Future Arctic: Field Notes from a World on the Edge

214 Pages·2015·1.13 MB·English

by  Edward Struzik

Future Arctic

Future Arctic
Field Notes from a
World on the Edge
Edward Struzik
Washington | Covelo | London
Copyright © 2015 Edward Struzik
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright
Conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any
means without permission in writing from the publisher: Island Press,
2000 M Street, NW, Suite 650, Washington, DC 20036
Island Press is a trademark of The Center for Resource Economics.
Library of Congress Control Number: 2014948287
Printed on recycled, acid-free paper
Manufactured in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Keywords: Arctic Council, Peace-Athabasca delta, avian cholera, Bering Sea,
British Columbia, cackling goose, Canada goose, caribou, Chinchaga fire,
Chukchi Sea, Churchill, cod, Ellef Ringnes, Exxon Valdez, Greenland,
grizzly bear, Hudson Bay, hybridization, Ice Age, Inuit, Mackenzie delta,
narwhal, Norwegian Polar Institute, ocean current, orca, peregrine falcon,
polar bear, salmon, Shishmaref, snow goose, snowy owl, Svalbard,
Tuktoyaktuk, wolf, wood bison, Yukon Territory
To my wife, Julia, and to my children, Jacob and Sigrid,
who have participated in a number of my Arctic expeditions.
Those are the journeys north that I treasure most.
To the people who live in the Arctic, my thanks for
your hospitality and for sharing your insights.

Contents
Introduction 1
Chapter 1: Eight-Foot-Long Beavers, Scimitar Cats, and
Woolly Mammoths: What the Past Tells Us about
the Future Arctic 11
Chapter 2: Oil and Ice 25
Chapter 3: The Arctic Ocean: A Sleeping Giant Wakes Up 43
Chapter 4: Stormy Arctic: The New Normal 59
Chapter 5: The Arctic Melting Pot 75
Chapter 6: Lords of the Arctic No More 89
Chapter 7: Caribou at the Crossroads 109
Chapter 8: Paradise Lost 129
Chapter 9: Drill, Baby, Drill 143
Chapter 10: The Need for an Arctic Treaty 165
Chapter 11: Conclusion 181
Acknowledgments 195
About the Author 199