Monday, August 8, 2016

Melting sheet ice in Greenland poses radioactive danger from buried US cold war army base







Global warming could release radioactive waste stored in an abandoned Cold War-era U.S. military camp deep under Greenland's ice caps if a thaw continues to spread in coming decades, scientists said on Friday.
Camp Century was built in northwest Greenland in 1959 as part of U.S. research into the feasibility of nuclear missile launch sites in the Arctic, the University of Zurich said in a statement.
Staff left gallons of fuel and an unknown amount of low-level radioactive coolant there when the base shut down in 1967 on the assumption it would be entombed forever, according to the university.
It is all currently about 35 meters (114.83 ft) down. But the part of the ice sheet covering the camp will probably melt by the end of the century, going by current trends, the scientists added.
"Climate change could remobilize the abandoned hazardous waste believed to be buried forever beneath the Greenland ice sheet," the university said of findings published this week in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.
The study, led by York University in Canada in collaboration with the University of Zurich, estimated that pollutants in the camp included 200,000 liters (44,000 UK gallons) of diesel fuel and the coolant from a nuclear generator used to produce power.
"It's a new breed of political challenge we have to think about," lead author William Colgan, a climate and glacier scientist at York University, said in a statement.
"If the ice melts, the camp's infrastructure, including any remaining biological, chemical, and radioactive wastes, could re-enter the environment and potentially damage nearby ecosystems," the University of Zurich said.
The study said it would be extremely costly to try to remove any waste now. It recommended waiting "until the ice sheet has melted down to almost expose the wastes before beginning site remediation."
There was no immediate comment from U.S. authorities.
Greenland lies just off the Eastern coast of Canada,  located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe (specifically Norway and Denmark). It is an autonomous country and is the world's largest island, although it is smaller than Australia, which is considered a continent. Three-quarters of Greenland is covered by the only permanent ice sheet outside of Antarctica. With a population of about 56,480 it is the least densely populated country in the world. One never hears much about Greenland but it has been inhabited for 4,500 years by Arctic peoples like the Inuit who migrated there from Canada and survive there by hunting and fishing.
Vikings settled the uninhabited southern part of Greenland beginning in the 10th century.
Polar bears, musk oxen, caribou, arctic foxes, hares, eagles, ptarmigan, lemmings and the rare Arctic wolf are  a few of the hundreds of Arctic species which are  part of the terrestrial fauna of Greenland and must be protected. Several of the species are now endangered and radioactive waste could only make their continued existence more at risk. Another tragedy we would be accountable for.


Arctic fox
Killer whales
Arctic musk ox
Arctic hares
Arctic tern
Caribou
 The rare and endangered Actic wolf makes it's homes in Greenland





9 comments:

  1. PIC ,
    I gave Nanooks address to the group , one member call and told me to take a look , there was two posts about the same article . Same photos / news .
    I started the only Global Warming / Climate Change group here in North Louisiana , remember I told you the closest group to me in DeRidder, Louisiana about 250 mile south . I am at my wits end ... if I push to much , I may start losing members ... you don't understand how hard it was to get these people and if not for Jenny/ Dad , I would not be this far with my group .
    Dad said he left you a new post on WAG .

    Hope you are still feeling well .
    Love
    Sad PIC

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  2. Howdy PIC,
    First week Stats for Nanooks ... pretty impressive HUH?? let me know what you think .
    Dear Jean'ne Carano,

    Weekly Stats Report: 1 Aug - 7 Aug 2016
    Project: Nanook Friends of the Planet.bl
    URL: http://http:Nanook Friends of the Planet.blogspot.com//example.com/

    Summary

    Mon Tues Wed Thur Fri Sat Sun Total Avg
    Pageloads 5 10 36 7 0 0 0 58 8
    Unique Visits 1 5 11 1 0 0 0 18 3
    First Time Visits 1 3 3 0 0 0 0 7 1
    Returning Visits 0 2 8 1 0 0 0 11 2




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  3. There is a group in Georgia called Climate Crusaders. How about that?
    We get our posts from many scientific agencies and environmental websites. You can't just make this stuff up in your own head. Even NASA writes excellent articles about climate change and is a good source for disseminating crucial information.
    Most environmental groups, in fact, I would say nearly all, have their own websites. So I don't really understand what the problem is here.
    But if it is a problem, I have no worries about running the website on my own or with you.
    It is so necessary to share the information and educate the public and hopefully find a few people who are genuinely interested in saving the planet. Your group, not so much, apparently.
    Luv ya
    Your friend and PIC

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I understand what you are saying , I can only ask them . You are saying the same things they have said to me .
      You have to understand ... I worked like hell to get these people this far .
      The problem is I am doing the best I can , there should be people you know that can be an author ... the people here are newbies ... I also visit a lot of websites , but I will not push someone into doing something they are not going to stick to , I want it to be their own decision ...

      I understand a lot of things now since talking to Dad ... it was always necessary to get this information out to the public ... I also wonder why you just bringing this forward ... you had a Nanook blog when you started one for Jakey .

      I have a find group of people , they are learning about Climate Change and you can't get blood out off a rock . Lot's off people like to read blogs ... not many like to write blogs , but my 'PEOPLE' is a nice group of people , most are working parents and older people. You don't know my group...but yet you judge them .

      I am glad I started FTBB ... I liked you from the beginning and I knew nothing about blogging , you said if I start a blog you would write something ... then Vixen asked what about her ... what the hell we could learn something from her and we did .

      If you are referring to me not being genuinely interested ,that's not your call.
      I think you for telling me how you feel about me and that you don't need me.
      Love
      Your friend PIC

      Delete
  4. Another thing I don't understand is why you are at your wits' end. I'll probably be doing most of the posting. No worries. Your guys don't even have to look at it if they don't want to. Unless they want to learn something about Climate Change. hahahaha!
    It will have lots of other interested readers, if the first few stats are any indication.
    Best regards and a big hug
    PIC

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jeannie , you are something else , how in hell you think I got them started , from information I got from you . reading this comment , I got a sharp vibe from you ... it made me think you are directing this comment directly at me . The stats started out at 'ZERO' if that's another barb you are throwing at me .
      I am not sad anymore because they are slow saying if they will or won't be and author ... Friday I will tell them I have put it on hold .
      I set up the search engines on goggle and started visiting more websites and leaving comments , if you click on the follower , it will say Jean`ne Carano on goggle and I follower you on goggle also .

      My group read this blog ... did you not read where one said you had 2 posts of the same thing and a Hahahaha!!! back at you .
      Big hug sincerely
      PIC

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  5. I still do not understand the problems this thing is causing. I did not create it to give you stress or your club stress or create tension between you and I. It was supposed to be a gift. I regret the whole fucking thing.
    Sorry,
    It does not change my regard for you in any way,
    I'll see you later
    PIC

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  6. If you read your comments you would see you started the problem ...you are judging people in my group of not caring,they don't have to come here unless they want to learn something now that's not a nice thing to say , you said there is a group in Georgia ...never heard of them .I am sure lots of people will be interested but not a reason to say my group is not interested, they have come a long way .
    No need to regret starting this blog , it is much needed and something you have a lot of passion for .
    You never acknowledge that one of my group said you posted this post twice .
    My club knows nothing about what we talk about, only Dad because he likes to read the comments on every blog he visits . Dad has a Kitchener Telephone book he go the time he had Mac to bring him up there on their way to Vegas to visit his friend . He said he wanted to see how to get to your house .

    There is no stress on my part and I am not at my wits end , I am okay . I still feel the same way about you as always , so be proud of your work , it's something you always wanted .
    Later
    PIC



    ReplyDelete