During the Cold War Russia had created a base called the Nagurskoye airbase that included a weather station and a communications outpost in the Franz Josef Land archipelago. Originally, the runway could only handle planes that would be equivalent to the B-52 American airplane. The air base has now been expanded to include icebreaking submarine nuclear missile bombers called the Delta IV. It can have up to 12.8 megatons of nuclear firepower with only 4 missiles. Russia also possesses almost 40 icebreakers with more on the way, making it the largest fleet of icebreakers in the world.

Although this military base is the main threat to Canadian and other Western countries, Russia’s goal is to discover the untapped natural resources and new shipping routes that are being uncovered from the melting snow. According to Administrator Alexander Moiseyev, chief of Russia’s Northern Fleet,

“The complex ice conditions make it necessary to organize safe shipping, so Russia insists on a special regime of its use.”

 Russian President Vladimir Putin has cited estimates that put the value of Arctic mineral riches at $30 trillion. This is part of the first plan for Russia’s climate change mitigation in terms of lowering the threat of climate change to their country. Russia’s two-year plan to mitigate climate change has also written that there are positives to climate change, and finding the untapped reserves in the Arctic is one of them.

This has been the most activity the North Arctic has experienced and has caught the world’s attention. With Russia’s high military presence, it would be difficult for other countries to be active without conflict.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said it “increases the dangers of accidents and miscalculations and undermines the shared goal of a peaceful and sustainable future for the region. So, we have to be vigilant about that.”

Russia views the Northern Sea Route (NSR), as a domestic passageway, while other countries see it as an international passageway. Blinken has also made it clear to the Arctic Council that it is warming 2.5 times as fast as the rest of the world. According to predictions, the Arctic is assumed to be completely ice-free by 2050. The Arctic is responsible for regulating the climate for the rest of the world and absorbing dangerous UV rays the sun emits.

With current testing of the nuclear missiles Russia carries, it can have an impact on the environment if ever launched. Nuclear bombs decimate anything that is within the radius of the missile’s potential. Effects from fallout can include future genetic mutations. In this case, to be surrounded by water may have a greater impact when Russia is testing in the Arctic to the eggs and larvae of marine organisms.  The fallout can cause immense darkness [to the area] and cause plant death-causing starvation up the food chain. The Arctic already has a scheduled lack of daylight annually, and it could be made worse if the activity continues.

Authors of an article published in “The Atomic Scientist, further speculate even small-scale use of nuclear warheads could deplete the ozone layer, shorten the growing season, increase temperature, and hasten the effects of global warming.

However, despite these warnings, it seems that Russia is on a steadfast mission for economic growth regardless of the environmental costs. Though it is important to note that it is not alone in doing so and many other countries are also in the process of developing in the Arctic, including Canada. 

This story is not new in the current era of development, although there is one difference. This time people are noticing and cautioning against such a move if anything to protect a testament of time. The Arctic, stubborn, beautiful, cold, and, with hope, untouchable even by the hands of cruel progress. 

The post Russia “Rushes” to the Arctic Circle as Ice Recedes appeared first on A\J.

Almost every sector of the economy would benefit from oil sand development. But through all the positive economic growth Canada would receive, it is necessary to look at the impact on the environment it will have.

The refined oil will be transported through pipelines. Any released bitumen through a spill, leak, or rupture can contaminate the surrounding land or water. Tailing ponds to store the liquid to retrieve the oil can be shown to leak chemicals into the surrounding water supply like the Athabasca River and the Mackenzie River. Additionally, the environmental impact assessment (EIA) conducted in the area shows that the overall quantity of chemicals (PAH) is lower than that which naturally occurs in recovering petrol. A change in formula can have health risks to the surrounding population.

These chemicals can cause upper respiratory issues on site. Moreover, the chemicals that are released through a spill, leak, or rupture, that do not work directly on-site will soon have more complicated issues like headache, nausea, skin rashes, and respiratory symptoms which coincide with exposure to crude oil.

Working on the oil sands can have an increased health risk, and during the current COVID-19 pandemic it will make it much worse. According to unnamed contractors, workers did not have inadequate distancing, testing, or sanitization Those that currently work at CNRL Horizon in the Alberta Oil sands have stated, “We don’t feel safe here, but we keep working because everybody wants to work,” one contractor at Horizon said.

It is difficult for these workers to bring complaints about these safety issues to those higher on the corporate ladder,  due to fear of losing their job. The liability does not fall on the oil sand operators anymore regarding the environment or the health and safety of the workers.

“We’re all feeling like, head down, blinders on. Don’t even look around you and just try to get through your shift without getting sick.”

It is frivolous to think that mining for crude oil will disappear in the next 10 years. But companies should have federal and provincial policies in place to protect the health of their workers – and the general public – from irreversible harm. “Personally, with experience in seeing all sides of corporate and environmental relationships, I know products must exist for now. But it is difficult for me to understand why an unexplored market could be so scary to a company when investments are made all the time for new products. 

Do you think you could help me understand?

The post The liability falls where in Alberta? appeared first on A\J.

Deter Kruger turns 111 years old and 124 days old on May 17. He is currently living in the rural Queensland state town of Roma. He dedicates his long life to eating chicken brains. 

“There is only a little bite,” Kruger says.

It sounds crazy, but brains can be used in a sausage ingredient, and can also be eaten boiled, braised, and cooked in liquid, poached,  or scrambled.

Dexter was a previous cattle rancher and dedicates his long career to eating unconventional cuts of meat. Over half of the waste of animals are not suitable for human consumption due to physical characteristics but is still edible.  It has been estimated that 11.4% of the gross income from beef and 7.5% of the income from pork, come from the by-products. Eating the product from the cut has the ability to cut down on the greenhouse gases emitted from the industry. Approximately it takes 9.3 gallons per bird of freshwater, the contaminated water needs to be made worth it. 

People who were able to interact with him at his nursing home said his memory is “amazing” for a 111-year old. 

On the contrary, a French-Canadian Marie-Louise Meilleur was named the world’s oldest person at 122. Her strict vegetarian diet consisted of additional items such as olive oil, port wine, and chocolate. If somebody were to adapt to a vegetarian diet for 20 years or more, they would add four years to their lifespan according to Dr. Pramil Singh. Adapting to the vegetarian diet would be able to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 10 percent per capita. 

There is no proven-based diet that could structure whether you would live longer and all-cause mortality and are still being studied. 

Would you try non-conventional cuts of meat? Would you be able to cut all the meat out to live longer? Do you want to live longer and see the world change? 

Your menu has all the choices- now it is up to you.

If you want to keep up with Deter Kruger- Australia’s Oldest Man, his Twitter is located here.

The post Would you like the Meat or the Veggie Entrée? appeared first on A\J.

Read this in the next A/J Issue: The Journey to 2071.

 Elizabeth Roden

To me the game is not about survival of the fittest, it is about making sure everyone survives with me.

Hello, my name is Elizabeth Roden and I want to be your educator. I am going to be your person who holds a wealth of knowledge that comes from all sides; charitable, corporate, scientific, and common knowledge. I want to understand how each person made their decision and mistakes to make the environment and how it is now. With this knowledge, I want to be able to educate about the future and see if you can make better decisions than we did; I want to put the earth on a better track. I want you to be inspired to learn more when you come into my classroom.

The goal of my life is to take on a form of leadership that is indiscriminate, to any class, race, sexuality, or gender, and be able to properly communicate with possible climate deniers and skeptics.  I want to be able to connect others to environmental resources that they may not have had already. I will be sitting at the front of my class welcoming any question and, with my experience in the field of physical labor/research, further a student’s education. If I could not provide an answer, I would be happy to help find the answer for them because I might want to know the same thing.

I want to be a voice to say that being environmentally conscious is not restricted by social status.  And if that is proven to be true, that privilege can be used for the greater good compared to what has been done in the past. I have acknowledged my hurt to the environment, but the difference is my drive to be better. I want others to realize they can still make a difference even if they may have done something bad. As a collective that is one of the greatest parts of being an environmentalist and an educator. This was never about me or having my name known, it was for you. To have everyone know what you learned and build on it.

This may be a goal that could be unrealistic in today’s year. But I do hope in the year 2071 that through my journey of being an educator we have learned to adapt and mitigate climate change. The world has changed for humans and it is our time to change for the world. We have been learning constantly to survive through people by obligation. I now want to take on the role not just by duty, but because I want to. I want to work towards letting humans exist instead of being in survival mode because it is what we deserve. We have done the hard work so let’s put it into practice so we can breathe.

Just because life is a game does not mean everyone cannot win.

 Yanique McFarlane

I am one of the environmental communicators at Alternatives Journal who aim to entertain, convey environmental messages, and tell stories that make a difference. I am here to use my voice to raise awareness and be a helping hand in rebuilding society and nature in such a way that we get on the right side of this climate crisis. I am passionate about sustainability and addressing climate change. My final goal is to be an environmental professional in environment and sustainability with a focus on energy, waste, and resource management while finding new ways to raise awareness for sustainability and conservation initiatives.

You should take the time to read my pieces because I am committed to being a reliable source of information. What I write will be for you, to help you, help our environment.  I believe this platform is a great avenue through which we can tackle help to climate issues and ensure that the needs of the current population are met without the possibility of jeopardizing the ability of future generations to meet their needs. It may seem a little optimistic, but I think we still have the time and resources needed for us to look back on 2021 and celebrate the positive outcomes of climate activism. I may not be aware of what the year 2071 may bring, but I would like to take you on a very “realistic”, imaginative journey of the steps we can take to get where we want to be. The topics I cover will be what I believe are the most crucial to our progress. I hope to learn and expand my interests such that I can better communicate the journey towards a better future. One where we have maintained the habitability of the Earth not just for humans but for all organisms living here. I will put energy and care into my stories so that they will be entertaining yet thought-provoking.

In this issue, I hope to give you a futuristic view of a sustainable and environmentally sound world that we all did our part to achieve. I want to show you the world that we are fighting for. I hope to encourage you, reader, whether you are a student or an old retiree to be more concerned about the climate crisis and empower you to participate in environmental protection and resilience initiatives in your own spaces.  I am not here to scare the reader, I am, however, here to inspire as I have been inspired.

It’s important to me that we have hope, hope for the future generation,  that we will not leave the Earth in shambles, but rather “try to leave the Earth in a better place than we arrived” – Sidney Sheldon

The post Hello, My name Is… appeared first on A\J.

According to CNN Business, the company Mattel wants to recycle your old plastic toys that have been ruminating in my parents’ basement. This gives the company the opportunity to recover and reuse materials for future products in the United States and Canada. This is at no cost to the consumer after the toy has been bought and will be processed directly from package to plant. Any toy that cannot be recycled will be used to create more plastic products or incinerated to generate energy.

This is Mattels’ first step into making a closed circular economy. According to Pamela Gill- Alabaster, the head of sustainability of Mattel, now “has the opportunity to learn from the circular model,” that they haven’t pursued before.

This is not the first time I have heard this idea. I have heard of childhood companies like Crayola initiating the ColorCycle program. It can also be related to recycling plastic grocery bags at select locations.

I for one have never participated in any company sustainability program because the company wants me to get over my attachment to the toy, print, pack, drive, ship, and then drive home. I think these programs are great ideas and keep more pieces of plastic out of the landfill. It is also great PR for the companies making these programs as well! Moreover, it does make the consumer think about how their choices are affecting the planet.

But I do not think companies truly think consumers will go the extra mile to do so. Even though the company makes it as easy as possible for the consumer to send the toys back, there may be that thought in the back of their heads saying, “Oh I will need that later.” There are memories attached to our childhood mementos, and if we were done with them consumers would rather donate them or throw them away because that would seem easier.

I think at the age of 23 I should really be thinking about how to speak with my dollar. What I spend my money on will determine how much goes into the landfill per year. And when I see companies have available options like this in the early part of my life, it gives me hope for the future. Maybe I will not be surrounded by the plastic when I turn 73. Who knows, maybe I will buy a doll for myself, but second-hand only of course.

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