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February 7, 2014

 

The Arctic Encounter Symposium, February 7-8, 2014 (Seattle, Washington). The goal of the Arctic Encounter Symposium is to engage participants in a focused discussion, through a balanced forum, highlighting shared interests and concerns of the United States and the global community as we look north to the last emerging frontier - the Arctic. The Symposium will incorporate a diverse group of leaders and experts to debate how a rapidly changing Arctic will impact international law, domestic policy, business and commerce, the environment, and the people of the Far North. Speakers include policy makers, industry leaders, scientists, and academic experts. The two-day Symposium will take place at Seattle University School of Law with a dinner reception at the Seattle Aquarium on Pier 59. U.S. Arctic Research commissioners Fran Ulmer and Edward Itta will be speaking.

 

capital Today's Congressional Action:   

The House and Senate are not in session.

 

 

 

Media 

 

Jewell, Sally Conservation and Animal Protection Groups Welcome Action and Call for Sanctions. Secretary of Interior Sally Jewell issued a formal declaration that Iceland is undermining the effectiveness of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora's (CITES) and its prohibition on international commercial trade in whale products. Conservation and animal welfare groups commend Jewell's declaration and urge President Obama to act with urgency. On the 12th of December 2013, Iceland's Ministry of Fisheries and Agriculture announced that it would allow commercial whaling to continue for at least the next five years. As many as 154 endangered fin whales and 229 minke whales could be killed each year under Iceland's self-allocated quotas which are set to run from 2014 to 2018. eNews Park and Forest

 

Rapidly Moving Greenland Glacier Raises Questions About Long-Term Impacts. I have been working on a story about whether the Arctic infrastructure would be able to cope with a shipping or oil spill accident, which is increasingly likely as development speeds ahead. During the Arctic Frontiers conference in Tromso, I attended an interesting workshop on the topic, where the organizers, the Arctic Institute Center for Circumpolar Security Studies, came to what their experts describe as "worrisome" conclusions. Malte Humpert, Kathrin Keil and Marc Jacobsen presented three incident scenarios involving shipping and oil exploration in the Arctic. Jacobsen's scenario involved a giant cruise boat with 3,000 people aboard hitting an iceberg off west Greenland, near Ilulissat. Alaska Dispatch

 

Gazprom Revamps Arctic Russia Operations. Gazprom has decided to relocate its Gazprom Dobycha Shelf subsidiary to Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk on Sakhalin Island. The company was formed in 2008 to specifically develop Gazprom's offshore gas/condensate fields. It will be renamed Gazprom Dobycha Shelf Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk and will focus exclusively on Gazprom's fields in the Sea of Okhotsk shelf offshore northeast Russia. Offshore Mag

 

Polar Bears and the Ripple Effects of Climate Change. For years people have been concerned about the fate of polar bears in the face of climate change. The bears need the frozen sea in order to hunt seals and survive, but as ice is forming later in the season and melting sooner, some bear populations were becoming threatened. There are signs, however, that the polar bears are demonstrating some of their brown bear genes and adapting their diet to the new conditions. Alaska Dispatch

 

RPT- Statoil to Slow Down Arctic Exploration Due Cost Control- Exploration Chief. Norway's Statoil will slow down exploration efforts in the Arctic, one of its key priority areas, in order to control capital spending, the firm's exploration chief told Reuters on Friday. "I expect there will be questions asked about the Arctic going forward, not least since Shell suspended their plans," Tim Dodson said in an interview on the margins of a capital markets day held by the company." Reuters

 

Murkowski Murkowski Meets with Arctic Council Chair, Iceland Ambassador Nominee. Senator Lisa Murkowski held two meetings with Arctic officials in her ongoing effort to build relationships and consensus within the region, with the United States scheduled to begin the 2-year Chairmanship of the Arctic Council next year. "As I work in Washington, DC, national leaders are beginning to acknowledge we are an Arctic nation - which begs the question 'What now?' The dynamic Arctic region presents significant opportunities and challenges for Alaska, the U.S. and our circumpolar neighbors," said Murkowski. Political News

 

Sen. Murkowski Secures Commitment to Arctic Development. U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) secured a commitment from the nominee for Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management, Janice Schneider, to improve the Interior Department's permitting process and provide greater regulatory certainty for oil and natural gas exploration in the Arctic. "I agree with you that business needs regulatory certainty and predictability. People, particularly when they are going to invest huge sums of money, need to understand what the rules of the road are.... If I am confirmed to this position, I am committed to ensuring that there is an opportunity for greater regulatory certainty, including the potential for offshore oil and gas exploration off of Alaska," Schneider told Murkowski. Political News

 

Contaminants Have Variety of Effects on Arctic Baby IQs. Babies in Arctic Canada are at risk of specific effects on their mental abilities, depending on which contaminants they are exposed to in the womb, according to a new study. While lead, methylmercury and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) all are linked to neurological effects, each seems to have a different effect on infants, the scientists concluded. For example, PCBs seemed to impair the babies' ability to recognize things they have seen. Environmental Health News

 

Mock Shipwreck Reveals Real Holes in Preparedness Plans. A theoretical test of the Search and Rescue (SAR) agreement reached in Nuuk in 2011 has revealed that the plan is not enough to handle a major shipwreck. The conclusion was presented by Marc Jacobsen, a Danish member of the Arctic Institute, a Washington, DC-based NGO, during the Arctic Frontiers conference in Tromsų, Norway, last month. Arctic Journal

Legislative Actionfutureevents  

  

No Arctic legislation was formally considered yesterday.

Future Events

 

Arctic Technology Conference, February 10-12, 2014 (Houston, TX). Founded in 1969, the Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) provides offshore resources in the fields of drilling, exploration, production and environmental protection. The Arctic Technology Conference (ATC) is built upon OTC's successful multidisciplinary approach, with 14 technical societies and organizations. The conference is an international event focused on continuing innovative technologies and solutions needed for exploration and production of energy within the circum-Arctic.

 

Developing Alaska's Marine Workforce, February 14, 2014. (Anchorage, Alaska, USA). The North American Marine Environment Protection Association (NAMEPA) hosts the luncheon. Discussion will focus on industry strategies for moving forward to secure Alaska's future needs for an educated and trained workforce are met. Feature presentations include a recap of NAMEPA's 2012 meeting, University of Alaska updates on the FSMI (Alaska's Fisheries, Seafood, Maritime Initiative) Workforce Development Plan and trends in education and training. 

 

Arctic Ambitions, February 27-28, 2014 (Girdwood, Alaska). World Trade Center Alaska will host Arctic Ambitions III: Commercial Development of the Arctic. This conference focuses solely on Arctic international trade and business opportunities. It is anticipated that about 200 business and government leaders attending next year's conference.


Arctic Ambitions III will concentrate on the theme of international trade and business opportunities that flow from resource development in the Arctic. While policy and research inform the discussion, the conference focuses on global markets, international trade and logistics. The previous two conferences brought together presenters from Canada, Finland, Norway, Russia, Korea and Alaska. USARC Chair Fran Ulmer will be a speaker. 

 

Arctic 2050, March 12, 2014 (Brussels, Belgium). The 4th European Marine Board Forum will bring together Arctic stakeholders from multiple sectors (science, industry, policy & governance, NGOs, etc.) to: discuss current trends and patterns of change in Arctic Ocean ecosystems, including human activity; identify possible "2050" scenarios for Arctic Change and the corresponding implications for human health and well-being; highlight key research gaps, needs and challenges in support of understanding, mitigating against, or adapting to Arctic change; stimulate dialogue across sectors to aid common understanding, collaborative actions and sustainability targets; promote a vision for a sustainable ecosystem-based management of the Arctic Ocean by 2050.

 

44th Annual International Arctic Workshop, March 14-16, 2014 (Boulder, CO). The Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research of the University of Colorado will host the workshop. This year's theme is "Arctic's New Normal." The workshop will consider shifting environmental baselines over decades to millennia and comparisons with the Antarctic. Previous workshops have included presentations on Arctic and Antarctic climate, atmospheric chemistry, environmental geochemistry, paleoenvironment, archeology, geomorphology, hydrology, glaciology, soils, ecology, oceanography, Quaternary history and more.

 

Association of American Geographers Polar Geography Sessions, April 8-12, 2014 (Tampa, Florida).  Polar Geography Sessions are being planned in areas such as Sustainable Development in the Arctic, Urbanization and Transportation in the Arctic, etc. Contact Scott Stephenson (stephenson@ucla.edu) for more information, and see attached flyer. 

 

Arctic Science Summit Week April 5-8, 2014 and Arctic Observing Summit, April 9-11 (Helsinki, Finland). ASSW is a gathering for Arctic research organizations. Any organization engaged in supporting and facilitating arctic research is welcome to participate. The ASSW meeting in 2014 will be arranged during April 5-8 in Helsinki Kumpula Campus, in the facilities of FMI and Physics Department of the University of Helsinki. Second circular here

 

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