The Arctic Essay, Research Paper

The Artic

Introduction.

The Artic is a region at the upper most tip of the Northern

Hemisphere. The Artic includes the area around Greenland, USSR,

Canada and Alaska. Much of the Artic circle is permanently frozen

ice.

The Artic is a pristine environment, clean and void of human

interference. However as humans move into these areas and begin

to extract what ever they can be balance can be tipped, resulting

in pollution and destruction of the environment.

Climate.

The Artic winters much longer than the Summer. In the winter the

sun never rises and in the summer it never sets. The average

temperature for the Artic is zero degrees of less.

Industry and the Artic.

There was once a time when the land of the Artic Circle was

considered useless and only hospitable to those native to it.

However once vast quantities of oil and fish had been found there

was a rush of interest in the land.

Fishing in the Artic has occurred for thousands of years but in

recent years man has been fishing the Artic; in greater numbers

and taking more fish. Professional fishermen are taking all kinds

of fish as well as whales and seals. In some areas fishermen have

become so efficient at their job that quotas have needed to be

put on to limit or stop the capture of certain animals.

There are many mineral deposits within the Artic Circle.

In Russia: nickel, iron ore, apatite, diamonds, gold, tin, coal,

mica, and tungsten. In Sweden: iron ore. In Greenland: lead,

zinc, molybdenum and cryolite. Spitsbergen: coal. Canada:

uranium, copper, nickel, lead, zinc, tungsten and iron ore.

The digging out of minerals would inevitably disturb the natural

habitat as well as the environment there would be a great cost to

maintain the site. Industry that is designed to process various

minerals have waste products that would be most unwelcome in the

Artic. A good example of this is the pollution that has arisen as

a result of the smelting of metals in the Artic. It is for this

reason that there is very little industry in the Artic. However

Russia, Canada, Greenland and Iceland have several small scale

manufacturing plants.

The largest industry in the Artic is oil. The rush began in 1968

when a large oil field was discovered, there was a great deal of

protest but the development went ahead.

Oil extracted from the felid makes its way to Port Valdez via a

1300 kilometre pipeline. Although steps were taken to limit the

pipelines affect on the environment it still disrupts the

migration of caribou.

In 1989 the unthinkable happened and the super tanker Exxon

Valdez ran aground spilling millions of gallons of crude oil into

the Prince William Sound.

The effects of the slick were devastating. Within a week workers

counted 24000 dead sea birds and 1000 sea otters. The effects of

the slick were felt throughout the food chain from photoplankton

to bears. The Exxon company funded the clean up but there was no

compensation for the hundreds of people that lost their job as a

result of the slick.

Pollution of the Artic

A large threat to the Artic is transboundry pollution and

bioaccumulation. These are both complex subjects but are easily

explained. Transboundry pollution is the pollution of the Artic

from other countries. The ocean currents and wind conditions

result in large amounts of pollution being deposited in the

Artic. In winter when the sun is low thick blankets of haze

can be seen over the Artic. Bioaccumulation is the process where

pollutants build up in the Artic because they cannot be broken

down due to the extreme cold. Once harsh chemicals find their way

into the food chain they stay there forever, trapped in the

animals and sediments.

A result of increased pollutants in the atmosphere is the

occurrence of acid rain. Sulphur and Nitrogen dioxides drift from

developed countries and when they mix with water in the

atmosphere they can produce acid rain as strong as lemon juice.

The acid snow melts in summer and spring producing an acid

shock that can kill animals and plants alike.

In 1986 the nuclear reactor in Chernoybl exploded sending a

nuclear cloud into the atmosphere that among other places

contaminated plants and animals in the Artic region. Particularly

affected were lichens, lichens are a plant that makes up the

majority of a reindeers’ diet. When the reindeers ate the

lichens they became radioactive and many thousands had to be

shot.

Tourism vs conservation.

In the battle between tourism and conservation, tourism seems to

always win. However in the Artic tourism has so far had little

effect (compared to other human activity) on the environment. The

scenery and wild life of the Artic are seen as so special that

people pay thousands of dollars for a small glimpse of the Artic.

It is believed by many that Artic tourism will spread a general

concern for the environment. There is no denying that if tourism

is not controlled people will destroy what they have come to see.

Tourism will alway clash with conservation and it is many peoples

opinion that tourism should be stoped in the Artic altogether,

but if there is money to be made someone will be there to provide

the service.

Conclusion.

Human’s have had a great deal of impact on the Artic environment.

Mining, tourism bioaccumulation and transboundry pollution mean

that this land is a great threat. Tourism is the latest threat

with huge potential for damage. The Artic is one of the few

unspoilt wilderness areas in the world and must be conserved.