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Norway's Arctic islands at risk of "devastating" warming: report

Source(s): Thomson Reuters
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By Alister Doyle

Icy Arctic islands north of Norway are warming faster than almost anywhere on Earth and more avalanches, rain and mud may cause "devastating" changes by 2100, a Norwegian report said on Monday.

The thaw on the remote Svalbard islands, home to 2,300 people and where the main village of Longyearbyen is 1,300 kms (800 miles) from the North Pole, highlights risks in other parts of the Arctic from Alaska to Siberia.

Average temperatures on Svalbard have leapt between three and five degrees Celsius (5.4-9.0 Fahrenheit) since the early 1970s and could rise by a total of 10C (18F) by 2100 if world greenhouse gas emissions keep climbing, the study said.

[...]

“No one is doing enough” to limit greenhouse gas emissions, [Climate and Environment Minister Ola Elvestuen] said of government actions. “We have to do more ... The use of oil and gas has to go down.” Norway is western Europe’s biggest oil and gas exporter.

[...]

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Climate in Svalbard 2100 , English

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Themes Climate change Environment and ecosystems Risk identification and assessment
Country and region Norway
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