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Today's C
ongressional Action:
The House is in session and expected to consider non-Arctic legislation. The Senate is expected to host a pro forma session.
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Media
Arctic Project Aims to Improve Home Water Service.
Turning on an indoor water tap is not always an easy feat in the Arctic. Remoteness, high costs and harsh weather conditions are well-known obstacles that make water piping a challenge in the world's northernmost communities.
Also well-known is the link between poor health and the lack of running water in a region where people spend large amounts of time indoors, sometimes in crowded conditions. Diseases, especially respiratory infections that harm infants and children, proliferate in homes where clean water is not readily available.
Alaska Dispatch News
 Arctic Coastal Nations to Negotiate Fishing Rights in International Waters. Arctic coastal nations will meet in Iqaluit this week to decide the future of commercial fishing in a vast expanse of international Arctic waters. The Central Arctic Ocean spans more than two and half million square kilometers but the area is not governed by an international fisheries agreement.
Nunatsiaq Online
Erosion Threat at Remote Military Radars Decades Ahead of Schedule. A group of strategic Air Force radar facilities along the North Slope are at an accelerated risk of degradation. Erosion driven by climate change is happening decades sooner than the military predicted, and the plan now is to spend tens of millions of dollars to fortify in place. The 15 sites within the Long Range Radar program are designed to spot foreign aircraft heading into U.S. airspace, or civilian planes that have gone off course.
Alaska Public Radio
 Plastic Waste Dumped in UK Seas 'Carried to Arctic Within Two Years.'
Plastic dumped into the seas around the UK is carried to the
Arctic
within two years, scientists have revealed, where it does "extreme harm" to the fragile polar environment.
Marine plastic pollution is a huge problem, with 5tn pieces of plastic now floating in the world's oceans. The plastic is frequently mistaken for food by fish and birds, causing damage to life throughout the seas.
The Guardian
[Opinion] With Strategic Spillover Rising, Now is the Time for an Arctic Security Forum.
Perhaps more than they have with regard to any other region of the world, pundits, political scientists and foreign ministries have latched on with an astounding vigor to the notion that the Arctic is an entirely peaceful region, ruled by laws and largely immune to geopolitical shocks. The United States'
2013 Arctic Strategy
is prefaced with the assertion that "the Arctic region is peaceful, stable, and free of conflict." Indeed, the very possibility of conflict there is so beyond the pale that the Arctic Council-the primary organ of governance in the region-is precluded by its mandate from addressing military security. As such, it was met with considerable surprise, and some dismay, when a recent government review of Denmark's foreign policy
called upon Arctic
nations to explore the potential development of a new forum in which such issues could be addressed.
World Politics Review
Researchers Study Plants in Arviat to Create Arctic Flora Guide. A team of botanists is flying into Arviat this week to study the flora in the region as part of a larger project to create a comprehensive guide to plants in the Canadian Arctic. "It's really important to know what plants we have all across Canada and the Arctic especially is a place we still have a lot of gaps in our knowledge," said Lynn Gillespie, a research scientist with the team.
CBC News
Study: High Levels of CO2 Could Boost Biomass Carbon Absorption in Parts of Alaska 'til 2100.
Scientists have long worried the warming climate caused by buildup of carbon in the atmosphere will thaw long-frozen Arctic soils, which in turn will release more carbon. As will wildfires, which new research says will become more commonplace in Alaska. "What we've found is, for the boreal forest, we can expect to see more frequent and larger-extent fires, like we've been seeing in the past two decades," says Scott Rupp, a UAF forestry professor. KUAC
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Legislative Action
No Arctic legislation was formally considered Friday.
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Future Events
TOW Arctic Broadband Summit, July 13, 2016 (Barrow, Alaska, USA).
 The Arctic Economic Council, the Iñuit Arctic Business Alliance and the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation will host this event. Summit topics include the challenges of connectivity; the government's role in, and commitment to,
broadband development; and, private investment opportunities. Policy leaders, regulators, other government officials, along with industry experts and executives have been invited to present and attend.
** New this week**
ARCTIC ALERTS 2016, July 13, 2016 (Washington, DC).
The Study of Environmental Arctic
Change (SEARCH) announces a National Press Club media roundtable (1:00-
3:00 pm) in which
Arctic researchers will outline the unprecedented changes taking place in the Arctic environment and the local and global consequences. Five brief presentations by scientific experts will be followed by q
uestions and discussion with journalists.
This event will not be webcast nor accessible other than by in-person attendance. If non-journalists would like to attend
(in listen-only mode please), contact Brendan Kelly
(
[email protected]),
as space is
limited.
Hosted by Saint Petersburg State University, the UArctic Congress 2016 will feature Science and Meeting sections, including:
- Acclaimed keynote speakers and scientific experts presenting their latest research.
- Parallel sessions on an array of Arctic science, policy, and education topics.
- Formal meetings for representatives of the Council of UArctic and UArctic Rectors' Forum.
- Pre-Meetings to foster contacts and enhance networking.
- Opportunities for promoting and marketing your organization and activities.
- A UArctic Student Forum with workshops.
- A Cultural and Social program like no other.
The 2016 UArctic Rectors' Forum and the 19th annual meeting of the Council of UArctic form an integral part of the congress.
Conference on Water Innovations for Healthy Arctic Homes: September 18-21, 2016, Anchorage, Alaska. This circumpolar conference will bring together engineers, health experts, researchers, community members, policymakers, and innovators to discuss health benefits, challenges and innovations associated with making running water and sewer in remote northern communities safe, affordable and sustainable. Information and an expression of interest in attending can be found
here. (The full link is:
http://wihah2016.com/)
13th International Conference on Gas in Marine Sediments: September 19-22, 2016 (Tromso, Norway).
GIMS 13
promotes the study of natural gas and release systems on a global scale and
facilitates interdisciplinary and international cooperation. The conference
intends to bring together geologists, biologists, microbiologist, geophysicists, oceanographers, geochemists and scientists from modeling disciplines. The forum will provide a platform for current knowledge and future programs in gas inventories, fluxes and their role within the carbon cycle and biodiversity. Conference is organized by CAGE - Centre for Arctic Gas Hydrate, Environment and Climate at UiT The
Arctic University of Norway. Abstract submission deadline is May 30th and registration deadline is June 20th. For more information:
http://gims13.uit.no
Bridging the Future of Arctic Social Science Research, September 23-24, 2016 (Monticello, Virginia, USA).
The event is sponsored by Arctic Horizons. The event will reassemble the members of the National Steering Committee and a small but diverse selection of representatives from the five regional workshops, to total about 15 people. The aim will be to identify and synthesize the core threads of the previous workshops and public contributions proffered between workshops. The target output for the workshop will be a final report draft and outline of steps leading to the final report release in June 2016. The Jefferson Institute will manage production of the publication.
Second International Conference on Natural Resources and Integrated Development of Coastal Areas in the Arctic Zone, September 27-29, 2016 (Arkhangelsk, Russia).
The Conference is organized by FASO of Russia, Russian Academy of Sciences, Government of Arkhangelsk region, Arkhangelsk Scientific Center and International Arctic Science Committee (IASC). Conference is aimed at elaboration of research-based practical measures and instruments for realization of human, natural and transport-logistical potential of the Arctic zone, including development of the Northern Sea Route and implementation of models of integrated coastal areas management. For additional information, please email.
Arctic Ambitions V: International Business Conference & Trade Show, October 4-5, 2016 (Anchorage, Alaska, USA). This once-a-year event uniquely focuses on business and investment opportunities flowing from developments in the Arctic. With interest in commercial development in the Arctic growing rapidly, WTC Anchorage initiated the Arctic Ambitions conference five years ago to address issues such as innovation, investment, infrastructure development, transportation, natural resources, and trade. At the event, corporate executives and senior government officials from across the Arctic, and around the world, make presentations and participate in panel discussions. This year's conference also includes a Trade Show and B2B Matchmaking Session. For more information, please contact Greg Wolf (
[email protected]) or call
907-278-7233.
Inuit traditions are a repository of Inuit culture and a primary expression of Inuit identity. The theme for the 2016 Inuit Studies Conference invites Elders, knowledge-bearers, researchers, artists, policy-makers, students and others to engage in conversations about the many ways in which traditions shape understanding, while registering social and cultural change. The institutional hosts of "Inuit Traditions," Memorial University of Newfoundland and the Nunatsiavut Government, invite you to contribute to an exchange of knowledge to be held in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, October 7-10, 2016. Presentations on all aspects of Inuit studies will be welcome.
Arctic Technology Conference, October 24-26, 2016 (St. John's, Canada). Founded in 1969, the Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) is the world's foremost event for the development of offshore resources in the fields of drilling, exploration, production and environmental protection. The Arctic Technology Conference (ATC) is built upon OTC's successful multidisciplinary approach, with 14 technical societies and organizations working together to deliver the world's most comprehensive Arctic event.
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