A retreat of Arctic ice in summers is changing indigenous peoples' livelihoods and will threaten the survival of polar bears, writes Alun Anderson in "After the Ice" (HarperCollins), packed with anecdotes about shifts already under way. "The Arctic is seeing a more dramatic change to its environment and ecosystems than any part of the planet has seen for many thousands of years," he writes in the book, subtitled "Life, Death and Geopolitics in the New Arctic". Oil companies are looking north but Anderson, a former editor of New Scientist magazine, shows huge problems of icebergs, waves, cold and currents that would complicate drilling as well as transport of any oil or gas to shore.
"My bet is that the oil and gas boom will be short lived and will not go far beyond the shallow seas of Russia and perhaps some of the regions close to the Alaskan shores," he writes. Anderson, a former research biologist who lives in London, quotes experts as agreeing that prospects of a "Cold Rush" for riches of the central Arctic lie far in the future. Still, Russia planted a flag in the waters deep beneath the North Pole in 2007 in a symbolic claim. And the U.S. Geological Survey estimated last year the Arctic could hold 90 billion barrels of oil, enough to meet world demand for three years. Among offshore fields closer to land, Gazprom's (GAZP.MM) is planning to tap the big Shtokman gas deposit.....Read the entire article.
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