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Water in the Arctic

The ice caps and glaciers represent a major freshwater reservoir. Greenland is considering using this water as drinking water, including for sale to countries that are increasingly threatened by drought as a result of climate change.

However, this potential drinking water resource is at risk: Climate change is affecting the Arctic particularly strongly, with temperatures rising rapidly and sea ice melting. As a result, salinity, light and temperature conditions, as well as nutrient levels in the Arctic Ocean, are changing. This has a negative impact on the sensitive marine ecosystem, threatens fishing grounds, and not least the polar bear at the top of the Arctic food chain. The Arctic Ocean is becoming increasingly ice-free during the summer.

The climatic effects of these changes can be felt as far away as Europe when the polar vortices weaken.

On land, climate change is also causing increased glacier melt and thawing permafrost, releasing carbon dioxide and methane, which further accelerate climate change.

As permafrost thaws, increasing amounts of sediments and pollutants, such as heavy metals, are released from the soil and washed away. This deteriorates the water quality of the meltwater that is intended as a drinking water resource. In addition, it contributes to ocean acidification, as this often sulfur-containing water flows into the ocean.

The thawing of permafrost also endangers the global seed vault in Svalbard, which already has to be cooled artificially at times.

While meltwater from the Greenland ice cap has often good chemical and microbiological water quality, meltwater in Svalbard is limited in its suitability as drinking water due to acidic mine drainage from former coal mining activities.

Protecting the Arctic is a global responsibility in order to preserve its sensitive ecosystem, resources, and drinking water potential.

Quellen/Sources:

Umweltbundesamt: https://www.umweltbundesamt.de/themen/wasser/arktis

BMBF Forschungsschwerpunkt Changing Arctic Ocean (MARE:N) https://www.fona.de/de/arktis-im-wandel-abschlusskonferenz-deutsch-britischer-forschungsprojekte

 

 

 

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