Guide on Climate Change and Indigenous Peoples

fish species, and rising sea levels withmore extreme tidal fluctuations.• Species that they rely on aredisappearing and that hunting routesnear shorelines have disappeared dueto erosion brought on by the thawing ofpermafrost.• Villages have experienced increasedflooding in winter due to lessened ordisappearing pack ice that normally protects shorelines from surgingwater. Together with strong winds, these cause damages to villages anddestruction of infrastructure found along coastlines and riverbanks.• Coastal and riverbank erosion and rising of rivers have occurred dueto higher temperatures, thawing of permafrost, and melting mountainsnow, glaciers and sea ice. Erosion of riverbanks cause riverbeds to risethereby creating shallow waters which threaten fish populations. Thisadversely impacts on subsistence fishing, another pillar of the traditionaleconomy.• There are now reduced populations of animal species due to warmertemperatures and increase of new marine species entering the Arcticbecause of warmer sea water. Major changes in animal travel andmigration routes have occurred.• Melting of sea ice will drastically shrink marine habitat for polar bears,ice-inhabiting seals and some seabirds. Plant, animal, fish, bird andinsect species previously foreign to the Arctic are moving further northcausing the introduction of new diseases.• The late freeze-up due to warmer temperatures has also led to somepositive impacts such as better whitefish harvests, clamming, spottedseal hunting, access to caribou, Arctic fox harvests and access todriftwood.• Unpredictable weather and entry of new species of plants, insects andanimals challenge the traditional knowledge of indigenous peoples tocope with these developments.• Unusual rains during winter season cause ice formations which makesit harder for animals such as reindeer and caribou to access food whichhas serious impacts on the subsistence and economies of indigenouspeoples.• The sovereignty of indigenous peoples in the Arctic and the States isunder threat due to the opening of the Northwest Passage, allowingfor easy entry of foreign hunters, traders and corporations which areconstantly seeking for lands and waters to extract resources from.• Increased sea traffic through the Canadian Arctic will make the westcoast of Greenland, the north slope of Alaska and northern Russia morePART II: Impacts of Climate Change on Indigenous Peoples 21