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May 28, 2014

 

capital Today's Congressional Action:   

The House is expected to begin consideration of H.R. 4660, the Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies Appropriations Act. The Senate is not in session.

 

Media 

 

Begich, Coast Guard Admiral Aleutian Islands. This weekend, Senator Mark Begich and Coast Guard Rear Admiral Thomas Ostebo made a brief appearance in the Aleutian Islands. The officials shared their vision of how Unalaska - and other coastal communities - will have to support economic activity in the Arctic. Alaska Public Radio 

 

Dead Belugas Beached Off Kincaid Park May Be Treasure for Scientists. Two beluga whales were found freshly dead on mud flats just south of Kincaid Park on Monday night, though the cause of their deaths remains unknown. Scientists from the National Marine Fisheries Service and the Alaska SeaLife Center spent Tuesday morning fighting a race against the fast-moving tide to perform a necropsy on a muddy beach about a mile from the park's motorcycle racing area in an effort to determine why the two female whales washed ashore. Anchorage Daily News

 

New Arctic Shipping Routes Mean New Passages for Invasive Species Too. Two new shipping routes have opened in the Arctic: the Northwest Passage through Canada, and the Northern Sea Route, a 3,000-mile stretch along the coasts of Russia and Norway connecting the Barents and Bering seas. Overall, it means for the first time in perhaps 2 million years, the north Pacific and north Atlantic oceans are navigable, and that means new opportunities for Arctic natural resources and interoceanic trade with lower environmental impact, but commercial ships often inadvertently carry invasive species. Organisms from previous ports can cling to the undersides of their hulls or be pumped in the enormous tanks of ballast water inside their hulls. Science 2.0

 

Northern Medical School Tackles Vaccine for Bacteria in First Nations. The Northern Ontario School of Medicine is hoping to develop a new vaccine for a bacteria that particularly affects the northern community. Haemophilus influenzae type A, or HIA, can cause serious infection that could lead to permanent disability, brain damage or deafness. Northwestern Ontario has the second highest number of cases in the country, second only to the Arctic. This bacteria also occurs at a higher rate among First Nations people. CBC News

 

[Russian] Navy's Arctic Presence Set to Increase Over Summer. The Russian Navy is planning a number of expeditions in the Arctic this summer as the country looks to strengthen its position in the increasingly contested region, which is home to the world's largest untapped oil reserves. The expeditions will see ships being sent to Franz Josef Land, Severnaya Zemlya, the Novosibirsk Islands archipelago and Wrangel Island, Northern Fleet Admiral Andrei Korablev said Wednesday during talks on Russia's interests in the Arctic. St. Petersburg Times

 

US Arctic Research Ship Ready to Cast Off. A brand-new research vessel is buoying the hopes of US oceanographers. In the first week of June, the University of Alaska Fairbanks plans to take possession of the RV Sikuliaq, a US $200-million, 80-metre ship that is currently floating in the Great Lakes. It is the first research vessel built for the National Science Foundation (NSF) since 1981; polar scientists have been calling for a versatile ice-strengthened ship for four decades. Nature

 

russian flag Russia to Send Application to UN to Expand Arctic Shelf. According to the ministry, Minister Sergey Donskoy took part in the international conference "Geological Evolution of the Arctic Basin Structure" and spoke about the results of Russian geological, geophysical and bathymetric research in the Arctic Ocean. This information enabled Russian experts to reinforce their evidential base about the continental nature of the Earth's crust in the region of the Arctic seas and draw up an updated version of an application to the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf. Sergey Donskoy said in his report that materials collected between 2005 and 2013 are sufficient for writing an application that would comply with the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982. The aim is to establish a new perimeter of Russia's continental shelf in the Arctic. Voice of Russia

Legislative Actionfutureevents  

 

H.R. 3080, the Water Resources Development Act. (The House and Senate are resolving the differences between the House and Senate bills. The House version of the bill includes provisions regarding Arctic ports.)

Future Events

 

Arctic in the Athropocene. June 23-July 2, 2014 (Potsdam, Germany). Under the overarching theme "Arctic in the Anthropocene", this two-week interdisciplinary and interactive event will be the first in a series of Potsdam Summer Schools to be held annually. The goal is to bring together early-career scientists and young professionals from research departments, governmental and non-governmental agencies and organizations, as well as the private sector from all around the world. Participants will deal with global challenges and address urgent questions on how to shape sustainable futures in the Arctic and beyond from a scientific and socioeconomic point of view. 

 

Alaska Policy Commission. August 26-27, 2014 (Kotzebue-Nome, Alaska). The Alaska Arctic Policy Commission (AAPC) has more important work to do in 2014. The Commission will strive to gather public input and engage with Alaskan communities, state agencies, federal partners, and the international organizations working in the Arctic. In order to meet our goals AAPC will convene three in-person meetings over the course of 2014 and focus on implementation and final recommendations. 

 

2014 Week of the Arctic, October 6-11, 2014 (Nome, Kotzebue and Barrow, Alaska, USA). The Institute of the North will host the 2014 Week of the Arctic. The 2014 Week of the Arctic is a platform for community leaders, subject matter experts and interested stakeholders to learn about the Arctic while contributing to a growing list of priorities and perspectives. Presentations, roundtable discussions and workshops will be held in Nome, Kotzebue and Barrow. Throughout the week, presentations and interviews will be captured on video for distribution through social media and web-based sharing.

 

2014 FAMOS School and Workshop #3, October 21-24, 2014 (Woods Hole, MA). The Forum for Arctic Ocean Modeling and Observational Synthesis (FAMOS) is an international effort to focus on enhancing collaboration and coordination among Arctic marine and sea ice modelers, theoreticians and observationalists synthesize major results from the field studies and coordinated numerical experiments. The major themes of workshop include but not limited by studies focused on: predictions; Arctic observational and modeling initiatives; fate of sea ice in models and observations; atmospheric, sea ice and ocean dynamics; process studies and parameterizations; model validation and calibration; numerical improvements and algorithms; ecosystems, biological issues, and geochemistry.

 

Arctic Circle, October 31-November 2, 2014 (Reyjavik, Iceland).

The Arctic Circle is nonprofit and nonpartisan. Organizations, forums, think tanks, corporations and public associations around the world are invited to hold meetings within the Arctic Circle platform to advance their own missions and the broader goal of increasing collaborative decision-making without surrendering their institutional independence. The Arctic Circle will organize sessions on a variety of issues, such as: Sea ice melt and extreme weather; Polar law: treaties and agreements; The role and rights of indigenous peoples; Security in the Arctic; Shipping and transportation infrastructure; The prospects and risks of oil and gas drilling; Clean energy achievements and sustainable development; Arctic resources; Business cooperation in the Arctic; The role of Asian and European countries in the Arctic; Greenland in the new Arctic; Fisheries and ecosystem management; The science of ice: global research cooperation; Arctic tourism; The ice-dependent world: the Arctic and the Himalayas. 

 

Alaska Policy Commission. November 13-14, 2014 (Anchorage, Alaska). The Alaska Arctic Policy Commission (AAPC) has more important work to do in 2014. The Commission will strive to gather public input and engage with Alaskan communities, state agencies, federal partners, and the international organizations working in the Arctic. In order to meet our goals AAPC will convene three in-person meetings over the course of 2014 and focus on implementation and final recommendations. 

 

The Arctic Biodiversity Congress, December 2-4, 2014. (Trondheim, Norway). The Arctic Biodiversity Congress will present and discuss the main scientific findings of the ABA; facilitate inter-disciplinary discussion, action and status updates on the policy recommendations in the ABA; provide scientific, policy, management, NGO, academia, Indigenous peoples and industry audiences the opportunity to collaborate around the themes of the ABA; advise CAFF on national and international implementation of the ABA recommendations and on the development of an ABA Implementation Plan for the Arctic Council; highlight the work of CAFF and the Arctic Council on circumpolar biodiversity conservation and sustainable development; and, contribute to mainstreaming of biodiversity and ecosystem services, ensuring that the recommendations of the ABA are implemented by not just governments, but many organizations and people across disciplines.

 

Arctic Change 2014, December 8-12, 2014 (Ottawa, Canada). The international Arctic Change 2014 conference aims to stimulate discussion and foster collaborations among people with a vested interest in the Arctic and its peoples. Coinciding with the pinnacle of Canada's chairmanship of the Arctic Council and marking ArcticNet's 10th anniversary, Arctic Change 2014 welcomes researchers, students, Northerners, policy makers, and stakeholders from all fields of Arctic research and all countries to address the numerous environmental, social, economical and political challenges and opportunities that are emerging from climate change and modernization in the Arctic. With over 1000 participants expected to attend, Arctic Change 2014 will be one of the largest trans-sectoral international Arctic research conferences ever held in Canada. 

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