Change is a dynamic force of nature, ever present and constant. Often we depend on it, like the changing seasons, the rising and setting of the sun, and the passage of time.The natural world displays incredible versatility and adaptation to these changes that have occurred over the millennia. In today's news we are hearing about climate change and its effects on the environment. Scientists say that climate change is happening and that there are consequences for our national parks, people, and the planet.
The National Park Service
Scientists with the National Park Service recognize that monitoring the climate is critical to understanding the condition of park ecosystems. They also recognize that parks need to work together to achieve needed results.
"I believe climate change is fundamentally the greatest threat to the integrity of our national parks that we have ever experienced. The current science confirms the planet is warming and the effects are here and now." - Jon Jarvis, National Park Service Director, 2009
There are four key climate change messages of the National Park Service:
- Climate Change is Real: Scientists who observe Earth's climate have documented a warming trend caused by human activity, and the consensus is for the trend to continue.
- Consequences for Parks: Climate change transforms the natural and cultural landscapes of national parks and impacts your national park adventure.
- Responding with Solutions: The National Park Service is managing with the best available science, making resources more resilient, reducing our carbon footprint, and helping staff and the public appreciate the implications of a changing climate.
- Make a Difference: Help us protect America's national parks with choices that reduce your carbon footprint at home and in parks, while bringing personal benefits and future sustainability.
Learn more about the National Park Service's response and strategy to climate change.
Climate Change in Alaska National Parks
In Alaska's national parks, there has been substantial and ongoing research, with national significance, which involves studying climate change.
Climate Change in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park & Preserve
Wrangell-St. Elias National Park &Preserve holds icefields, high-country areas cloaked with snow year-round, and the nation's largest system of glaciers. In fact, 35 percent or approximately 7,000 square miles of the park is covered with ice. Near the coast, the Malaspina Glacier is North America's largest piedmont glacier, which is a type of glacier that is formed at the base of a mountain rather than enclosed by a valley. Covering an area of 1,500 square miles, the Malaspina Glacier is so large that it can only be seen entirely from the air. If warmer winters and longer, more intense melting seasons continue, we may no longer be able to claim these amazing resources.Taking action to monitor, manage, and decrease the impacts of climate change will have positive benefits for our park and its resources.
More Information...
There is a wealth of information available about climate change. Here are a few sites that we recommend:
SNAP (Scenarios Network for Alaska + Arctic Planning) - this site is administered by the University of Alaska Fairbanks.
Climate.gov - this site is administered by NOAA and contains maps, data, climate education materials, and other features.
Additional Resources
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 A recently published paper shares best practices for using this valuable tool.  The National Park Service is supporting community-identified projects in rural Alaska to mitigate the impacts of climate change on subsistence activities and enhance food security resilience.  The rugged beauty of Alaska has been the homelands of Alaska Native people for thousands of generations. Today the relentless march of climate change threatens a range of cultural resources from archeological sites to historic cemeteries. Now the National Park Service is in a race to document heritage across the parklands in Alaska.  Alaska is one of the most heavily glaciated areas in the world outside of the polar regions. Approximately 23,000 square miles of the state are covered in glaciers—an area nearly the size of West Virginia. Glaciers have shaped much of Alaska’s landscape and continue to influence its lands, waters, and ecosystems. Because of their importance, National Park Service scientists measure glacier change. They found that glaciers are shrinking in area and volume across the state.  The wild lands of Alaska national parks are changing at a rapid pace due to the disproportionate increases in temperature at high latitudes. Climate has fundamentally shaped the landscape of high-latitude parks, but now climate change is redefining them. This collection of articles provides a glimpse of the science related to climate change in the high-latitude parks of Alaska.  In Alaska’s Copper River Basin, less reliable snow and ice have presented challenges for traditional winter activities such as trapping, hunting, and gathering firewood. Some of these challenges have been persistent since the 1970s. Elders, culture-bearers, and expert trappers shared their extensive knowledge and experience of change on the Copper River through interviews. Alaska Park Science 22(1), 2023  River ice navigability has changed, making conditions unreliable and unsafe for many traditional activities. Using satellite remote sensing, researchers have documented the historical changes in local river ice seasonality and characterized the patterns and drivers of open water hazards along rivers. Alaska Park Science 22(1), 2023  Climate change is a task society must address sooner rather than later. Park interpreters know it’s important to explain the science, the changes happening on the landscape, and the reasons why, but that’s only half their task. They aspire to inspire; to provoke their audiences to care. Societal action is the ultimate measure of success for effective communication. Alaska Park Science 22(1), 2023  Deciding how to act in the face of climate change can be overwhelming. Yet any park can act to begin integrating climate change considerations into their operations. Read how Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve, the National Park Service Climate Change Response Program, and their partners advanced the park’s efforts to understand, adapt to, mitigate, and communicate with the public about climate change. Alaska Park Science 22(1), 2023  Read the abstract and get the link to a peer-reviewed article on the use of climate models in ecological modeling: Sardoti, G., S. A. McAfee, E. F. Nicklen, P. J. Sousanes, and C. A. Roland. 2020. Evaluating multiple historical climate products in ecological models under current and projected temperatures. Ecological Applications 0(0): e2240.
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