Awe-Inspiring Efforts are Cleaning Up the Arctic

The Arctic, the most northern region on Earth, takes in the icy extremities of Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden, and Alaska in the United States, as UNEP partner, GRID-Arendal reports.

But as National Geographic emphasizes. It is no longer the pristine wintery environment most people imagine it to be. In fact, trash is a problem here too, with unwanted debris littering its waters and icy tundras, rolling treeless ground found in cold regions making waste management a challenge. But here’s the good news! Hold Norge Rent reveals that over 28,000 kilograms (30 US tons) of trash was removed from the Arctic in 2023 as part of the Arctic Cleanup project. And we have the determined teams of volunteers to thank for their efforts in collecting this huge amount of trash from this vulnerable region.

Explaining the Need to Protect Earth’s Natural Arctic Heritage
Most scientists, National Geographic explains, define the Arctic as the area within the Arctic Circle, a line of latitude some 66.5 degrees north of the Equator. It is one dominated by the Arctic Ocean Basin.

The Arctic is almost totally covered by water, most of it frozen. Some of its frozen features, like glaciers and icebergs, are composed of frozen freshwater, making up an estimated 20 percent of the Earth’s supply of freshwater. Most of the Arctic, however, is the liquid saltwater of the Arctic Ocean Basin. Parts of the surface of this ocean remain frozen for all or most of the year. This is known as sea ice, which is highly reflective, and is held to help determine Earth’s climate. 

The Arctic Ocean is the least salty of the world’s sea basins, seeing huge influxes of water from rivers and glaciers. This cold, circulating water is nutrient-rich, and is known to support a vibrant marine ecosystem. Primary consumers such as shrimp dine on plankton, the basis of the Arctic food chain. Secondary consumers include fish, seabirds and various baleen whales such as giant blue whales. Tertiary consumers, animals that mostly prey on other carnivores, take in toothed whales and dolphins, as well as seals and walruses.  Finally, scavengers, such as sharks and crabs, and decomposers, such as marine worms and algae, break down decaying materials, recycling organic nutrients into the Arctic’s marine ecosystem.

But the Arctic is not immune to negative environmental impacts. Climate change is drastically redefining its geography and biodiversity. The extent of sea ice is shrinking. This is problematic for polar bears who have become a symbol of global warming in the region. Without sea ice, polar bears cannot catch enough seals to survive their winter fast, while scarcer food is driving them into trash heaps for nutrition, and so to greater contact with humans. 
Plastic waste is a growing problem in the Arctic region. A summer 2024 study from the Norwegian Institute of Marine Research and the Norwegian Polar Institute reported in The Barents Observer, found that the majority of seabirds and seahorses in the Barents Sea, bordering Norway and Russia, had microplastics in their stomachs.

Meanwhile, people in Indigenous communities, who rely heavily on sea creatures such as walrus and seals for sustenance, are concerned that they are consuming more microplastics too.

Oceanographic explains that plastic debris such as bright orange buoys and plastic cans, is numerous and scattered along the shore of Scandinavia. It is even visible from the air. As 26-year-old volunteer Caroline Sund puts it, “One second, we’re flying over belugas. Next we’re over a pile of trash.”

Additionally, as Eco-Business highlights, global warming is leading to thawing ice that is worsening Arctic plastic pollution. This is happening, for instance,  in an area known as St Lawrence Island, between Alaska and Russia’s far east. This area is increasingly seasonably navigable for fishing boats and even cruise ships. 

Saluting the Cleanup Commitment of Caring Green Groups
Norwegian publication, Hold Norge Rent, examines the commendable collaborative efforts of regional green groups in the much-needed cleanups. 

Under the guidance of the Protection of the Arctic Marine Environment (PAME) program, an initiative focused on the protection and sustainable use of the Arctic marine environment, Arctic Cleanup focused on voluntary cleanup and grassroots research in Arctic areas.

1,837 volunteers lent a hand in 2023, and the work involved close cooperation between Keep Norway Clean, Ocean Conservancy, and local Arctic cleanup groups such as Keep Norway Clean, and In the Same Boat.

As PAME documents, the project’s main activity has been to mobilize and facilitate volunteer cleanup efforts throughout the region, engaging and raising awareness among local residents, visitors, businesses and authorities. In 2023, 54 cleanup operations, mostly happening in July, a relatively warmer month in the Arctic region, took place in Finland, Iceland, Greenland, and Alaska.

Significantly, 96,631 findings were made during the project. Research remains key in Arctic cleanups, as there is a need to map challenges and needs relating to voluntary cleanup, transport, and regional waste management. Conservationists are looking for data to inform them on what is going wrong in Arctic and subarctic areas.

It is common knowledge that Arctic cleanup work is challenging and expensive. Long distances, hard-to-access areas, scattered populations, short cleanup sessions, limited access to waste management, and huge amounts of trash are the main hurdles. 

In Arctic cities such as Norwegian city Tromso, as a news release from Harvard’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs explains, removing waste from homes, businesses and other locations is a massive logistical and operational task. For instance, heavy snowfall can complicate the collection of waste bins. These challenges make the cleanup achievement all the more impressive.