Climate change, pollution and health problems in Alaska prior to oil exploitation
by evaristo lara huella zero
The start of operations of the oil and mining industry could severely damage one of the richest regions in biodiversity
The order signed by Donald Trump, which allows drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and the Alaska National Petroleum Reserve for the extraction of hydrocarbons, comes at a critical time for a geographical area that was previously considered perpetual ice. Climate change has been severely affecting Alaska. Previously, the thick layer of ice covered the ground completely, but now it has disappeared due to the unusually warm temperatures that prevail. To better understand what's happening in the most remote region of the northeastern United States, Huella Zero consulted Samarys Seguinot-Medina, director of Environmental Health at Alaska Community Action Against Toxics. From Anchorage, Seguinot-Medina explained how the freedom with which the oil industry will operate in this area of the continent puts at risk its biodiversity, food security and the harmony that still prevails.
What was the ecological situation like in Alaska until last year? Last year there were great environmental and ecological changes in Alaska. An increase in population was recorded in the state. Average temperatures continued to rise 4 to 5 times faster than in other parts of the planet. I currently reside in Anchorage, and where there used to be 4-6 feet of snow, now there is only grass and dry leaves Another aspect is that, with the threat of Donald Trump's eventual victory, more mining proposals began to be seen in remote areas near Alaska Native communities and other vulnerable areas, including regions with high coastal erosion and riverbeds essential for the habitat of salmon and other species Ice loss also continued, directly affecting access to and traditional fishing and hunting of fish and marine mammals, which are integral to the culture, spirituality, and ancient knowledge of Alaska Native communities.
What impact will the arrival of oil companies in Alaska have in the short and long term? It will have a direct and devastating impact on Alaskans, especially Alaska Natives, who have ancestrally lived in harmony with the Earth and in a sustainable way. These communities use natural and marine resources effectively, with a specific and nutritious diet, adapted to the Arctic environment As an elderly Yupik Siberian woman from the village of Gambell told me: "The sea is our supermarket!" Arctic communities are at the forefront of the most immediate impacts of rapid climate change. The food security of indigenous peoples and all of us would be put at risk for a not distant future. The sea is the life of planet Earth, we all depend on it to live! In the short term, Alaska's industrialization is likely to lead to a temporary increase in the economy, jobs, and access to money and goods. Social and environmental public health problems will also be increased by polluting water, air and food and access to healthy food. Scientific evidence shows that there is a relationship between mental health, rapid climate change and environmental pollution. Communities on the island of Sivuqaq in the Bering Sea claim that this has led to a crisis of cancer and other chronic diseases. We are beginning to see long-term effects such as a high load of pollutants in local and traditional communities; an increase in chronic diseases affecting younger generations; and impacts on community and family emotional health by losing the traditional language. In the long term, the devastation of the area as a natural resource will occur, but more importantly the destruction of the community, which is one with the environment. The examples to follow are destroyed, to live in balance and harmony with Mother Earth. It threatens to lose ancestral wisdom, which has taught us that true progress is to remember the great lessons that our elders give us; and that our ancestors have left us in tales, stories, songs, dance, science and arts.
Will the profits obtained by exploiting Alaska be compensated with respect to the change it will undergo? A few years ago, I listened with deep sadness to an old man saying that mining development in his village was the best legacy he could leave to his grandchildren and future generations. To which I later replied, in written testimony, that how was it possible that the best legacy that can be left to a girl or a boy is his or her destroyed, contaminated land. Mining companies fill the eyes of local authorities and village residents with jobs and prosperity. History and scientific and anthropological evidence tell the opposite... Whenever I visit communities in remote areas I hear the stories of daughters, granddaughters, disappeared grandsons; abused young people, adults and young people consumed by alcohol and substances introduced by mining "development" and what appears to be a modern and progressive lifestyle. The increase in situations of abuse and violence in the home is evident and there is a serious relationship between mining and oil fields and aggression against women, girls and boys from adjacent communities and the detriment of mental health in general.
How is climate change reflected in Alaska? In Alaska we are seeing rapid climate change, with a warm, rainy, snowless winter in the city and almost everywhere in the state. Average temperatures continue to rise each year. There is evidence of greater melting of permafrost, glaciers, an increase in extreme and more frequent atmospheric phenomena (similar to tropical areas). We see less ice at the pole, coasts and rivers during the winter. This creates difficult and dangerous hunting conditions for traditional food, such as marine mammals and a variety of fish and shellfish. Fishermen go out to sea between 60 and 100 miles with temperatures sometimes as low as -60°F to get to where there is food. There is evidence of a higher load of contaminants in all types of traditional food, especially those that are high in fat, and high levels of mercury in locally consumed fish. Is the local population in favor of industrializing the state more? Alaska Natives and other Alaskans want development, but at the same time they have a connection to the rivers, the tundra, the salmon and the diversity of the place that is very special. Alaska Native communities, for the most part, have expressed repudiation of mining and oil development companies for the long history of social and environmental abuses that were seen and continue to be seen today. There are hundreds of military and mining development areas polluted and, consequently, contaminating the land, water, plants and animals. The government and federal agencies lack the resources, but above all the will, to characterize military areas that are returned completely contaminated. Where there were hundreds of fish, now there is an extensive stain of oil and other chemical compounds. With little to no environmental stewardship or respect for the kindness and bravery of the Alaska Native peoples and the Arctic. Many of these communities face cancer and other chronic disease crises. It is a serious case of environmental injustice and racism towards communities that are an example of how to live in harmony with Mother Earth.
