Есть что улучшить? Предложите правку.
The United States is one of eight Arctic nations responsible for a polar region going through dramatic environmental, social and economic change. The Arctic has warmed and cooled over millennia, but the current warming is unlike anything recorded and is happening faster there than anywhere else on Earth, shrinking sea ice, altering weather and thawing permafrost.
The consequences include rapid coastal erosion threatening villages and critical infrastructure; possible effects on subsistence and cultural resources; changing wildlife habitat; more greenhouse gases released from thawing permafrost; the threat of invasive species; and an Arctic Ocean opening to oil and gas exploration and more shipping. The U.S. Geological Survey's Arctic science focuses on landscape-scale ecosystem and resource questions and on the physical processes that shape the region, to inform national policy and stewardship.
The Arctic boundary as defined by the Arctic Research and Policy Act. Image: U.S. Arctic Research Commission.
The national strategy
The National Strategy for the Arctic Region (May 2013) sets three goals the USGS supports: pursue responsible stewardship, protecting the environment, conserving resources, charting the region and using both science and traditional knowledge; strengthen international cooperation; and decide with the best available information, current science and traditional knowledge alike. It describes the United States as an Arctic nation seeking to meet its security needs, protect the environment, manage resources responsibly, account for Indigenous communities and support science.
Six USGS goals for five years
| Goal | Some of the actions |
|---|---|
| Better information for coastal communities and ecosystems | science for adapting coastal communities to climate change; sea-floor mapping of the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone and Extended Continental Shelf; shoreline vulnerability and coastline projections under climate scenarios |
| Landscape-scale understanding of Arctic ecosystems and future change | forecasting effects on Interior Department trust species and habitats; changes in marine and land ecosystems, including invasive species and fire; structured decision-making tools |
| Assess mineral and energy resources, and the effects of developing them | assessments of oil and gas, gas hydrates, coal, coalbed methane and geothermal energy; strategic and critical minerals; life-cycle assessments of environmental effects |
| Effects of a changing Arctic on environmental health | mercury and gas fluxes in thawing permafrost; emerging wildlife disease and possible human health effects; Alaska Native subsistence and water quality |
| The physical processes unique to the Arctic | baseline monitoring of snow and ice; near-surface permafrost on land and in shallow seas; Arctic hydrology; carbon fluxes and storage; effects of glaciers on fresh water, rivers and coasts |
| Better statewide mapping and geospatial data | updated elevation, imagery, surface water, transportation, geodetic control and boundary data for Alaska; a new topographic map series for the whole state; high-resolution permafrost maps |
Partners
The USGS takes part in and helps lead groups including the Arctic, Western Alaska, Northwest Boreal and Aleutian and Bering Sea Islands Landscape Conservation Cooperatives; the North Slope Science Initiative; the Integrated Arctic Management Working Group; the Arctic Council and its working groups; the North Pacific Research Board; the Alaska Mapping Executive Committee and Alaska Geospatial Council; and the Alaska Climate Change Executive Roundtable.
More: USGS Regional Director for Alaska, 4210 University Drive, Anchorage, Alaska 99508, (907) 786-7000, alaska.usgs.gov.
Sources
- Mark Shasby and Durelle Smith, USGS Arctic Science Strategy, U.S. Geological Survey Fact Sheet 2015–3049. https://pubs.usgs.gov/publication/fs20153049
Лицензия: CC0 1.0 (общественное достояние) · По материалам pubs.usgs.gov
1
0
0
0
Комментарии
