Arctic Climate Change

What happens in the Arctic doesn’t stay in the Arctic. The Arctic is warming faster than any other region on Earth, and the world is already feeling the effects.

FEATURED

Arctic countries need to lead the cut of CO2

The hottest temperature ever measured above the Arctic circle was recorded in Verkhoyansk, Siberia this past June. In fact, the + 38.6°C reading was just one of many highs that made June 2020 in Siberia five degrees warmer than any June from 1981 to 2010. A recent Oxford University-led study shows man-made climate change due to carbon emissions made this Siberian heatwave 600 times more likely.

The Arctic is warming at a rate of almost twice the global average.

Without urgent action to cut greenhouse gas emissions, the world will continue to feel the effects of a warming Arctic: rising sea levels, changes in climate and precipitation patterns, increasing severe weather events, and loss of fish stocks, birds and marine mammals.

Why it matters

Summer sea ice is disappearing

Sea ice is critical to Arctic marine life - and it's projected to nearly disappear in the summer within a generation.

The average temperature of the Arctic has increased 2.3°C since the 1970s.

Shrinking sea ice is a big problem for Arctic wildlife

Ice dependent species such as narwhals, polar bears, and walruses are at increasing risk with shrinking sea ice cover.

By 2100, polar bears could face starvation and reproductive failure even in far northern Canada.

Ice melt is a feedback loop

Shiny ice and snow reflect a high proportion of the sun's energy into space. As the Arctic loses snow and ice, bare rock and water absorb more and more of the sun’s energy, making it even warmer. This is called the albedo effect.

Loss of sea ice is forcing walruses into danger

Around 35,000 walruses came ashore on the Alaska coast in September 2014. It’s the largest ‘haul out’ ever recorded. US government agencies estimated that 60 young walruses were crushed in the crowd.

It's harder for caribou and reindeer to find food

More woody plants, more precipitation, and warmer temperatures compromise the survival of grazing animals such as reindeer and muskoxen.

Warmer winter temperatures have also increased the layers of ice in snow, making food more difficult to dig up in winter.

Fish are moving as seas warm.

Fish stocks in the Barents Sea are moving north at up to 160 kilometres per decade as a result of climate change.

The fish are sensitive to changes in water temperature. This poses a risk for commercial and subsistence fisheries that may see fish resources move away from where they can harvest them. The moving fish also change the ecosystems into which they move.

Opportunistic species are moving in

Southern species can pose a risk to existing Arctic species and systems.

On the tundra, rising temperatures have brought a new competitor - the Arctic fox’s much larger cousin, the red fox. Not only does the newcomer colonise their dens, it can also kill the smaller Arctic foxes.

In the ocean, both scientists and Inuit say killer whales appear to be increasing in numbers, and in the length of time they stay in the Arctic. Killer whales prey on narwhals and bowhead whales.

Shipping is increasing

Melting ice is opening up previously inaccessible routes.

With increased shipping comes spill risk (both fuel and cargo), “black carbon” emissions that help to speed the rate of Arctic melting, ship noise that may also affect whales, and icebreaking that can disrupt ice crossing routes for people and animals.

In 2013, a large bulk carrier transited the Northwest Passage for the first time. In 2018, the first cargo ship transited the Arctic north of Russia.

Oil drilling is moving north

There is no proven effective method to clean up oil spills in ice covered waters.

Reduced ice cover is making offshore oil production in the Arctic more commercially viable. In 2014, the first commercial development of offshore oil (Prirazlomnoye) was pumped from Russian Arctic waters.

Our solutions

Map a future for the Arctic’s ice

The “Last Ice Area” is where summer sea ice is projected to last the longest. This area could be critically important to species that depend on ice. We are working with local people and governments to manage the area that benefits all Arctic life.

Government action

Climate change in the Arctic cannot be changed by action solely within the Arctic – it is a global problem that requires a global solution. However, Arctic countries, especially those with high carbon footprints, should lead the way.

100% Renewable energy

We urgently need to transition towards a 100% renewable future through the development of clean energy sources. Governments need to finance renewable energy in the Arctic and beyond instead of subsidizing oil and gas.

Plan for change

Planning and management in the Arctic must find ways for social and natural systems to absorb change: this is resilience. WWF is identifying places around the Arctic that are predicted to be the most resilient.