Nature's riches
Oil and gas
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) has said that about 30% of the world's undiscovered gas and 13% of the world's undiscovered oil may be found north of the Arctic Circle, mostly under the sea in less that 500meters of water. The Russian Arctic has the largest deposits of natural gas in the world.
Changing economic conditions in newly industrialised countries has created an increasing market for oil and gas and climate change is making areas of the Arctic easier to access to extract these resources.
Effects of oil and gas production
- Some jobs are created, but these are mostly manual work
- Sometimes some of the money is invested in schools and services for local people.
- People come in from outside the Arctic region.
- These people bring with them different lifestyles and products which the indigenous people then use.
Once the oil is out of the ground it has to be transported to refineries by pipeline.
Problems
- Permafrost would melt if the pipeline was built on the ground
- Tundra ecosystems will be destroyed by oil spills
- This area is tectonically active
- Migration routes of animals such as caribou will be blocked
Solutions
- Pipeline built above the ground on stilts
- Pipeline built underground where there are caribou migration routes with special refrigeration to stop the permafrost melting
Activity
Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of oil and gas production in the Arctic for the area and for the rest of the world.
This information sheet tells you more about the geology of the Arctic region.
Links
- Alaska oil & gas conservation commission
- Canadian Arctic resources committee
- Scott polar research institute: "Anthropological research on impacts of oil and gas extraction on nomads"
Other minerals
The old hard rocks of the Canadian, Baltic and Siberian shields have significant deposits of iron ore, nickel copper, lead, zinc and uranium. Small mining communities have built up near these deposits.
Diamonds and gold have been discovered in newly exposed areas of Greenland.
There is a Russian coalmining settlement of about 1000 people at Barenstburg in Svalbard.
How do you think the reduction in ice cover will affect mineral exploitation?
How will mineral exploitation affect wildlife? Use the video of Nancy from Umingmaktok (near Bathurst inlet) to help you (video by Arctic Voice).
This presentation helps you to discover more about the effects of resource extraction in the Arctic.
