The last Norwegian mine in the remote Arctic archipelago of Svalbard is set to close in two years, forcing a community torn between their environment's fragility and their social roots to rethink its identity.
“I’ve been there, and families go there,” said Trond Johansen, who worked in mining for more than 40 years.The half dozen other retired miners sipping their morning coffee were quick with more examples of the sacrifice that mining entailed, citing the exact ages and dates when colleagues were killed.
Longyearbyen’s only pastor, the Rev. Siv Limstrand, whose Svalbard Kirke was founded by the mining company a century ago and still plays a critical role in the community, said it’s important to recognize the pain.“People ask themselves the question, ‘Was it nothing?’ So there’s a kind of sorrow,” Limstrand said in the church’s cabin, a retreat built in the broad valley below where Gruve 7’s entrance lights shone in the polar night. “It should upset us in the community.
“We’re a really tight-knit group in the mine, because you actually trust and lay your lives in the hands of others every day,” he said.. Scientists say this slice of the Arctic warms up faster than most of the rest of the world. Environmental scientists agree that Svalbard’s own emissions are minuscule – its coal reserves could keep the global economy running for about 8 hours, according to Kim Holmén, a special advisor at the Norwegian Polar Institute and professor of environment and climate. But they counter that every pollutant counts, and the archipelago can set an example.“We’re all part of the problem and should become part of the solution ...
Even windmill components need coal, added Elias Hagebø, his face smeared with coal dust as he grabbed a quick lunch in the mine’s underground break room. “There are no plans to decrease this operation,” Ildar Neverov, director general of Russia’s mining company Arcticugol, told AP in an email fromGiven the race by global powers, including China, for increasingly, some in Longyearbyen worry that Norway might give up precious rights by closing the mine.
Ireland Latest News, Ireland Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
New Species: First Primate Relatives Discovered in the High Arctic of Ancient CanadaFossilized mammals reveal patterns of Arctic migration in warming climates. In the warm climate of ancient Canada, early primate relatives adapted to life in the high Arctic, albeit with limited biodiversity, according to a study published today (January 25, 2023) in the open-access journal PLOS ON
Read more »
Fossils suggest early primates lived in a once-swampy ArcticTeeth and jawbones found on Ellesmere Island, Canada, suggest that two early primate species migrated there 52 million years ago.
Read more »
Early relatives of primates lived in the Arctic 52 million years agoAnalysis of fossilised teeth from Ellesmere Island, Canada, reveals that extinct relatives of monkeys and apes reached the Arctic during a period when the climate was hotter
Read more »
Arctic Air On The Way For Large Area Of The Country - Videos from The Weather ChannelJanuary will end on a chilly note over much of the nation. - Videos from The Weather Channel | weather.com
Read more »
52 million years ago, strange primates lived in complete darkness in the ArcticDuring the Eocene, the Arctic was a warm, swampy place that these primates called home.
Read more »
Fossils reveal the mysterious primate relatives that lived in the ancient Arctic | CNNAnalysis of fossils found in the far north of Canada has revealed that two previously unknown species of ancient near-primates lived above the Arctic Circle some 52 million years ago, according to new research.
Read more »