Friday, March 01, 2013

Feds Ask: How Do We Extract Resources From A Melting Arctic?

From MERX, where governments post their RFPs and Qs:

The Department of Transport, Strategic Policy and Innovation Directorate, is responsible for ensuring a safe, efficient and reliable transportation system in Canada's northern regions. The
Directorate is responsible for managing the Northern Transportation Adaptation Initiative to support research and development activities to design, develop, and implement innovative technologies, tools, and best practices; improve and enhance knowledge and understanding of the impacts of climate change on the northern transportation system; improve the resiliency and adaptability of both existing and future northern transportation infrastructure and operations to climate change; and encourage the development of northern expertise. The Directorate works collaboratively with provincial and territorial governments, academia, and private industry to ensure that limited northern resources are maximized and that the knowledge, best practices and adaptive solutions gained from this initiative benefit Canada's North.

Climate change is occurring throughout the North and it is starting to affect the safety and integrity of northern transportation infrastructure and operations. In particular, climate change is having an impact on roads and airport runways built on permafrost, coastal infrastructure, and the safety of Arctic marine vessels and operations. These impacted transportation infrastructures and operations are often necessary to ensure that quality of life is sustained and that economic development may continue. Building on existing research, the Northern Transportation Adaptation Initiative will work with field experts to ensure that the safety and integrity of the northern transportation system is maintained.

So, the approach to climate change expressed here is that we should buttress our northern infrastructure so as to squeeze a few more drops out of  the place before everything sinks into the melting permafrost.

2 comments:

crf said...

If we put a natural gas pipeline next to every major northern highway, and refrigerant coils underneath the road bed, we could use the fuel to run compressors and keep the roadbed frozen. With proper tolling, the roads and fuel will pay for themselves. With, for example, cabbages already costing 30-odd dollars a head, the percentage increase in prices from using such an expensive road wouldn't be so large. If some people living in the north can't afford such trucked-in or flown-in western goods today, then it is no real loss to them if they remain even more unaffordable tomorrow. And an expensive cabbage is better than no cabbage.

The good news about this plan is that Canada is the world expert at keeping things frozen. During hockey telecasts, announcers are often telling viewers how Canadian ice making expertise is keeping rinks in the baking southern US perfectly frozen, increasing the safety, speed and American approval of our new national sport. Obviously, we have the technology, and all we need to do is buck up, take our heads out of the sand and apply it here in the homeland for the benefit of all Canadians.

Unknown said...

The transport department should provide more transport resources in your country. I am a citizen of Newzealand and Transport in Auckland is very successful here due to its good services.