Global warming causes growth spurt in some Arctic forests

Posted on November 14, 2011 by Bob Berwyn

New tree ring studies in Alaska help shed light on climate-change impacts to forests.

Tree-ring width and density increased dramatically about 100 years ago

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — Forests at the edge of Alaska’s tundra have put on a growth spurt in the past hundred years, and especially since about 1950, according to researchers with Columbia University’s LaMont-Doherty Earth Observatory.

The scientists  recently completed a detailed tree-ring study dating back to 1067. The results suggest that at least some forests may be adapting the rapidly warming climate in the Arctic. Global temperatures have climbed about 1.6 degrees since the 1950s, but some parts of northern latitudes have climbed about 4 to 5 degrees during that same span.

“For the moment, warmer temperatures are helping the trees along the tundra,” said study coauthor Kevin Anchukaitis, a tree-ring scientist at Lamont. “It’s a fairly wet, fairly cool, site overall, so those longer growing seasons allow the trees to grow more.” (more…)

Filed under: climate and weather, Environment, forests, global warming, Summit County news | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

GOP pushes for drilling in Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

Posted on November 13, 2011 by Bob Berwyn

Arctic Sun. PHOTO BY CASSIDY BRUSH. Click on the photo to read about some Colorado residents who are involved in ANWR preservation efforts.

Oil drilling in the coastal strip in the Alaskan Arctic has been hotly contested for decades

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — Continuing to push for domestic energy production, House Republicans this week said they will introduce a bill that would open parts of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for oil drilling.

Although the area was set aside for possible oil exploration in 1980, drilling is now generally opposed by a broad coalition of conservation groups, as well as populations of indigenous people in the region.

It is supported by a pro-development faction in Alaska and by oil companies, who have lobbied heavily for opening the area. (more…)

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Battle over polar bear habitat heats up

Posted on April 24, 2011 by Bob Berwyn

Oil companies, Alaska challenge federal critical habitat designation in court

A polar bear roams a coastal strand. PHOTO BY SUSANNE MILLER, USFWS.

SUMMIT COUNTY — The legal wrangling over critical polar bear habitat in Alaska will probably go into the history books as one of the fundamental battles over endangered species, global warming and energy politics.

At stake is the very survival of the magnificent Arctic ursine, and the lines are clearly drawn. Living up to its obligation to protect endangered species under the law, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service declared polar bears as threatened, citing the impacts of global warming.

Last month, the The Alaska Oil and Gas Association and the state of Alaska challenged the critical habitat designation for polar bears in court, complaining that the protections for the bears would plans for Arctic oil drilling. (more…)

Filed under: biodiversity, endangered species, energy, Environment, global warming, oil drilling | Tagged: , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Top Stories: Oct. 7-9

Posted on October 9, 2010 by Bob Berwyn

Roadside rainbows arcing over Dillon Reservoir.

SUMMIT COUNTY — An interesting mix in the most-viewed story list for the past few days, with a water story in the number one spot. University of California researchers said they measured an astounding 18 percent increase in the amount of fresh water reaching the Earth’s ocean via rivers in a study covering a 13-year span, a clear sign that something is amiss with the water cycle. Naturally, a weather story about the first valley snow of the season also made the list, along with one of our morning photoblogs on searching for the last few patches of aspen color. Click the headlines below to view the stories, and don’t forget to share them with your friends by using the Twitter, StumbleUpon, Digg and Facebook buttons at the bottom.

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Opinion: Keep politics out of ANWR wilderness process

Posted on October 7, 2010 by Bob Berwyn

Arctic wilderness, courtesy the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

By Bob Berwyn

SUMMIT COUNTY — Even just a hint that the federal government may add new wilderness areas in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge provoked defensive reactions from state officials, including Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell, quoted in several published reports as saying that he won’t allow the federal government to “lock up” more land without a fight.

That sets the stage for a showdown, because ANWR belongs to all Americans, not just Alaskans. That’s a concept that is apparently difficult for some people to grasp. The decision to conduct wilderness studies was made based on public comments received by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as it started updating its comprehensive plan for the refuge. The same issue surfaces in many wilderness debates, as local interests and special interest groups try to make their claims stand out above the greater interest of what’s in the best long-term interest of all Americans. (more…)

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Summit residents lobby for Arctic preservation

Posted on March 22, 2010 by Bob Berwyn

Arctic Sun. By Cassidy Brush

Congress is considering a wilderness bill for the 1.5 million acre coastal plain in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

Last week, two Summit County residents and Sierra Club members traveled to Washington, D.C. to meet with lawmakers about the wilderness bill. They described the trip in their own words for Summit Voice.

SUMMIT COUNTY — The 19-million Arctic National Wildlife Refuge may be tucked away in a remote corner of Alaska, but it’s close to the heart for millions of Americans who cherish wilderness and find inspiration in knowing it exists — even if they never visit it.

And it’s even more important for the indigenous Gwich’in and Inupiaq people of the region. The Gwich’in are believed to have lived in the area and subsisted from the Porcupine caribou herd for 20,000 years, long before political maps divided Alaska and Canada.

The Inupiaq people, or “real people” of Alaska’s Arctic coasts, rely on subsistence hunting of moose, caribou, whales, walrus, seals, and ducks, as well as salmon and berries, for their food. Their traditional whaling practice dates back thousands of years and forms the center of their diet and culture.

For decades, a political and social battle has been raging over the area, specifically over oil extraction in a 1.5 million acre piece of the refuge deemed critical for the caribou herd. Wildlife biologists studying the area have documented that existing activities already have disturbed the migration patterns and habits of the caribou herds. additional impacts could radically disrupt the indigenous way of life.

Read more after the break … (more…)

Filed under: energy, Environment, public lands | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

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