Artic Case Study: Environmental and Ecological Impacts of Rapid Global Warming
1) The Artic is described as a “canary in a coal mine” because canaries used to be sent
underground to detect whether harmful gases were present such as carbon dioxide or
methane in order to warn miners. The Artic is therefore described in the same way because
it will be the first indication, as the canary was, of the impacts of global warming on the
planet. This is particularly highlighted by the rate at which the Artic is warming in
comparison to other areas—twice as fast with IPCC predictions of an 8 oC rise by the end of
the century.
2) The Artic Region consists of the North Pole ice sheet, in addition to the northern parts of the
countries Canada, Norway, Sweden, Finland, USA, Greenland, Russia and Iceland. This region
is located in the Artic Circle—66.5o North of the Equator—and consists of a majority of ice,
including the floating ice cap and land-based ice such as Greenland. The Artic Region
experiences extreme temperatures with an average of -35 oC in January and -1.5oC in July.
3) The Positive Ice Albedo Feedback Mechanism is the process by which the level of absorption
of the sun’s energy varies from ice to sea, therefore creating a feedback loop that causes a
more rapid rate of ice melting. This happens because of the different Albedo—the amount
of solar radiation that is reflected by a surface—of the ice and sea. Ice has a high Albedo
meaning that it reflects 90% (thus absorbing the remaining 10% of energy) whereas the
opposite is true of water, which has a relatively low Albedo of 10% (absorbing 90%). The
result of this is that ice melting causes a larger amount of water to be exposed, which has a
lower albedo than ice causing it to warm more quickly. This consequently leads to more ice
melting as the sea temperature rises. In this way, the effect is a process that feeds on itself,
resulting in rapidly accelerating melting of ice as a larger surface area of water is exposed.
4) Global warming and increasing temperatures are greatly impacting the environment,
particularly ecologically—on ecosystems and plant and animal species. One example of this
is the movement of the tree line, the edge of the habitat where trees grow, further north, in
addition to places with higher altitudes. Additionally, the warming has led to a loss of tundra
ecosystems (barren plains that experience both low temperatures and temperatures eg.
Northern Canada, Alaska and Siberia). The tundra plains, usually treeless with grasses and
mosses appearing during the very short growing season, are predicted to become populated
with shrub lands and forests as the climate warms. This will not only cause new species to
appear in the tundra, but will led to the loss of mosses and lichen as the warming soils
favour shrub-like plants that grow more quickly in these conditions consequently impacting
the tundra food web. The number and extent of boreal (coniferous) forest fires (see picture
shown right) will increase in Artic Russia. As temperatures increase, which lead to a warmer
and drier environment, ideal conditions are created for forest fires, meaning the frequency
of these fires, which release tonnes of CO 2. Furthermore, the loss of boreal forests is not
only a loss of an ecosystem but is also a major carbon sink and accounts for 37% of the
world’s carbon pool on land.
1) The Artic is described as a “canary in a coal mine” because canaries used to be sent
underground to detect whether harmful gases were present such as carbon dioxide or
methane in order to warn miners. The Artic is therefore described in the same way because
it will be the first indication, as the canary was, of the impacts of global warming on the
planet. This is particularly highlighted by the rate at which the Artic is warming in
comparison to other areas—twice as fast with IPCC predictions of an 8 oC rise by the end of
the century.
2) The Artic Region consists of the North Pole ice sheet, in addition to the northern parts of the
countries Canada, Norway, Sweden, Finland, USA, Greenland, Russia and Iceland. This region
is located in the Artic Circle—66.5o North of the Equator—and consists of a majority of ice,
including the floating ice cap and land-based ice such as Greenland. The Artic Region
experiences extreme temperatures with an average of -35 oC in January and -1.5oC in July.
3) The Positive Ice Albedo Feedback Mechanism is the process by which the level of absorption
of the sun’s energy varies from ice to sea, therefore creating a feedback loop that causes a
more rapid rate of ice melting. This happens because of the different Albedo—the amount
of solar radiation that is reflected by a surface—of the ice and sea. Ice has a high Albedo
meaning that it reflects 90% (thus absorbing the remaining 10% of energy) whereas the
opposite is true of water, which has a relatively low Albedo of 10% (absorbing 90%). The
result of this is that ice melting causes a larger amount of water to be exposed, which has a
lower albedo than ice causing it to warm more quickly. This consequently leads to more ice
melting as the sea temperature rises. In this way, the effect is a process that feeds on itself,
resulting in rapidly accelerating melting of ice as a larger surface area of water is exposed.
4) Global warming and increasing temperatures are greatly impacting the environment,
particularly ecologically—on ecosystems and plant and animal species. One example of this
is the movement of the tree line, the edge of the habitat where trees grow, further north, in
addition to places with higher altitudes. Additionally, the warming has led to a loss of tundra
ecosystems (barren plains that experience both low temperatures and temperatures eg.
Northern Canada, Alaska and Siberia). The tundra plains, usually treeless with grasses and
mosses appearing during the very short growing season, are predicted to become populated
with shrub lands and forests as the climate warms. This will not only cause new species to
appear in the tundra, but will led to the loss of mosses and lichen as the warming soils
favour shrub-like plants that grow more quickly in these conditions consequently impacting
the tundra food web. The number and extent of boreal (coniferous) forest fires (see picture
shown right) will increase in Artic Russia. As temperatures increase, which lead to a warmer
and drier environment, ideal conditions are created for forest fires, meaning the frequency
of these fires, which release tonnes of CO 2. Furthermore, the loss of boreal forests is not
only a loss of an ecosystem but is also a major carbon sink and accounts for 37% of the
world’s carbon pool on land.
