Coast Guard Will Establish Arctic Base

The U.S. Coast Guard plans to establish its first permanent operating base in the Arctic, which is showing signs of becoming increasingly more hospitable to boat traffic, fossil fuel and mineral exploration and other commercial activity, according to the New York Times.

It is among the first and most tangible actions the U.S. government has taken in response to the changing conditions created by global warming, as the Times points out.

It also could play a role in the emerging power play between the U.S., Russia, Canada, Norway and Denmark, which all claim territory in the Arctic. One of the roles of the new base will be to continue explorations of the sea-bed, which would allow the U.S. to claim territory based on geologic formations beneath the water -- assuming the Senate first ratifies the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Russia has already planted a titanium flag at the North Pole and readied a formal claim to more territory there.

COMMENTS ()