Worrying losses

According to a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), ice melting has accelerated in recent decades. New ice continues to form each year, but not as much as it is melting. Ice losses in the 1990s amounted to about 41 billion tons per year, compared to 187 billion tons in the 2000s and 286 billion tons in the 2010s. Since 1972, sea level has risen by 14 millimetres. Half of this increase is the result of melting over the past eight years. In addition, the release of fresh water into the oceans is changing their chemical composition and impacting biodiversity. Qaanaaq sealers and whalers say that sea ice is one metre thinner today than it used to be.

Uncertain effects

Another disturbing phenomenon was recently exposed in a study published in the journal Nature

: the appearance of dense "ice patches" in the Greenland ice sheet, forming an impermeable barrier that prevents the evacuation of melt water. Between 2001 and 2014, these patches gained an area of 65,000 km², more than twice the size of Belgium. According to researchers, the more these plates expand, the more the ice sheet will contribute to sea level rise. If the Greenland ice sheet (the ice sheet) were to disappear completely, the sea level would rise by 7 metres. Each year, icebergs in the extension of the ice sheet break up in spectacular phenomena called calving. The famous Jakobshavn Glacier is the fastest melting glacier. On the west coast of Greenland, 250 km north of the Arctic Circle, the icy Ilulissat Fjord is considered a symbol of global warming. Since 2004, it has been classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is a privileged site for observing the melting of the glaciers, which is visited by many climatologists, but also by tourists. The construction of an observation centre open to the public is planned between now and 2021. At COP21 in 2015, Vittus Qujaukitsoq, Greenland's Minister of Finance, Mineral Resources and Foreign Affairs at the time, felt that climate change in Greenland should be considered a political priority and stressed the importance of integrating Inuit knowledge and experience on this subject. The Greenland Institute of Natural Resources continuously monitors the physical and chemical changes affecting the territory. It is the focal point for scientific research activities in the country, with a particular focus on the living resources of the sea. The Greenland Climate Research Center is involved in several projects aimed at improving the understanding of the processes affecting sea ice and its propagation. In addition to sea ice, research is carried out in various fields of natural and social sciences, often in collaboration with Danish and foreign research institutes.

Impacted lifestyles

Climate change is having a direct impact on the way of life in Greenland. The summer season is longer and warmer. Warmer temperatures have lengthened fishing seasons and favoured the arrival of new species such as mackerel, herring, Atlantic bluefin tuna and cod. Most residents see this as an opportunity. Similarly, agriculture is developing in territories that have been too hostile up to now. The cultivation of potatoes, in particular, is developing, but also strawberries. On the other hand, the use of sled dogs for hunting is decreasing due to the thinness of the ice. Their vocation is now more often tourism. Another activity has also emerged: the trade in water from icebergs, which is reputed to be very pure. It is sold in one-litre bottles, or used in alcohol-based preparations.

Until recently, the open ocean area of the central Arctic Ocean was ice-covered throughout the year, making it impossible to fish in these waters. In order to prevent fishing activities in the Central Arctic Ocean from accelerating the disruption, an international agreement was concluded in 2018 prohibiting all commercial fishing on the high seas in the Central Arctic Ocean for at least 16 years. It was signed by the European Union, Canada, China, Denmark - on behalf of Greenland and the Faroe Islands - Iceland, Japan, South Korea, Norway, Russia and the United States.

The hunt for new resources

Another consequence of global warming is that the land released from the ice is rich in uranium and rare earths, materials that are used in new technologies and therefore highly sought-after. A deposit has been identified by an Australian company that believes it may be the largest reserve in the world. However, the extraction of these materials will not be without significant environmental impacts. The country's subsoil is also home to natural resources such as oil, gas, gold and diamonds. According to some estimates, the oil reserves in the island's coastal waters represent half of the North Sea stock.

In addition, global warming is opening up previously impassable shipping lanes in the Arctic. These routes off Greenland shorten the transport of goods between Asia, Europe and the US East Coast ports by several days. That is why there is now a lot of interest in the country at the geostrategic level. In the summer of 2019, US President Donald Trump announced that he was interested in buying out the territory of Greenland. The proposal elicited both outraged and amused reactions. Denmark replied that the territory was not for sale. Yet the subject is more serious than it appears. The United States has a real interest here, as does China, which wants to develop mining and transport activities as part of its project for the global development of the New Silk Roads. Russia also has its eyes riveted on the territory for military reasons. For independentists, this renewed interest and the potential economic spin-offs are seen as an opportunity. According to the 2008 agreement with Denmark, the province will only be able to achieve full emancipation if it can do without its subsidies, which now account for 60 per cent of its economy.