A new study has produced the first map of coastal communities and infrastructure across the Arctic Circle, showing that both infrastructure and the people living in local communities will continue to face profound challenges in the coming decades as a result of climate change
The study, published Dec. 16 in the American Geophysical Union’s journal Earth’s Future, used data from the European Space Agency’s Sentinel 1 and 2 satellites in combination with projections of sea level rise to create the map, which includes the typically small communities north of 66.33. °N latitude, as well as the infrastructure of these settlements.
Permafrost shorelines in the Arctic are among the fastest eroding on the planet, with some experiencing up to 67 feet of erosion annually. But rising seas and more extreme weather will likely exacerbate an already significant problem, according to the study’s authors, led by a team from the Austrian firm b.geos.
The study concluded that by 2100, 45 percent of the 318 coastal settlements now in the Arctic will be affected by sea level rise, 31 percent will be affected by coastal erosion, and 77 % of infrastructure will potentially sit on land that no longer exists. frozen solid but collapsing and extinguishing.
The new map shows that erosion is already happening, with coastlines near settlements receding an average of 10 feet a year, but in some areas coastal retreat is much worse, up to 67 feet a year. By 2030, more roads and buildings will be affected, the study authors said.
“To minimize the risks and costs facing coastal permafrost settlements, the rapid adoption of coastal management and adaptation measures is essential to protect infrastructure and the livelihoods of local populations,” the study authors concluded.
Traditional economies based on hunting and fishing comprise the majority of Arctic settlements, but mining facilities and operations, military facilities, tourist attractions and research stations are also present, said Anett Bartsch, founder of b .geos and lead author of the study. “A lot of this infrastructure serves people who live further south” rather than those who live nearby, he said in a statement.
A separate analysis by the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), in its annual Arctic report released Dec. 10, found that Arctic tundra, the land that lies above permafrost, it has for the first time moved from storing carbon emissions to becoming a source of carbon dioxide, as a result of warming temperatures and more forest fires. Circumpolar emissions from wildfires have averaged 207 million tons annually since 2003. NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad said the combination of increased wildfire activity with higher levels of carbon emissions will worsen climate impacts.
