risks of the ecological, geopolitical and social spheres, while technological risks are also being developed. It is noted that overall picture of global trends and global risks is constantly changing due to distinction of risks with extremely high growth rates. WEF has determined the forecast for 2020 regarding global trends and global risks is analyzed. For the first time in the ten-year history of global risks study, environmental threats took all positions within the top five risks of high probability of occurrence and three positions in the top 5 risks in terms of their impact. Other two major risks in terms of impact are the usage of weapons of mass destruction and the water crisis. The environmental risks by probability of their occurrence include: weather cataclysms, failure in fight against climate change, natural disasters, reduction of biodiversity, and anthropogenic environmental disasters. Three of these, related to failures in the fight against climate change, reduction of biodiversity and weather cataclysms — are also among the five risks with the most negative consequences. The growing risks of stagnation in the global economy were also noted, including those caused by increasing trend towards emphasizing national economic policy, and local political polarization in consequence of socio-economic intensifying inequality, as well as dissatisfaction of citizens with the way governments try to solve this problem. It is defined that environmental risks, including the ones caused by climate change, are dangerous to that extent that the response to them requires not just a set of measures, but changes in consumption patterns.


2021 ◽  
Vol 291 ◽  
pp. 02010
Author(s):  
Violetta Gassiy ◽  
Anatoliy Sleptsov

The issues of the ensuring of the Arctic ecosystem sustainability are considered in the paper. The authors research the main approaches to sustainable development policy implemented by the Arctic countries, including the Russian Federation. The relevance of the study is justified by the ongoing rapid changes in the Arctic space lead to negative consequences associated with the safety of human life in the northern regions. The article also substantiates the positive aspects of climate change and their impact on sustainable development. Based on statistical analysis, the authors identify the main trends in socio-economic and environmental changes in the Russian Arctic. The Conclusion outlines the directions for ensuring of ecosystem sustainable development, based on innovation, non-conflict coexistence of northern communities and business, the implementation of a rational state policy based on the balance of the economy, social sphere and natural capital.


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