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The LEO Network is a worldwide network of observers and experts that share their observations of environmental change.
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Observations

Pacific halibut stock increases after four years of decline
Fish Factor: The summer setline survey could result in increased catches for most regions in 2022.
Unalaska, Alaska, United States
Anchorage Daily News

Miles from the sea, a Portland neighborhood finds itself in a new flood zone
Updated and more accurate federal maps put a cluster of homes near Capisic Brook in a zone that faces once-in-a-century risks.
Portland, Maine, United States
Press Herald

Bering Sea survey finds Yukon River chinook populations are low and staying closer to shore
Salmon abundance is down and population distributions have changed, according to NOAA’s 2021 surface trawl survey.
Alaska Public Media

Confused about the timeline for the Red Hill fuel storage facility and contaminated water? Read this.
This article details the history and environmental concerns surrounding the Red Hill fuel storage facility, including a significant fuel leak and ongoing debates over its operation and oversight.
Pearl City, Hawaii, United States
Hawai'i Public Radio

Climate change is making Glacier Bay unstable. Scientists are mapping the risks to visitors
Landslides and tsunamis aren’t historically common in Glacier Bay, but because more than half a million visitors tour the park each year park managers want to get a clearer picture of the risks of tsunamis and landslides, which have become more common recently due to a changing climate.
Alaska Public Media

NOAA Bottom Trawl Survey finds warmer waters and declining fish populations
Multiple fish populations in the Bering Sea have experienced a slight decline, according to the 2021 Bottom Trawl survey.
Bering Sea
KNOM Radio Mission

In Iraq's famed marshlands, climate change is upending a way of life
Drought and extreme heat that scientists link to climate change are altering the UNESCO-protected marshlands. Iraq's average annual temperatures are increasing at nearly double the rate of Earth's.
الجبيش, Dhi Qar, Iraq
NPR.org

A father and son's Ice Age plot to slow Siberian thaw
In one of the planet’s coldest places, 130 kilometers south of Russia’s Arctic coast, scientist Sergey Zimov can find no sign of permafrost as global warming permeates Siberia’s soil. As everything from mammoth bones to ancient vegetation frozen inside it for millennia thaws and decomposes, it now threatens to release vast amounts
Черский, Нижнеколымский район, Sakha, Russia
Reuters

Canadian military sets up water purification units for Iqaluit at the Sylvia Grinnell River
The Canadian Armed Forces has begun setting up two water purification units at the Sylvia Grinnell River on Monday morning to help Nunavut’s capital with its ongoing water emergency. The military had been waiting for the City of Iqaluit’s approval before setting up the units. The two parties agreed on the location Sunday night, said
Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada
ArcticToday

Strange Bird Call Might Be Owl
Bird call on a November night in Anchorage. Maybe a great horned owl?
Anchorage, Alaska

Scientists report an increase in harmful algal blooms in the northern Bering and Chukchi Seas
Since bottom water temperatures have been warming drastically across the Northern Bering and Chukchi Seas over the last few years, cysts are now growing locally in Arctic waters. The blooms carry toxins, but scientists aren’t yet sure what impact they will have on marine mammals.
Alaska, United States
Alaska Public Media

Third wettest October in 120 years
Nationwide, precipitation fell 50 per cent more than normal. This month is the 3rd wettest October month dating back to 1900. The wettest was at several stations in Vestland and in Viken, five records were set for the highest amount of precipitation measured in one day in October.
Gullfjellet, Bergen, Norway 60.3828, 5.542
Meteorologisk institutt

A melting glacier could mean a chance for Alaska’s biggest hydroelectric project to expand
The Dixon Glacier, on the other side of Kachemak Bay from Fitz Creek, is rapidly receding. That’s true for glaciers around Alaska, and the world. But what’s special about Dixon is it sits just a few miles from Bradley Lake, a source of hydropower that supplies the railbelt with about 10% of its energy needs.
Fox River, Alaska, United States

In October 1821, Franklin survived the NWT (just). In October 2021, should his name survive here?
Two hundred years ago this month, some Englishmen far from home were struggling for survival in the Northwest Territories’ barrenlands. Now, Yellowknife’s main street is named for the man in charge. Chief Edward Sangris of the Yellowknives Dene community of Dettah, across the bay from Yellowknife, said he and many other community members have no attachment to Franklin and the colonial history he represents.
Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada

Caribou populations are dwindling, and we’re in denial about it
Sebastian Jones, Wildlife Analyst
Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada
Yukon News

The Last Ice
In Norway, glaciers are receding faster than ever and potentially will be eliminated by climate change in key tourist destinations.
Norway
NRK

City in Arctic Russia cooling ground to preserve buildings on thawing permafrost
Rising Arctic temperatures are causing permafrost to thaw, putting the world’s largest city built on frozen ground in deep trouble.
Russia
Eye on the Arctic

Climate Change Melts Permafrost, Transforms Landscape in Russia's North
Video | In northern Siberia, the warming climate is leaving people feeling like the ground is "going out from under their feet."
Arctic Russia
The Moscow Times

Bigleaf maple decline tied to hotter, drier summers in Washington
Scientists, concerned hikers and residents have observed more stressed and dying bigleaf maple across urban and suburban neighborhoods as well as in forested areas. While forest pathologists have ruled out several specific diseases, the overall cause of the tree’s decline has stumped experts for years.
Seattle, Washington, United States
UW News

Flood-displaced elder yearns to go home to Jean Marie River
Laura Sanguez had to flee Jean Marie River in May when floodwaters destroyed her home. Now, living in long-term care in Fort Simpson, the 83-year-old says she hasn't heard anything about the status of her home or whether she is getting a replacement home.
Jean Marie River, Northwest Territories, Canada
CBC

Cost to save Tuktoyaktuk from climate change: $42 million and rising
Protecting the coast of Tuktoyaktuk from the onslaught of climate change is estimated to cost at least $42 million and is only guaranteed to last until 2052. Over the project’s 30-year lifespan, over 60,000 cubic metres of sand are expected to be brought to keep the beach intact.
Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories, Canada
NNSL Media

Aggressive behaviour leads to Coyote Cull in Stanley Park
Coyotes in Stanley Park are displaying novel aggressive behaviour towards humans. Rates of aggressive encounters prompted park management to call for the cull of up to 35 coyotes and a temporary nighttime closure of the park.
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

In a Tiny Arctic Town, Food Is Getting Harder to Come By
One key species that is being affected by climate change in the tundra is the lemming. Lemmings are small rodents that spend the winter under the snowpack, where it’s warm enough for them to survive and reproduce. The snowpack, in addition to insulating their food, also protects them from predators.
Igloolik, Nunavut, Canada
Wired

Pak farmers protest against water shortage
A large number of farmers on Saturday staged a protest march against the acute shortage of water at Dadu district located in Pakistan Sindh province located in Pakistan's Sindh province.
Islamabad, Islāmābād, Pakistan
Big News Network.com

Storms, high winds projected to be more frequent in Western Alaska
A University of Alaska Fairbanks scientist said that the reason why Western Alaska is getting windier is that it will soon inherit the Aleutian Islands’ storms. In today’s climate, the Aleutian islands are the windiest area in Alaska.
Toksook Bay, Alaska, United States

Indigenous peoples facing evacuation in Alaska and Louisiana say the United States is ignoring climate threats
Approximately 31 Alaska Native communities face imminent climate change due to floods and erosion. This can lead to the disappearance of culture and lifestyle changes. The four tribes are in the process of relocating from a rapidly disappearing village.
Kivalina, Alaska, United States
Autobala

Northern Quebec opens up to electric vehicles with charging station in Chisasibi
In August, the first electric car charger was installed in the Cree community, located some 1,700 kilometers north of Montreal.
Chisasibi, Quebec, Canada
CBC

Summer 2021 was Finland's hottest in over 80 years
There were a total of 50 'heatwave' days in Finland this summer, when the temperature rose to above 25 degrees Celsius.
Finland
Yle Uutiset

Russia to Fully Ban Single-Use Plastic Products By 2024
Banned goods would include disposable plastic straws, plates, glasses, lids and appliances; coffee capsules; cotton swabs; opaque and colored PET (thermoplastic polyester) bottles; boxes and packs for tobacco products; blister packaging (except for medicines); egg cartons; and several types of bags.
Russia
The Moscow Times

Forecast end to north and east’s amazing summer
Yet another weather record has been broken this summer, as this August was the warmest since records began in Akureyri. There are signs that weather patterns will change in the middle of next week.
Akureyri, Northeast, Iceland
RÚV

Photographer Finds Polar Bears That Took Over Abandoned Buildings
In September 2021, photographer Dmitry Kokh visited Kolyuchin Island and found the strange sight of polar bears that had taken over an abandoned settlement.
PetaPixel

August 2021 was the hottest on record for Montreal
It’s official! August 2021 will go down in the record books as being the hottest on record for Montreal. The city recorded a monthly mean temperature of 23.6 degrees Celsius, which is 3.5 degrees warmer than normal.
Montréal, Quebec, Canada
Montreal

Declining sea ice in Kotzebue Sound is shortening subsistence hunt for seals, study finds
Seal meat makes up a good portion of what’s in subsistence hunters’ freezers in Kotzebue. But the sea ice the seals haul out on is diminishing, and new research shows that's shortening the window to hunt seals.
Kotzebue, Alaska, United States
KTOO

LED streetlights decimating moth numbers in England
The study is the first to examine the impact of LEDs in a real-world setting and the first to show the direct impact of light pollution on caterpillars. The caterpillars are less mobile than adult moths, and therefore show more precisely the local losses caused by light pollution.
England, United Kingdom
the Guardian

Colorado River, Lifeline Of The West, Sees Historic Water Shortage Declaration
The first-ever shortage declaration on the Colorado River forces arid Western states to re-examine their relationship with resources many take for granted, drinking water and cheap hydroelectricity.
Colorado, United States
NPR.org

A midwestern town moved uphill to survive the elements. Can others do the same?
The relatively well-off bedroom community of Valmeyer, Illinois, could afford to relocate – but moving isn’t as easy for less affluent towns
Valmeyer, Illinois, United States
the Guardian

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