The front line of climate change: Alaska village must relocate as Arctic sea ice thins

[KamaAina]

http://news.yahoo.com/kivalina-alaska-climate-change-arctic-circle-global-warming-relocate-ice-184202379.html

Climate change is forcing an isolated Alaskan village, roughly 80 miles above the Arctic Circle, to relocate.

The very existence of Kivalina, a town with about 400 residents on a tiny barrier island off Alaska's northwest coast, is under threat as Arctic sea ice continues to melt into the surrounding Chukchi Sea.

Now the whaling community needs to figure out where to move the town and how to pay for it, after several previous attempts failed. It’s a dilemma that could become more common as global warming continues, scientists warn.

Colleen Swan, who was born and raised in Kivalina, says residents realized they were in serious trouble during 2004’s fall storm surges, when the ice that had typically protected the island had not formed yet — leaving them vulnerable.

Meanwhile, the entire nation of Tuvalu in the South Pacific (pop. ~10,000) is preparing to evacuate to New Zealand. (One of their main industries, believe it or not, is licensing their .tv top-level domain. )

[randys1]

1. They are imagining this, plus so what. No teapartier is directly effected so who cares?

[KamaAina]

2. Well, there must be someone in the AIP up there

[Hekate]

3. It's happening in the places nobody notices, isn't it? South Pacific atolls, Arctic barrier islands

Climate change is really truly happening, and real people are getting hurt. But those people don't look like "us" and they don't have a vote ... So it's not happening, as far as the Repubs who control the agenda are concerned.

I'm glad the New Zealanders are allowing the Tuvalans to move in, but surely this is the end of their identity as a nation.

[KamaAina]

4. That is a contingency plan

Nothing's happened. Yet.

[csziggy]

5. It's happening now in Miami, Florida!

[NV Whino]

6. We'll, we're not letting Floridians move to California

Maybe Nebraska or Kansas.

[KamaAina]

8. Well, maybe Key West and Gainesville people

[JaneyVee]

7. Solomon Islands is evacuating as well.

[KamaAina]

9. Don't they have high ground?!

[ND-Dem]

10. they barely have ground, let alone high ground. (on edit: maybe you meant the solomons, sorry)

Protection: The inhabitants of the village have always been protected from ferocious storms by a think layer of ice. Instead, they now rely on these sandbags

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2381218/Kivalina-Americas-climate-change-refugees-Hundreds-forced-flee-Alaskan-village-disappears-underwater-decade.html#ixzz3SpCLcP4w

[KamaAina]

11. I did indeed mean the Solomons.