Arctic Temperature Alarm

Air temperature in the Arctic was -19.25°C on 2023-03-23. This is 0.15°C higher than 90th percentile of climatology period... READ MORE

Arctic Temperature Alarm

Air temperature in the Arctic was -19.28°C on 2023-03-22. This is 0.27°C higher than 90th percentile of climatology period... READ MORE

It’s now or never – IPCC 6th Assessment Report released today

Today the final synthesis of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)’s 6th Assessment Report cycle was released. This synthesis report restates that it is "now or never" to act, and that we are well on... READ MORE

Arctic sea ice maximum extent likely 5th lowest on record

Arctic sea ice has likely reached its maximum extent for the year, at 14.62 million square kilometres (5.64 million square miles) on March 6, according to scientists at the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) at... READ MORE

Record-breaking cyclone brings further decimation to world’s #1 climate vulnerable country

Tropical cyclone Freddy is set to make more international records--including possibly one for the longest-lasting storm, later this... READ MORE

COUNTDOWN

CO2 Budget Depletion

UN SUSTAINABILITY DEVELOPMENT GOALS

SDG 6 - CLEAN WATER & SANITATION

 

Arctic change raises the risk of floods, droughts, and other extreme weather, as well as rising sea levels. This disrupts access to clean water and sanitation by damaging infrastructure and causing saltwater intrusions into drinking water supplies, leading to water insecurity. In 2021 and 2022, residents of Iqaluit became water insecure after an underground fuel tank leached hydrocarbons into the town’s fresh water source.  

GLOBAL

Climate change affects people’s rights to clean water and sanitation by exacerbating floods and droughts, changes in precipitation, and through temperature extremes that result in water scarcity, contamination of drinking water, and the spread of disease (United Nations). Arctic change will worsen these impacts. Rising global sea levels and extreme weather resulting from a warming Arctic will disrupt access to clean water and sanitation by damaging infrastructure and causing saltwater intrusions into drinking water supplies. 79 percent of Kiribati’s population is currently facing severe water shortages due to the rising sea level, saltwater intrusion and ongoing drought (ReliefWeb, 2022). Due largely to losses in agricultural output and related industries, it is estimated that drought costs US$6-8 billion every year globally (Lese et al., 2021).  

ARCTIC

Water insecurity is the reality of many Indigenous communities across the Arctic. Historically drinking water was collected from ice melt, lakes or brooks, but now access to clean water is threatened by contamination, climate change-induced decreases in water availability, and lack of transport ability and harvesting machinery (Lawson, 2019). For several months during 2021 and 2022, Iqaluit residents in Nunavut suffered a water crisis in which 8000 community members lacked access to potable water because of infrastructure challenges and inadequate sanitation (The Arctic Institute, 2022). 

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ARCTIC RISK INDICATORS

The following gauges show up-to-date data regarding key indicators in the Arctic. These indicators clearly point to the crisis at hand.

Greenland rate of ice loss
4.5 hundred thousands l/s
on average in 1986-2015
4.5 tons per second
on average in 1986-2015
Worldwide number of disasters
265 disasters
more events in 2022 in comparison to 1970s
183 disasters
more events in 2022 in comparison to 1980s
100 disasters
more events in 2022 in comparison to 1990s
Arctic Sea Ice Extent
1,060,750 km²
below 1981-2010 average on 26-Mar-2023
409,555 mi²
below 1981-2010 average on 26-Mar-2023
Arctic Amplification
2.81 times
faster than global average in last 30 years
2.59 times
faster than global average in last 50 years
2.49 times
faster than global average in last 70 years
Arctic Wildfire emissions
0.19 megatonnes CO₂e
CO₂e emissions in 2023 so far
Arctic Air Quality (PM2.5)
2.72 microgram per cubic meter
on 21-Mar-2023