Mining in the Arctic - the growing environmental challenge

The Leiv Eiriksson sent to Greenland's Baffin Bay

The constant reduction in ice coverage in the Arctic have not only opened up the North East passage but created opportunities for the exploitation of the oil, gas and mineral reserves found in what was once a too remote and difficult region. September 2012 was significant as it marked the lowest seasonal coverage of ice ever recorded being 3.41 million square kilometres. In terms of mineral resources, the Arctic (including Greenland) has considerable deposits including an estimated 90 million barrels of oil (or 13 per cent of the Earth's remaining total). There are also gas deposits in the Barents and Karens Seas and rare earth elements at Kvanefjeld in Greenland. While there has been, for many years, a small degree of mining present in the region, it is only a matter of time till much more large scale exploration and extraction projects are underway with substantial risks for the environment and the planet.