December 2, 2011

National

Ice cores tell the history of Canada’s climate, but now the government doesn’t want them anymore (December 1, 2011): In a nondescript government office in the middle of Ottawa’s downtown core lie more than 10,000 years of the Arctic’s climate history. Ice cores drilled from Canada’s northernmost ice caps and ice fields are packed into dog-eared, insulated cardboard boxes and loaded onto floor-to-ceiling shelves in a walk-in freezer in a government building on Booth Street. Notes duct-taped to the outside divulge the distant origins of their contents: Agassiz, Prince of Wales, Penny. There are more boxes stashed in freezers outside the walk-in at the offices of the Geological Survey of Canada, and still more in rented commercial space, stored between frozen fish and ice cream.

Brazil warns Canada not “to do less” on climate (December 2, 2011): Another emerging economy, Brazil, has joined China in questioning the sincerity of the Canadian government’s anti-Kyoto Protocol musings at international climate change negotiations underway in Durban, South Africa. Environment Minister Peter Kent has said the agreement, the only one in the world that requires countries to reduce heat-trapping greenhouse gases that cause global warming, is in “the past” while suggesting a full withdrawal from Kyoto is “an option” to pursue a more effective treaty.

Regional

Light gives hope of finding twice-disappeared mayor (December 1, 2011): A flickering light spotted in the darkness has given search and rescue crews faint hope that the mayor of Kimmirut, Nunavut, is still alive after disappearing several days ago. Mayor Jamesie Kootoo, an experienced outdoorsman, has survived perilous situations before — but this time he may have insufficient survival equipment with him.

Nunavut community wellness workers in Iqaluit to share and learn (December 1, 2011): Community wellness workers from across the Baffin region are in Iqaluit this week, sharing ideas on how to improve the quality of living for the communities they serve. They’re the men and women who deliver prenatal services, parenting support, addiction counselling, and other health care programs at the community level. And this week, they’re sitting in on sessions with dieticians, mental health experts and other professionals to help design better services to meet the needs of Nunavummiut.

Nunavut's age-old fur trade goes digital (December 1, 2011): Online inventory to launch territory-wide next month Nunavut's age-old fur trade is finally getting a cyber-age treatment, with the territorial government developing an online inventory program to track the movement and sale of pelts.  The digital database is intended to ensure hunters are getting fair market prices for their harvest, marking a big change for a traditional industry that for generations depended on bartering, haggling and sometimes shady dealing.

Nunavut drivers sole exemption from cellphone laws (December 1, 2011): The Northwest Territories will begin enforcing its distracted driving laws next month, leaving Nunavut as the only Canadian province or territory without similar legislation. Although talking or texting on cellphones while driving may still be legal in Nunavut, Sgt. Kevin Lewis with Iqaluit RCMP said that doesn't mean motorists should believe they can get away with poor driving habits.

Amid a flood of alcohol, drugs and crime, a call to respect the law (December 2, 2011): Police revealed the latest figures on crime and drug and alcohol seizures to Kativik Regional Government councillors on Dec. 1, the final day of their meeting this week in Kuujjuaq. But some of the numbers delivered by police didn’t impress the councillors — either because they were too low, or too high.

Nunatsiavut Government to conduct caribou hunt survey (December 1, 2011): The Nunatsiavut Government will conduct a confidential George River caribou hunt survey in the upcoming days and weeks, it was announced Thursday. A news release notes that information collected from the survey will not be made public but used to help determine the harvest level for the George River caribou.

Cree-Nunavut marine deal gets royal assent (December 1, 2011): A offshore rights agreement between Canada, Nunavut and the James Bay Cree received royal assent Dec. 1. The deal, signed July 7, 2010 in Chisasibi, Quebec, gives the James Bay Cree ownership over 80 per cent of the land area covered by a chain of islands in James Bay. Those islands lie outside the Nunavut land claims settlement area, but within the boundaries of the Nunavut territory.

Iqaluit-raised vet moves mobile vet service back home (December 2, 2011): Dr. Leia Cunningham has a new set of wheels. Her driving force? She wants to provide better healthcare for the Iqaluit’s pets. Fresh from her studies, Cunningham is the community’s new veterinarian and also Iqaluit’s first born-and-bred animal doctor.

Chidliak work to go ahead despite BHP review (December 1, 2011): Bulk sampling project near Iqaluit to go forward in 2012 Peregrine Diamonds Ltd., the operator of the Chidliak project near Iqaluit, said Nov. 30 that its majority partner, BHP Billiton, is committed to doing a major bulk sample progam at the site in 2012. “BHP Billiton continues to view Chidliak as a highly promising diamond exploration project and has committed to their share of up to $1.9 million for the mobilization of equipment and materials that will be utilized for the 2012 bulk sample program,” Peregrine said Nov. 30 in a news release.

Ottawa sinks Iqaluit pool funding application (December 1, 2011): City spends $50,000 in vain on P3 pitch  PPP Canada, the federal agency set up to fund public-private building partnerships, won’t be giving Iqaluit its share of the $40 million that the city wants to spend on an aquatic centre. That’s because PPP Canada recently decided municipal recreation projects are no no longer eligible for funding under the program.

Committee Formed Out of Paddon Home Meeting (December 1, 2011): Discussions continue on the future of the vacant Paddon Home in Happy Valley-Goose Bay. Denise Cole is the Housing Coordinator with the Labrador Friendship Centre. She says around 70 concerned residents attended a meeting at the centre last week on the subject. Included in the attendees was the Mayor of Happy Valley-Goose Bay, Leo Abbass and MHA Keith Russell.

Rigolet AngajukKak on Frozen Pipe Prevention  (December 1, 2011): Temperatures are quickly dropping in this region and that means homeowners should be cautious of frozen pipes. Rigolet’s AngajukKâk, Charlotte Wolfrey, has some tips for homeowners in the north coast communities. She suggests keeping your cupboard doors open and your water running during the cold winter months.

Climate Change

Arctic report card: Conditions bad, getting worse (December 1, 2011): U.S. officials say the Arctic region has changed dramatically for the worse in the past five years. It is melting at a near record pace, and it is darkening and absorbing too much of the sun's heat. A new report card from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration rates the polar region with blazing red stop lights on three of five categories and yellow cautions for the other two. Overall, these are not good grades, but it doesn't mean the Arctic is doomed and it still will freeze in the winter, said report co-editor Jackie Richter-Menge.

Arctic now a greener, warmer,  less icy region: 2011 Arctic Report Card (December 1, 2011): The Arctic has settled into new phase – warmer, greener, and with less ice,  the 2011 United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s “Arctic Report Card” said Dec. 1. Changes to the Arctic are chronicled annually in the Arctic Report Card, prepared by an international team of scientists from 14 different countries. In 2011 they say the Arctic is entering a new state – one with warmer air and water temperatures, less summer sea ice and snow cover, and a changed ocean chemistry.

Arctic report card: Global warming is here to stay, for now (December 1, 2011): Global warming has brought a new normal to the Arctic, with warmer air and ocean temperatures, thinner and less expansive summer sea ice, and greener vegetation in coastal regions abutting the open water. In addition, longer periods of open water during the annual sea-ice melt season is allowing the ocean to take up more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, leading to seasonal bouts of ocean acidification in some areas. These broad observations, along with more-detailed looks at some 32 environmental indicators, appear in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's 2011 Arctic Report Card, released Thursday.

'Record-setting' change in warming Arctic (December 2, 2011): AN international team of 121 scientists has found "record-setting" change in the Arctic linked to global warming, including melting ice, warming waters and changing wind patterns.

Whales win, walruses lose in warmer Arctic (December 2, 2011): The Arctic zone has moved into a warmer, greener "new normal" phase, which means less habitat for polar bears and more access for development, an international scientific team reported on Thursday. Arctic air temperatures were higher - about 2.5 degrees F (1.5 degrees C) higher in 2011 than the baseline number for the previous 30 years - and there was a dramatic loss of sea ice and glacier mass, the scientists said in a telephone briefing.

Melting permafrost called ticking time bomb (December 1, 2011): To build a home in Inuvik in the 1950s, construction workers had to drive wooden piles about seven metres deep into the permafrost to account for naturally shifting land. Today, homebuilders in the Northwest Territories town must hammer those piles nearly 20 metres into the ever-softening Arctic ground. “It’s probably the most telling tale of what’s happening,” said Mayor Denny Rodgers. “There are areas in town . . . that are being washed away.”

Northern activists arrive at Durban climate talks (December 1, 2011): Canada's Northerners are already witnessing the effects of climate change and world leaders should heed their warnings, says a group of representatives from the territories visiting Durban. The latest United Nations convention on climate change, or COP17, is being hosted by the South African city, and Daniel Daniel T'seleie of the Dene nation is one of the activists from Northern Canada in attendance.

Canada an embarrassment at climate talks (December 1, 2011): This past week, Canada earned the Fossil of the Day Award from the Climate Action Network, a group of 700 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) at the UN Climate Talks in Durban, South Africa.  Our country's refusal to sign a new international agreement and our rumoured withdrawal from the Kyoto Protocol put us in first place, above the United States, for our lack of action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Meanwhile, three reports released recently suggest the climate change issue is only getting worse

New cola can design sparks biggest outrage since New Coke (December 1, 201): Coca-Cola found a marketing idea in the Arctic that combined its red-canned product with saving the snow-white polar bears. It turned its red Coke cans white for the holidays. But it’s apparently backfired. They’re dumping the white cans and switching back to red, sending them to stores next week, reports the Wall Street Journal:

Other

Raising AIDS awareness among Inuit remains key, says Pauktuutit on World AIDS Day (December 1, 2011): “This could become an epidemic if we’re not proactive and educating” Dec. 1 is World AIDS Day, and it also marks the start of Aboriginal AIDS Awareness week in Canada. For the Pauktuutit national Inuit Women’s association, AIDS prevention is an ongoing campaign. “It’s always about education and awareness,” said Elisapie Sheutiapik, the president of Pauktuutit, who will help launch Aboriginal AIDS Awareness week at a Dec. 1 event in Ottawa. “This could become an epidemic if we’re not proactive and educating.”

Cairn vows to carry on Arctic search (December 1, 2011): Oil and gas explorer Cairn Energy has vowed to press on with its controversial drilling campaign off the coast of Greenland despite failing to find oil in two more wells. The Edinburgh-based firm saw shares fall as it wrapped up this year’s programme empty handed, following the closure of three other wells earlier this year.

Icebreaker sought to refuel isolated Nome, Alaska (December 1, 2011): A Coast Guard icebreaker cruising off the coast of Alaska after a research season in the Arctic Ocean should be diverted to clear a path to Nome so fuel can be delivered to that isolated northern city, the state's two U.S. senators said on Thursday.