Meet six NWT projects receiving new funding through ArcticNet

NWT projects are among those being funded by a new $10.8-million commitment from science non-profit ArcticNet in collaboration with Génome Québec and Polar Knowledge Canada.

The money is funding 25 research projects in the North, with six involving the NWT to a significant degree.

Here’s how ArcticNet describes the projects taking place in the territory.

Boating safety in Sachs Harbour

In a project created to tackle the NWT’s high rates of boat-related deaths and injuries, residents of the Inuvialuit Settlement Region will come together to tell intergenerational stories of boating and boating safety.

Boating has become even riskier due to climate change, researchers say, because unpredictable weather, water and ice conditions make it more difficult to predict how safe the water will be.

“Residents of Sachs Harbour are concerned about boating safety, particularly for the next generation,” an ArcticNet press release stated.

Residents with boating experience will gather to share stories and experiences regarding boat safety with local youth and children, to educate younger generations on the importance of water safety.

Permafrost in the Dehcho

The rapid thawing of permafrost in the NWT makes the future of northern water resources uncertain.

Despite a large amount of new research and monitoring programs, some researchers say there is little coordination between initiatives.

The second phase of a project named the Dehcho Collaborative on Permafrost will “produce an integrated, flexible system to maximize the quality, quantity, availability and utility of permafrost-relevant data.”

The project will also allow people to develop standardized data templates and formats, among other important collaborative tools.

“Addressing this gap through northern-based science/technical leadership and sustained community engagement will directly support decision-making, prudent investment, adaptive risk management, and will help to build a community of northern-based science leaders,” a press release stated.

Seal management in the ISR

The funding announced this month will help the Fisheries Joint Management Committee develop a seal management plan for the Inuvialuit Settlement Region.

The plan will cover ringed seals and bearded seals, which the project team says are important to Inuvialuit for cultural, economic, and nutritional purposes, as well as for hunting traditions.

The seal management plan aims to ensure the sustainable use and conservation of these seal species. This initiative comes at a “crucial time,” proponents say, as climate change affects sea ice and ocean productivity.

“By integrating Indigenous and scientific approaches in real time at the working group table, the seal management plan will ensure conservation of seals and their habitats while preserving the cultural heritage and traditions of the Inuvialuit people for future generations,” a press release stated.

Emerging wildlife disease in the Arctic

The consensus among scientists is that the Arctic is warming four times faster than the global average, contributing to major weather events and changing patterns of plant growth and animal migration.

Those changes can cause problems for wildlife. Researchers say the emergence of new bacterial infections in muskox may be an example.

Scientists and veterinarians are now working to understand how different conditions affect muskox susceptibility and responses to these illnesses, how they affect muskox populations, and how people can protect themselves from animal illnesses that are transmissible to humans.

With the new funding, a project examining these issues will expand its existing surveillance program in Nunavut and the Northwest Territories. The expand program will also analyze muskox samples from elsewhere in Nunavut, the NWT and Québec.

“Analyses will use Indigenous knowledge and Western science and approaches to understand the population-level impacts of disease on muskoxen and establish indicators of muskox fitness that can be used to determine population status and proactively forecast population trajectories,” a press release stated.

Thaw and fire on the Taiga Plains

Scientists will use some of the funding to further explore how wildfires affect water in communities across the Taiga Plains, an area that includes much of the land and water around the Mackenzie River.

“The landscape of the Taiga Plains is characterized by widespread peatlands, and peatlands are the dominant sources of carbon, nutrients, and mercury to downstream aquatic ecosystems,” a press release states.

“With recent wildfires and ongoing permafrost thaw affecting peatlands, there are concerns of increased delivery of solutes which can cause increased biomagnification of mercury in fish, brownification of waters, and increased occurrence of harmful algal blooms.”

The project will study how the likes of carbon, nutrients and mercury end up being stored and transported downstream, and whether that changes depending on the type of permafrost.

Blue food in the Arctic

Can food derived from aquatic animals, plants and algae play an essential role in food security?

Scientists working on a project that involves Ulukhaktok call that “blue food” and will work on a project to “co-develop locally defined visions for sustainable diversification of blue foods.” Ulukhaktok and Sanikiluaq, in Nunavut, are the two communities on which the project will focus.

Focusing on the likes of plants and algae, the scientists will assess what role those could have “with respect to food and nutritional security, cultural exchange and economy.”

“By merging academic research with Inuit Knowledge in active co-production of knowledge processes, we aim to bolster the resilience of Arctic communities and ecosystems in the face of fast-paced environmental change,” a press release stated.

Ollie Williams contributed reporting.