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The state spends roughly $11 million per year dealing with permafrost-affected roads and has for about eight years, he said.
Climate change having impact on Alaska transportation
Seeded on Sun Feb 20, 2011 1:29 PM EST
Article Source: adn.com: Alaska- Enjoy this article? Help vote it up the 'Vine.
- Public Discussion (6)
C Bob, ….. that’s not new news, ….. that’s old news, …… because that is a 67 year old problem, to wit:
In particular, some 100 miles (160 km) of route between Burwash Landing and Koidern, Yukon, became virtually impassable in May and June 1943, as the permafrost melted, no longer protected by a layer of delicate vegetation. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alaska_Highway
- 1 vote
#1 - Sun Feb 20, 2011 3:41 PM EST
as the permafrost melted, no longer protected by a layer of delicate vegetation.
So what about the rest of the permafrost across the entire northern hemisphere that's thawing despite still having its protective cover of vegetation?
- 8 votes
So what about the rest of the permafrost across the entire northern hemisphere that's thawing despite still having its protective cover of vegetation?
Roxanne, that melting has been occurring for thousands n' thousands of years.
How in ell do you think all those quad-gazillions of mosquitoes manage to breed and reproduce iffen things don't warm up and melt ...... up thataway? HUH?
Young lady, mosquitoes do not breed on vegetation, nor do their young mature on vegetation or on frozen ground or permafrost.
And why do you think it is called "permafrost" instead of "permanently frozen" or just plain ole "frozen soil", ..... DUH? Because that is a prettier sounding descriptor than semi-frosty, semi-frozen or partially-annually-frozen ...... would be.
Here, youse believes this, ...... don'tja, .... to wit:
Scientists imagine an Arctic - and a world - without mosquitoes
Published: July 21st, 2010 - Anybody who has suffered an assault by swarms of mosquitoes in the Alaska Bush has wondered whether the world be a better place without them. …….
Yet it's the Arctic, where for a brief period each spring mosquito clouds are denser than they are anywhere else on Earth, that might see the most dramatic ecological change if mosquitoes disappeared.
Sam -
Another bowl of cherries . When they scraped that insulation off it started thawing
protected by a layer of delicate vegetation
.
Since the Army was unaware of permafrost road construction in 1943 , a system was developed to cope with it , ie. gravel layers acting as a barrier to protect the ice. This is no longer working , as the temperature in Alaska continues to increase this system will break down even further. The seasonal thaw is increasing , and the formation of lakes on the tundra is increasing , as the ground slumps caused by the ever deepening melt in the subsurface. An example can be seen in this story from the BBC from last Dec.
Russian Permafrost Melt - BBC
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKyRHDFKEXQ
- 7 votes
This melt isn't slowing down, and it ain't stable , it's increasing because :
In Fairbanks, for example, the average January temperature climbed about three degrees from the late 1990s to this past decade. It's projected to go up about two more degrees in the next two to three decades.
Climate change looks more dramatic in a place like Newtok, a Yup'ik village on the west coast of Alaska. Average January temperatures rose about six degrees from the 1960s to the last decade. They are projected to climb another two to three degrees by 2040 and about five additional degrees by 2060.
Read more: http://www.adn.com/2011/02/19/1712553/climate-change-having-impact-on.html#ixzz1EczSFeyI
- 5 votes
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