CANADIAN POLAR COMMISSION

IN THIS ISSUE THE LAW OF THE SEA AND MARINE SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH The Law of the Sea and Marine Scientific IN THE OCEAN Research in the 1 Ron Macnab, Olav Loken and Arvind Anand

FALL/WINTER 2007 Contemporary events and circumstances, ration with other states, and by driving the Global Warming: Arctic Shipping 6 such as melting , the International Polar need to define maritime boundaries, these Year, and the UN Convention on the Law of developments touch upon ’s interests PEARL – A Canadian Success Story 11 the Sea are providing an unprecedented at the national and international levels. boost to Marine Scientific Research in the Melting ice is facilitating access to ex- The Centre d’études nordiques and central Arctic Ocean. This felicitous situa- panded oceanic that historically have the Qaujisarvik Network 15 tion could be short-lived, however, as Arctic remained inaccessible to scientific research coastal states apply the provisions of the on account of their widespread and persis- Social Housing North 17 Law of the Sea to extend their sovereign tent ice cover. The IPY, meanwhile, is mobi- rights beyond 200 nautical miles, enhanc- lizing legions of investigators for an inten- Oral History in : ing their entitlement to regulate a range of sive two-year campaign of data gathering An Overview of its Past and scientific activities. This is in marked con- and analysis across a broad range of disci- Present Vitality 20 trast to the regime, where freedom plines. Finally, UNCLOS has prompted all five of research is protected under the terms of coastal states that front upon the Arctic Book Review: the Antarctic Treaty. The principles enunci- Ocean (Canada, , , the Rus- Essential Song – Three Decades of ated by this Treaty are worth considering, sian Federation, and the USA*) to initiate Northern Cree Music 24 as they could inspire a less restrictive national programs for seafloor mapping and approach towards scientific investigation research in support of claims to the extended New Books 26 in the central Arctic Ocean. continental shelf (ECS) beyond 200 nautical miles. Horizon 26 INTRODUCTION Taken together, these developments Marine scientific research (MSR) may be have spurred an unprecedented increase in defined as the ensemble of observations and research activity in the Arctic Ocean, with investigations that seek to understand the many projects assuming the character of of the ocean environment and of the international partnerships. Motivated by the processes that occur within it. Three con- desire to maintain a productive momentum, temporary developments are having a sig- investigators are seeking ways to channel nificant impact on MSR in the Arctic Ocean: melting ice, the (IPY), and the UN Convention on the Law of * While the USA has yet to ratify UNCLOS, federal agencies in that country are engaged in a comprehensive mapping the Sea (UNCLOS). By forcing an adaptation program to collect the necessary data for developing an to changing , by promoting collabo- extended continental shelf. Maritime Zones IW Internal Waters TSB Territorial Sea Baseline TS Territorial Sea CS Continental Shelf CZ Contiguous Zone A The Area EEZ A76 Article 76 Limit IW HS High Seas TS CZ EEZ HS

TSB CS A

0 m 12 m 24 m 200 m A76

Figure 1 the current round of activity into a longer- its predominant focus on the land area of Coastal state sovereign rights in maritime zones. This lasting program that will outlive the circum- and on the abeyance of all terri- diagram illustrates the seaward extents and overlaps of stances which led to its inception. While torial claims, the ATS and its provisions are the maritime zones where a coastal state may exercise a there is no shortage of scientific objectives clearly not totally applicable to the Arctic range of sovereign rights and authorities. In general that are worthy of ongoing and in some situation. However, many of its principles terms,the scope of those rights and authorities cases urgent attention on a cooperative basis, could serve as useful guideposts in the de- (including the regulation of Marine Scientific Research) diminishes with distance from the coastline. Conversely,a the continuation of a broad-based undertak- velopment of a similar framework for coop- state that proposes to operate within another’s maritime ing for multilateral international research erative scientific investigation in the North. zones must relinquish certain rights as it penetrates will likely require intervention and support This note outlines some of the key further into those zones. at the political level. research provisions in the ATS. It also con- siders how international law in the guise of LOOKING AT THE UNCLOS could promote the rationalization of that area. LONGER TERM research policies and programs to maximize The Treaty makes no specific refer- With melting ice providing a constant and the benefits of international scientific col- ence to MSR, but its articles do contain some pervasive counterpoint, Arctic investigators laboration in the Arctic – or alterna- interesting points: and research managers recognize the bene- tively, how it could hamper field research. A call for the freedom of scientific investi- fits that would accrue from the establish- Finally, it assesses the prospects for creating gation, and for cooperation as practiced ment of a lasting framework for cooperative an Arctic IPY legacy that resembles the ATS during the International Geophysical Year; scientific investigation within the region. An model through the establishment of a multi- Encouragement for the exchange of plan- example of such a framework that comes national infrastructure for promoting scien- ning information, of research personnel, readily to mind is the one enshrined within tific research and the exchange of data on a and of scientific observations and results; the (ATS), which continuing basis. A call to demonstrate interest in Antarcti- fifty years ago grew out of the International ca through the conduct of a substantial Geophysical Year (IGY). MSR AND THE research activity such as the establish- IGY was a worldwide initiative that ANTARCTIC TREATY ment of a scientific station, or the dis- brought concerted international resources SYSTEM patch of a scientific expedition. to bear on problems whose solutions had Negotiated in 1959, the Antarctic Treaty The coordination of scientific activi- long been elusive. Among other things, the entered into force in 1961, and has worked ties in Antarctica is fulfilled by the non-gov- Treaty that it spawned continues to promote very successfully since then. The Treaty cov- ernmental Scientific Committee for Antarctic scientific research and the exchange of data ers the area south of 60°S, without prejudic- Research (SCAR). The original Treaty had no under the oversight of the Scientific Com- ing the rights of any state under internation- specific reference to SCAR, but this changed mittee for Antarctic Research (SCAR). Given al law with regard to the high seas within with the entry into force of the Protocol on

CANADIAN POLAR COMMISSION 2 Antarctic Environmental Protection to the zones adjacent to its territory, the authority Within its 200 nautical mile Exclusive Antarctic Treaty in 1996, which has several diminishing progressively with increasing Economic Zone (EEZ), a coastal state also specific references to the role of SCAR. The distance from the coastline. Conversely, has the right to regulate, authorize, and con- Protocol calls for the Committee on the Envi- other states must progressively relinquish duct MSR, but under normal circumstances ronment to ensure that an environmental freedoms as they penetrate deeper into the it is expected to grant consent to other states impact assessment is conducted for all activ- zones where a coastal state exercises juris- that wish to engage in research for peaceful ities proposed in the Treaty area prior to diction. These freedoms assume several purposes and for the greater benefit of man- their initiation. This not only ensures protec- forms, but the freedom to conduct MSR is the kind. This consent is subject to certain con- tion of the environment, but it keeps all par- only one that will be considered here. ditions and procedures which are spelled out ties aware of developments. Within the 12 nautical mile Territorial in Part XIII of UNCLOS. In the Arctic Ocean, Sea that is adjacent to its territory, a coastal these provisions apply within the combined

FALL/WINTER 2007 MSR IN THE state has the exclusive authority to regulate, EEZs of the five coastal states, which com- ARCTIC authorize, and conduct MSR. prise an unbroken belt that completely In the Arctic, the primary coordinator for MSR is the International Arctic Science Com- Figure 2 benefit of mankind. The darker area in the centre mittee (IASC). The Committee provides sci- Limits of Arctic coastal state jurisdiction. The lighter area represents a High Seas zone beyond the coastal state entific advice to the , which it represents the combined Exclusive Economic Zones EEZs,where the combined Article 76 claims of the five predates by several years. IASC is supported (EEZs) of Canada,Denmark,Norway,,and the USA coastal states could result in new restrictions on MSR by the Forum of Arctic Research Operators, within the central Arctic Ocean (EEZs in adjoining seas, activities that address the seabed. The irregularly-shaped and liaises with several other organizations, i.e., Barents,Norwegian-,and Bering,are not white areas in the centre are zones where a provisional analysis suggests that Article 76 would not apply,and notably the Arctic Ocean Science Board, the shown for the sake of clarity). Within its EEZ,a coastal state has the right to regulate,authorize,and conduct where MSR could be undertaken without restriction by International Arctic Social Sciences Associa- Marine Scientific Research (MSR),but is expected to any state. In the remainder of the central Arctic Ocean, tion, the Northern Research Forum, and the grant consent to other states for research activities that however, MSR will likely be subject to some form of . are undertaken for peaceful purposes and for the greater coastal state control. Within their respective spheres, SCAR and IASC have similar roles and objectives, however their legal foundations differ. SCAR has, in part, become an instrument of the Antarctic Treaty and is strengthened by the (USA) Treaty’s legal status. IASC was formed by a Canada Russian group of scientists and has become part of Federation the structure of the Arctic Council, which exists as a result of a political declaration and which cannot impose policy or deci- sions upon its member states.

THE POTENTIAL IMPACT OF UNCLOS ON MSR IN THE ARCTIC UNCLOS provides a framework for establish- Greenland (Denmark) ing zones of maritime jurisdiction for each Svalbard coastal state: in essence, the ocean is divided (Norway) into zones where states are entitled to exer- 60 North cise a range of rights and freedoms (see

Figure 1). As a general rule, a coastal state enjoys privileged levels of authority in the

3 encircles the Ocean’s outer rim while defin- that lie beyond national jurisdiction, and phere exchanges that are commonplace ing an enclosed High Seas zone in the centre where mineral resources on and below the in other parts of the . These circum- (see Figure 2). seabed comprise the “common heritage of stances make for a marine environment that The Extended Continental Shelf (ECS) mankind”. is very different from that of other oceans, presents a different legal situation: this zone Within this context, the ability to per- and one that scientists are still trying to lies beyond the 200 mile limit of the EEZ, form MSR in the Arctic Ocean has emerged understand. with a maximum extent that is determined as an issue with significant political over- The Arctic Ocean is also vulnerable: in accordance with the technical provisions tones. With the prospect of seeing most of with a deep central zone that is essentially of Article 76 of UNCLOS. In this area, a quali- that ocean encompassed by the EEZs and cut off from the world ocean, it serves as a fied coastal state does not enjoy full sover- ECSs of the Arctic coastal states, other states basin for the long-term circulation and re- eignty, but it is entitled to regulate MSR activ- have been expressing concern about the tention of contaminants that originate local- ities, particularly those that impinge upon potential loss of access to regions where ly from coastal states, from shipping and the seabed; in principle, it can withhold important scientific questions remain to be related industrial activities, or from remote consent in the case of designated zones that answered. sites after transportation via atmosphere have been set aside for exploitation or de- In principle, Part XIII of UNCLOS ex- and surface currents. Moreover, as one of tailed exploratory operations. ists to facilitate scientific access to EEZ and the engines that drive world climate, the ECS regions, however in practice coastal Arctic is impacted by global warming, with COULD MSR BE states are able to impose administrative long-term consequences that cannot be pre- RESTRICTED IN delays and constraints that can effectively dicted with any reliability at this time. THE CENTRAL hamper or even prevent planned research Many of the scientific problems and ARCTIC OCEAN? programs. For example in one recent inci- challenges that are associated with the Arc- As of this writing, nowhere in the Arctic dent, two research operated by tic Ocean transcend national boundaries, Ocean (nor in the entire world, for that mat- non-Arctic coastal states were forced to can- and their satisfactory resolution can only ter) has an Extended Continental Shelf (ECS) cel long-standing plans for scientific excur- proceed on the basis of cooperation among been formally established, however two of sions through the EEZ of a coastal state, coastal states. This cooperation requires a the Arctic coastal states (Norway and Rus- when local authorities attempted to impose pooling of interests, along with a willingness sia) have submitted proposed outer limits to substantial fees for access to those waters to engage in multiparty debate and decision- the Commission on the Limits of the Conti- and for services which included making with a view to initiating collective nental Shelf (CLCS). Russia’s submission is in escort. action that will lead to some greater good. temporary abeyance, pending the presenta- Such action could imply a temporary sus- tion of new supporting information to the MAJOR ISSUES AND pension of certain sovereign rights in the CLCS; Norway’s submission remains in the THE NEED FOR offshore, which coastal states would no hands of the CLCS. The other three Arctic MULTILATERAL MSR doubt be reluctant to accept for various rea- states (Canada, Denmark, and the USA) are When considering issues of sovereignty and sons, e.g., defense and environmental con- assembling the necessary data sets in sup- access to national waters in the Arctic cerns; ownership of living and non-living port of their cases. Therefore it is only a Ocean, it is worth recalling that worldwide, resources; cultural and historical percep- matter of time until the first Arctic ECS is unresolved maritime limits and boundaries tions that underlie a sense of national identi- proclaimed, to be followed by the others in are estimated to number in the hundreds – ty; etc. succession. so the Arctic is hardly unusual in this re- A provisional analysis suggests that spect. Nevertheless, this is no time for com- PROSPECTS FOR the cumulative ECSs of the Arctic coastal placency. For all its environmental rigours, INTERNATIONAL states could encompass most of the central the Arctic Ocean remains unique and vul- COOPERATION Arctic Ocean, leaving two zones where nerable: unique because it is the only large The realization of an Antarctic-style concept coastal states could not exercise sovereign enclosed sea that alternates between polar for maintaining an open, multinational rights (see Figure 2). These two excluded night and day; in addition, it currently fea- research regime could be difficult to achieve zones form a part of the Area, which incor- tures a persistent ice cover that serves as an in the Arctic Ocean, however nothing rules porates all components of the global seabed effective barrier to the sort of ocean-atmos- out cooperation among coastal states for the

CANADIAN POLAR COMMISSION 4 row national self-interest and sought instead United Kingdom to involve participating states in an ongoing Argentina process of communication, consultation, Chile and collaboration. With the International Polar Year relying heavily on multinational scientific Norway cooperation, coastal states have entered a (undefined limits) propitious era for capitalizing and acting upon their common interests in the Arctic. The IPY could be a very effective spring- board for launching a spate of ideas and

FALL/WINTER 2007 activities that culminated in the develop- ment of a regional mechanism for promot- ing the freedom of scientific research with- out transgressing unduly upon coastal state Antarctic Circle rights.

CONCLUSION 60 South Article 76 of UNCLOS and the requirements of the Commission on the Limits of the Conti- Australia nental Shelf have imposed a timeframe on France coastal states, while the start of the IPY has provided an impetus to accelerate the pro- cess of delineating outer continental shelves Figure 3 now has 46 signatories,including Canada. The Treaty through increased international cooperation Sector claims in Antarctica. This diagram illustrates the makes no specific reference to Marine Scientific Research in research aimed at polar issues. It is worth locations and extents of claims by Argentina,Australia, (MSR),but within its area it does commit state parties to Chile,France,New Zealand,Norway,and the United support freedom of scientific research,to promote noting that Canada was a member of the IPY Kingdom. Brazil has also declared a ‘Zone of Interest’ cooperation and exchange,and to conduct substantial Planning Group, and that it contributed to which is not presently considered a formal claim. All research activity. These parties would therefore appear the final report A Framework for the Inter- claims except Norway’s begin at the and to have freedom to conduct MSR in areas south of 60°S national Polar Year 2007–2008. extend to 60°S,the northern limit of the Antarctic without the imposition of constraints by other states – The IPY Plan makes it clear that bipo- Treaty. Including the seven claimant states,the Treaty as long as they adhered to the provisions of the Treaty. lar aspects of the world should be included, and the following quote is of interest: purpose of attaining a worthwhile collective the development of policies and pro- The IGY of 1957–58 resulted in the cre- goal. Indeed, Part IX of UNCLOS advocates grams of scientific research; ation of an innovative model of Antarc- cooperation among the coastal states that the constructive involvement by other tic governance based on international border enclosed or semi-enclosed seas such interested states or organizations. scientific and political agreements: IPY as the Arctic Ocean. Thus there is a legal, if not a moral, 2007–2008 could provide a comparable Specifically, Part IX encourages af- incentive for Arctic coastal states to imple- opportunity to further advance and facil- fected states to coordinate their actions in: ment a regional framework of transbound- itate international scientific cooperation the management, conservation, explo- ary cooperation that would enable them in the Arctic. ration, and exploitation of living resources; to devise effective solutions for common The emphasis in this context is on the protection and preservation of the problems. Such an arrangement might not innovative, as the political situations differ marine environment; match all the provisions of the Antarctic in the two polar areas. Governance in Ant- Treaty System, but its effect would be to pro- arctica follows the internationally recog- mote the development of a circumpolar nized Antarctic Treaty and its associated community that shunned the pursuit of nar- regulatory schemes, collectively known as

5 the Antarctic Treaty System (ATS). In Ant- tional research throughout the high seas Ron Macnab is a member of the Board of arctica, there are no coastal states because zone. The current IPY could provide some Directors of the Canadian Polar Commis- territorial claims (see Figure 3) have been movement in this direction through its focus sion. Olav Loken is a former Secretary of set aside in accordance with the provisions on Arctic research issues, which in turn the Canadian Committee for Antarctic of the Treaty. This situation has been con- might motivate the development of a com- Research. Arvind Anand is currently com- ducive to regional scientific collaboration. mon perspective on how best to resolve the pleting an MA in Globalization and Inter- By way of contrast, both Arctic and region’s scientific challenges. national Development at the University of non-Arctic states face potential conflict over In the long run, this could create con- Ottawa. their MSR rights in the Arctic offshore. It is ditions favourable to the establishment of a too soon to say whether the Arctic Council, voluntary regime for free scientific research which was established by a declaration in in the Arctic. Such a regime might lack the 1996 and which lacks the legal authority regulatory power that has benefited scientif- of the ATS, will play a role in developing a ic research in Antarctica, but given the right political climate that facilitates free interna- conditions and with suitable international goodwill, the arrangement could prove to be equally effective.

GLOBAL WARMING: ARCTIC SHIPPING Captain Patrick R.M. Toomey

Whatever the effects of global warming turn A GRADUAL mountable problem. In the Beaufort out to be in the near and distant future, CLEARING OF conditions will never be as benign as they there will always be ice in the Arctic Ocean MULTI-YEAR ICE will eventually become in the channels be- FROM THE in winter. As long as the plane of the sun’s tween the Canadian islands, but the gradual NORTHWEST apparent path (the ecliptic) remains tilted at PASSAGE reduction in quantity and quality of the old approximately twenty-three and a half de- What is most likely, however, is a gradual ice in the Arctic Ocean and the Beaufort gyre grees from the plane of the equinoctial (the clearing of old (multi-year) ice from the tra- can only work to the advantage of shipping ), there will be a long winter night ditional routes through in both and winter. in the polar regions. Sea ice will form, and the Canadian Archipelago in the next 15 In the Arctic Ocean, the extent of every winter for the foreseeable future ships years or so. The open water shipping dangerous old ice will diminish and become crossing the should expect to on these routes will lengthen until it extends much less of a factor for over-the-Pole ship encounter ice – eventually, perhaps, only from perhaps April to December. There will transits. The multi-year ice will eventually thick first-year ice. The long-desired shortest be first-year ice in the remaining winter disappear, perhaps over 50 to 70 years. Some sea-route between the Atlantic and Pacific months, but ice conditions will probably be second-year ice will always remain as a Oceans will never be the ice-free year-round no worse than in the Gulf of St. Lawrence hold-over from each winter season. It is un- transit dreamed of since the world was dis- during the past 50 winters, when shipping likely that trans-Polar shipping lanes will covered to be a globe, and so starry-eyed has been able to move almost uninterrupted become open-water routes for very long shippers hoping for it had better get used to with icebreaker assistance. The long Arctic periods in the near future, but the ice condi- that fact now. winter night in very high latitudes will make tions will certainly become easier to navi- ice navigation more difficult than it would gate than in the past, so that ice-breaking – be in daylight, but this is not an insur- even ice-strengthened – commercial vessels will eventually be able to cross the Arctic

CANADIAN POLAR COMMISSION 6 160° 180° 160°

140° 140°

FALL/WINTER 2007 120° 120°

100°

100° North Pole Route Pole North

80° 80°

80°

60° 60° Northwest Passage 70°

60°

40° 40°

20°0° 20°

Ocean year-round. I expect that open water the Arctic Ocean each winter will remain a board the Russian icebreaker Yamal be- summertime transits will be possible in some formidable obstacle for many months each tween 1999 and 2005 have permitted me to years quite soon, perhaps in the next 20 to year, even if all the old ice disappears, and observe that most of the thick first-year ice 30 years, but will remain a very risky option when deformed and in consolidated ridges, at and around the Pole is greatly weakened for vessels not strengthened for ice naviga- will be almost as difficult to negotiate as or melted altogether by the end of August tion. The thick first-year ice circulating in older ice. Six voyages to the North Pole a-

7 sovereignty and national control of water- ways – both coastal routes already provide virtually open water transits in summer. The open water period of the coastal routes will last longer each year as global warming reduces the ice-cover, and so these routes will see earliest development of shipping traffic. The greatest savings from the direct route across the Pole will not be realised until much later as only very ice-capable ships will be able to use it for many years to come, and ice will always cause either dam- age or delays.

RUSSIA IS BEST PLACED TO Right to left: The icebreakers Yamal (Russia), Louis S. St- DICTATE each year, the remaining ice being predomi- Laurent (Canada) and Polar Sea (USA),near the North THE CONDITIONS nantly old ice. Without the old ice that pre- Pole. Russia’s superior icebreaker fleet illustrates FOR NORTH POLAR dominates in summertime in very high north Russians’ view of their arctic as a high priority worthy of TRANSITS latitudes, there would be much more open considerable investment. Photo: USCG,Steve Wheeler. Now for the politics. Russian control of the water around the Pole. Northern Sea Route along the Siberian coast from the to the Barents Sea has Canal route; and Hamburg to SHIPPERS WOULD never been seriously challenged internation- would save about 1,300 miles by going over NEED LITTLE ally, and Russian sovereignty is vigorously CONVINCING TO the North Pole. As the Arctic Ocean ice thins pursued along its whole length from the Ber- SEE THE SAVINGS and becomes less menacing it will certainly ing Strait to the Norwegian border. Since at Today’s interest in the shipping routes across become more attractive to send icebreaking least the beginning of the 18th century Russia the Arctic Ocean is motivated, just as in the and ice-strengthened ships on the polar has jealously guarded the right to control 16th century, by commercial pressure to route; and later, once the open water routes shipping traffic, marine exploitation, explo- shorten the sailing distance between the develop, conventional vessels, at least in the ration and all other activities in the region. It northern Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The summer season. Stronger vessels will be able has developed the Russian Arctic by populat- sailing distance over the North Pole between to continue year-round. ing it, sometimes by force, establishing indus- Kobe, and Hamburg, Germany is only There are three main shipping routes tries and coastwise transportation links. Rus- about 5,000 nautical miles, as opposed to to follow across the Arctic, two coastal and sia was the first nation to develop a serious 11,225 nautical miles via the traditional one direct. A shipper can choose to brave the Arctic icebreaking fleet, and continues to westbound route through the Suez Canal. At drift ice of the and thread the dominate this activity with eight nuclear- less than half the distance, the Canadian archipelago to the open waters of powered icebreakers (not all currently in ser- saves fuel and time, once the threats of dam- the Sea and the Atlantic, com- vice). The newest, the 50 Let Pobedy began age or delays caused by ice are removed. monly known as the Northwest Passage; or operating just this year. A large variety of Shippers would need little convincing to see instead, follow the Russian Siberian coast- smaller icebreakers is available, many cur- the savings on, for example, the voyage line along what is known in Russia as the rently laid-up, but ready for reactivation from to Yokohama: via Suez and the Northern Sea Route; or thirdly, set off di- should the need arise, and several of them Straits of Malacca, 12,573 nautical miles (via rectly for the North Pole between the Bering more powerful than any Canadian icebreak- Panama at 11,440 nautical miles) versus the Strait and either Denmark Strait or Spitsber- er today. For all these reasons, Russia is in a Pole route at 8,595 nautical miles. New York gen and the Greenland Sea. very good position not only to control marine to Yokohama over the Pole means about Putting international politics aside for traffic along the Northern Sea Route, but also 2,000 nautical miles less than the Panama a moment – there is some disagreement on to promote, assist, and regulate such traffic to

CANADIAN POLAR COMMISSION 8 its own advantage. Consequently Russia is best placed to dictate the conditions for North Polar transits: it is the only nation with ice- breakers powerful enough to assist – or res- cue – vessels taking the polar route in the early stages of that route becoming practical. In contrast Canada, with the second longest Arctic coastal sea-route after Russia, seems to have no abiding interest, either political or practical, in controlling access to her Arctic waterways, exploiting them for

FALL/WINTER 2007 national commercial benefit, or protecting them from ecological disaster caused by un- regulated shipping. The Canadian Arctic Waters Pollution Protection Act with its Arc- tic Shipping Pollution Prevention Regula- NABOS 2007. Photo: Mike Dunn. tions (revised in 1996 with the Arctic Ice Regime Shipping System) has worked thus ternational respect for a serious Canadian far on a voluntary basis as a form of control year-round interest in the Arctic Ocean and He emphasized the fact that they will not be and protection for the Northwest Passage, the . Since then the Finns icebreakers, but merely ice-strengthened mainly because nobody else thought it worth- have become the acknowledged design vessels – that they will only break one metre while to contest the Act’s provisions. Howev- innovators for both pure icebreakers and of ice! They might as well stay south if that er with big money at stake the laissez-faire commercial adaptations of revolutionary is all they can handle. Two to three metres attitude of other nations might change. icebreaking principles, which are seemingly thickness of first-year ice should be the min- Canada is even lukewarm on sovereignty being adopted by everyone but Canada. imum standard. The Prime Minister also issues – pin-pricks like the dispute with Den- There is little doubt that the Russians and noted that these ships would not be needed mark over aside – as the ques- Finns, whose icebreakers are now operated in the Canadian Arctic outside the tradition- tion of whether the Northwest Passage is by private shipping companies, will gleefully al summer ice navigation season as there is international or Canadian waters remains fill this void in Canadian polar icebreaker no traffic in wintertime to warrant their undecided by any international court. capacity. Russia will re-activate its dormant presence. This may be true now; but very fleet and sell its services for escort, surveil- soon there will be traffic, some of it quite CANADA WILL lance, and even rescue, to the highest bid- possibly totally inappropriate. The major WATCH FROM der. Canada, which should have been lead- problems with foreign shipping in Canadian THE SIDELINES ing the way, will watch from the sidelines. It Arctic waters are much more likely to hap- The Canadian icebreaker fleet is very small will be too late to catch up. pen outside, rather than during, the naviga- compared to the Russian fleet, not only in The May 2007 announcement of a tion season. I must admit to a personal inter- numbers but in polar capability. Canada construction program for six corvette-sized est in the “Polar 8” Project, with which I was does not possess a single truly Polar ice- Arctic Patrol vessels for the Canadian Navy deeply involved until its cancellation; and in breaker, although the CCGS Louis S. St Lau- does not begin to address the icebreaker hindsight I have to admit that, had she been rent – now almost 40 years old – did make problem for penetrating the polar ice; even built, she would probably have been larger it to the North Pole in 1994. Most of our this program will not be operational until than necessary, given the way that global other major icebreakers were designed and 2015 and it will only replace – not augment warming has diminished the polar ice so built in the 1980s, and I am not aware of any – the fleet of new, armed icebreakers pro- quickly – but who in 1987 was thinking it Canadian icebreaker replacement plan that mised by the current government in the would all happen so fast? The pendulum could change anything in the next ten years. most recent federal election campaign. In should however not swing so far the other The cancelled Polar 8 Project of 1987–90 July the Prime Minister announced the con- way that Canada builds and deploys vessels would have been a start in gaining some in- struction of only three of these small vessels. unable to cope with even the diminished ice

9 conditions brought on by global warming – The legalities of regulation and port able ships – by charging enormous premi- because as mentioned earlier, first-year ice state control of international shipping are ums for coverage. Insurers have in fact often will be a formidable obstacle for many years complex and become more so where transit led the way for reforms and regulations in to come. without port calls is involved, even when the shipping industry. Failing prompt na- full sovereignty is claimed and recognized, tional and international government action RUSSIA IS as in Russian Arctic waters. They become to address potential problems as polar navi- STEPPING IN more convoluted in Canada’s situation where gation becomes much more attractive, the TO FILL THE VOID our sovereignty over the Northwest Passage marine insurance industry, if only in self IN ICEBREAKING CAPACITY is disputed by our so-called friends, never protection, will establish de facto control. On the North American side of the Arctic mind our enemies. Just imagine the legal They will make insurance coverage impossi- Ocean, both the and Denmark, challenges that will arise for trans-polar bly expensive without sufficient safeguards through Greenland, also have stakes along voyages in the undoubtedly international such as the use of ice-breaking freighters with Canada in the development of com- waters of the Arctic Ocean if the littoral states with competent ice-navigators on board, mercial navigation along their coastlines. of Russia, Canada, the United States, Den- icebreaker escort services, and rescue and Currently neither of the two major North mark and Norway each decide to impose cleanup facilities either on board or avail- American arctic coastal states can be count- their own, possibly conflicting, controls on able, because SOLAS and MARPOL will apply ed upon to provide polar icebreaker support shipping. This situation has no counterpart at the North Pole just as they do at the Equa- or control of Arctic Ocean shipping. The – not even in Antarctica, which has an in- tor and all points in between. By this means Danes have no icebreaking capacity because ternational treaty of its own. It would appear the flood of expected traffic braving the po- hitherto there has been no need for ice- that the only way a comprehensive set of lar ice may be stemmed, and some of the breakers anywhere in Greenland – and not rules can be applied to commercial shipping over-enthusiastic “cowboy” operators dis- much in Denmark – therefore they are un- in the North Polar Basin is to have the Inter- couraged from sending their ships by any of likely to participate in what might eventual- national Maritime Organisation (IMO), an the polar routes until there is international ly become a multinational polar-icebreaker agency of the , negotiate a agreement on regulation. fleet. The United States does have two polar new Polar Navigation Convention similar to CONCLUSIONS icebreakers, the US Coast Guard’s Polar the existing IMO Conventions for Safety Issues of sovereignty and control of territori- Star and Polar Sea. Both entered service in of Life At Sea (SOLAS) and MARPOL, which al waters; the validity of straight baselines the mid 1970s and, already past their expiry governs marine pollution and the discharge when setting national and economic fron- date, cannot be expected to remain in ser- of waste at sea. While this negotiating pro- tiers to various oceanic zones; the manage- vice much longer. The United States is al- cess is slow and seems to take forever, both ment of shipping and ecological matters: ready chartering Russian icebreakers to re- SOLAS and MARPOL are now the internation- these must all be resolved by negotiation or supply McMurdo Base in Antarctica, which al accepted standards routinely enforced by reference to international courts before po- may be the first sign of things to come just about every maritime nation in the lar navigation becomes commonplace. throughout the polar regions as the Russians world. There must be new protocols estab- step in to fill the void in icebreaking capaci- POLAR lished for polar navigation by the IMO ty. There is no American plan to replace NAVIGATION: in conjunction with – or as additions to – their two pioneering polar icebreakers. The THE ROLE OF the present SOLAS and MARPOL regulations USCGC Healy, which entered service in 2000 INSURANCE which will pay particular attention to the is not a purely polar icebreaker and cannot COMPANIES unique circumstances of ice navigation in seriously be considered for continuous work Unsafe shipping practices in the Arctic pose relation to ship loss or damage and conse- in the polar seas. That leaves Canada alone a risk to ships, their crews, and the Arctic quent pollution. The provision of certified to take some action. Canadian governments environment. Perhaps no one is more con- ice-navigators should be a priority. of the recent past and present do not howev- scious of this than the insurance industry. Nations with polar coastlines should er seem in any hurry to respond to this chal- There have been many instances of insur- be working towards the establishment of lenge – one that an optimist might call an ance companies discouraging unsafe prac- either several national fleets, or one interna- opportunity. tices – such as ice navigation with unsuit- tional fleet, of truly polar icebreakers ready

CANADIAN POLAR COMMISSION 10 to assist or rescue commercial vessels which routes in the Arctic Ocean become more and together at great cost and probably not done may find themselves in difficulty or danger more attractive to shippers. The lack of cer- right the first time around. If no action is in polar waters. tified ice-navigators is a recipe for disaster taken, there will be a certain grudging satis- Member States of the IMO should rati- which marine insurers are unlikely to accept faction in being able, some time in the fy the clauses of SOLAS concerning ice navi- without special premiums for polar naviga- future, to say, “I told you so back in 2007!” gation which have been under negotiation – tion that will mean enormous cost for the But I would rather not be placed in that or waiting for ratification – for 20 years or shipping industry. position. more, so that there will be a system in place Polar navigation for commercial ship- to train ice-navigators, and eventually to ping in the Arctic Ocean is coming soon, Patrick R.M. Toomey is a retired Canadi- licence ice-navigators before they are need- whether the states to be affected by it are an Coast Guard icebreaker captain. He ed in large numbers as the commercial ready or not. It would be sensible to start the lives in Kingston, Ontario.

FALL/WINTER 2007 process of getting ready now, not wait until emergency measures have to be cobbled

PEARL – A CANADIAN SUCCESS STORY Jim Drummond on behalf of the CANDAC/PEARL Team

In the 2002 Fall/Winter Edition of Meridian many social and political discussions, re- my colleague Kimberly Strong detailed the newed interest in Canadian sovereignty in closure of the Arctic Stratospheric Ozone the North, and International Polar Year (IPY) Observatory (ASTRO) at Eureka, Nunavut in full swing, the newly-formed Polar Envi- and the loss to Canadian science that would ronment Atmospheric Research Laboratory ensue. This article is a sequel to that one – (PEARL) is in the forefront of Canadian re- Figure 1 and for once the news is fairly good. search efforts. Attending to instruments on the PEARL roof. In the foreground is a Brewer ozone spectrometer,in the centre Dr. Strong recounted in the previous PEARL was conceived as an expansion is an SPS. Roof hatches for radiometers,spectrometers article how, after nearly a decade of service, and lidars run from front right to centre-back. the observatory was going to be closed, not because the science was no longer relevant, but for lack of funding from the government. She also mentioned that a group of ASTRO researchers were getting together to try to save it for future measurements. We formed the Canadian Network for the Detection of Atmospheric Change (CANDAC) as a consor- tium of university and government research- ers with the aim of generating facilities for conducting research in this area and train- ing the researchers required. It proved to be a somewhat prescient move as at that time public interest in our major research areas of ozone, air quality, and was nowhere near as strong as it is today. Now with the environment front and centre in

11 Figure 2 of the ASTRO laboratory activities, which TROPOSPHERIC The PEARL laboratory,at 610m above sea level. The laboratory is on the peak to the left of centre of the had concentrated on ozone and related TRANSPORT AND picture and the access road runs up the ridge to the measurements in the middle atmosphere. AIR QUALITY right. Photo: Jim Drummond. These measurements were incorporated into Many materials are transported into the the new structure because the longevity of Arctic including toxic substances such as the data records is extremely important pesticides and organic pollutants, as well as accumulate to levels dangerous to the when long-term studies are required. But it sea salt and other less hazardous substances. human and animal populations. The re- was also recognized that additional research Some of these pollutants occur in the form of search objective is to quantify the amounts of areas were needed; and so the research at very small particles produced by urban pol- material transported by these mechanisms PEARL is divided into four major themes: lution, industrial processes, fires, etc. and identify the sources from which they Tropospheric Transport and Air Quality; the In addition there is a constant flow of vol- originate. With this and complementary Radiative Environment: Impacts of Clouds, atile organic materials into the Arctic due to information from researchers at other loca- Aerosols, and “Diamond Dust”; Arctic Mid- an evaporation-condensation mechanism tions, we will be able to provide a consistent dle Atmospheric Chemistry; and Waves and called the “grasshopper effect” that cycles picture of the transport, which will help Coupling Processes. In addition to these four the organic compounds from the surface to point the way to an eventual elimination of major themes the site is also used for satel- the atmosphere during warm periods, then these pollutants. lite validation. Finally, we are always on the back to the surface when the temperature The major tool in this study is an aero- lookout for “sudden events” that might cause decreases. While in the atmosphere, they are sol mass spectrometer (AMS) which is capa- us to schedule a special set of observations at spread in all directions by winds and ble of detecting and analyzing these pollu- short notice. migrate north, where they become trapped by the consistently low temperatures and

CANADIAN POLAR COMMISSION 12 tants. Normally only used in a clean warm ing, which has implications for wildlife, tween the constituents and infrared light are laboratory setting, this instrument now has , and sovereignty. The expected to enter a different regime. The to operate unattended in a remote location. Arctic is quickly entering a new climate re- PEARL measurements will document and However the existence of the PEARL facilities gime and this is causing substantial stress on provide important insights into this process. and support structures make this feasible. natural ecosystems which cannot adapt so This is supplemented by star and sun pho- rapidly. ARCTIC MIDDLE tometers which like many PEARL instru- Climate is determined by the complex ATMOSPHERIC CHEMISTRY ments not only make measurements for the interplay between infrared radiation, the What is the chemical composition of the PEARL research objectives but also contribute atmosphere, and the ’s surface. This stratosphere: how and why it is changing data to global observing networks. theme uses an array of instruments to char- with time? How is the chemistry coupled to

FALL/WINTER 2007 dynamics, microphysics, and radiation? And how are climate change and future arctic ozone depletion linked? This theme aims to improve our understanding of the processes controlling the arctic stratospheric ozone budget and its future evolution, using mea- surements of stratospheric constituents and other observations made at PEARL. It builds extensively on the previous history of the ASTRO laboratory at this site. PEARL measurements will provide a significant new long-term dataset of arctic chemical composition measurements, which will yield better understanding of day-night, day-to-day, seasonal, and year-to-year vari- ability. Using these measurements we can Figure 3 study chemical ozone loss at Eureka during Laying the power cable for the new SAFIRE site which is acterize the arctic atmosphere’s composition each winter and spring, and determine 2km from the nearest supply. The ’dozer drags the sled and structure at the PEARL location. A lidar trends in ozone and related constituents. We with the reel (weighing 6,500 kg) across the frozen (laser radar) system will measure profiles of can also increase our understanding of pro- ground paying out the orange power cable behind. atmospheric temperatures, aerosols, clouds, cesses that cause feedbacks between strat- Photo: Jim Drummond. and water vapour; and an atmospheric ospheric ozone depletion, rising greenhouse emitted radiance interferometer (AERI) will gas concentrations, and climate change in the High Arctic. This will improve our ability THE RADIATIVE be used to understand their impact on the ENVIRONMENT: infrared light that reaches the surface. Sun to predict the future of arctic stratospheric IMPACTS OF and star photometers will determine the ver- ozone. CLOUDS, tically integrated loading and size properties Measurements are made by an ozone AEROSOLS, AND of aerosols above Eureka. These integrated lidar, a Fourier transform infrared spectrom- “DIAMOND DUST” parameters are critical to assessing the cli- eter, a UV-visible grating spectrometer, a Many reports show that the Arctic’s climate matic impact of aerosols transported into the Brewer spectrophotometer, and an atmos- has changed significantly in the past dec- Arctic from lower latitudes. pheric emitted radiance interferometer ades. Over 30 years the temperatures have The data from these instruments will (AERI). Other instruments at the site also risen by up to 4°C, which is comparable to provide new insights into the physical pro- provide useful data. This information, when the amount of warming after an . cesses that determine the arctic climate. As combined with atmospheric models, will Summertime arctic sea ice coverage has the arctic atmosphere becomes warmer and bring improvements to atmospheric model- steadily declined in response to the warm- increasingly humid, the interactions be- ling and interpretation of measurements,

13 leading to better understanding of arctic with other observatories, and by using satel- sion) site for experiments which need to be chemistry and climate system processes. lite data and models. far from any structures or other human influ- Instruments to be used for these stud- ences. These sites are all linked by micro- WAVES AND ies include an E-region wind instrument; a wave communication to the main laboratory, COUPLING spectral airglow temperature imager; a hence to the outside world. Some measure- PROCESSES meteor radar (which operates by scattering ments are taken at several sites to exploit dif- Atmospheric circulation occurs in a distinct radio waves off meteor trails to learn about ferences in altitude. pattern over the polar regions. Over most of upper atmosphere temperature and density) Many of the instruments at PEARL are the year, the atmosphere ascends over the and an all-sky imager. specially built or adapted for use in the Arc- summer pole (the pole currently experienc- tic. The AMS, for example, needs an inlet ing the summer season). From about 40km INSTRUMENTS system capable of operating at –50°C; the to about 85km it rises, then crosses the globe SPECIALLY BUILT AERI has to work at longer wavelengths than to the winter pole and descends again. At OR ADAPTED FOR normal to provide coverage of a long wave- the same time in the stratosphere (the mid- ARCTIC USE length region of transparency – a “dirty win- dle levels of the atmosphere) a strong circu- Groups working at PEARL have access to dow” – in the atmospheric absorption spec- lation forms each winter around the pole – other research groups’ data, a major advan- trum, present only at polar latitudes with the – and significantly influ- tage of working at such an active site. A low levels of water vapour. All instruments ences the chemistry of this region. While we group studying the surface radiation bal- are automated as much as possible to econo- understand these large-scale events reason- ance, for instance, has access to radar and mize on operator time. Keeping instruments ably well, the coupling between them and lidar data on cloud and aerosol conditions operating is one of the many challenges we other regions of the atmosphere is a topic of and to atmospheric chemical composition face doing this kind of research in the Arctic. vigorous scientific research. through the spectrometer measurements of Because of PEARL’s High Arctic loca- Much of the atmospheric structure other groups. Research is also spread over tion and the very high number of satellite that we see results from waves. Waves also three sites: the original laboratory at 610m overpasses occurring the laboratory is an couple different parts of the atmosphere. above sea level; a sea-level site, dubbed ØPAL excellent place to perform satellite valida- Identifying their sources, where they travel, (the zero-altitude PEARL Auxiliary Labora- tion. Very little satellite validation is done in and their impact when they dissipate is im- tory); and the SAFIRE (Surface and Atmos- the Arctic, although accurate satellite infor- portant to understanding the atmosphere’s pheric Flux, Irradiance, Radiation Exten- mation is crucial there, as it is in other inac- basic form. At the PEARL observatory, a va- Figure 4 cessible regions. Validation requires com- riety of instruments will be used to study the Normally access to Eureka is by chartered plane only,but parison of satellite measurements from nature of the wave field in the arctic atmos- on July 12,2006,a 737 with 45 people and 8,000 kg of overhead with other measurements on the phere and how it varies. Details of the cou- equipment flew from Edmonton to Eureka for the ground when measurement conditions are pling will develop through combining data opening ceremonies of the PEARL laboratory. Onboard favourable for both measuring instruments. from several instruments, collaborations were scientists and representatives from most of our supporting organizations. Photo: Jim Drummond. Many Earth observation satellites pass al- most directly over the pole once every orbit, making a large number of potential com- parisons possible. PEARL is in fact located in a planetary “sweet spot” for this type of meas- urement. Currently we have measurements at PEARL contributing to validation of the Canadian SciSat satellite and the NASA Aura, Cloudsat and PICASSO missions. PEARL has benefited from a number of international collaborations. The US Study of Environmental Arctic Change (SEARCH) has placed several instruments at PEARL which expands the range of instrumentation

CANADIAN POLAR COMMISSION 14 pheric Science at Dalhousie University and the University of Toronto.

Acknowledgements PEARL has been supported by a large num- ber of agencies whose support is gratefully acknowledged: Canada Foundation for In- novation; the Ontario Innovation Trust; the (Ontario) Ministry of Research and Innova- tion; the Nova Research and Innova- tion Trust; the Natural Sciences and Engi-

FALL/WINTER 2007 neering Research Council; the Canadian Foundation for Climate and Atmospheric Figure 5 Science; Environment Canada; the Polar The PEARL laboratory from the road. The roof deck perfect. PEARL, like many similar installa- Continental Shelf Project; and the Canadian provides access to many of the instruments and the tions in Canada, has no permanent funding. Space Agency. communications dish – which is actually mounted It depends for its survival on a succession of upside-down,hence the feed horn in the air – is used for short-term grants and contracts – hardly a internet and phone communications. There are also The CANDAC/PEARL team: three smaller microwave dishes that provide links to the satisfactory situation for a laboratory whose Principal Investigator: James R. Drum- other sites (ØPAL and SAFIRE) and the weather station. mission extends well into the future. Gov- mond, University of Toronto and Dalhousie Photo: Jim Drummond. ernment plans for controlling greenhouse University. Theme Leaders: Jim Sloan, gases refer to dates as far ahead as 2050 or Waterloo; Tom Duck, Dalhousie; Kimberly available. The International Arctic Systems even 2100. PEARL will be needed throughout Strong, Toronto; William Ward, New Bruns- for Observing the Atmosphere (IASOA) IPY that time if we are to monitor the success or wick. Co-Investigators: Stephen Argyll, project provides links to other Arctic obser- failure of our efforts to control the anthro- Western Ontario; Hans Fast, Environment CANDAC vatories and the Network for the Detection pogenic climate drivers. The team is Canada (EC); David Hudak, EC; Alan Man- of Atmospheric Composition Change (NDACC) grateful to the ten organizations that have son, Saskatchewan; Tom McElroy, EC; Nor- provides linkages to other sites performing supported the foundation of PEARL, but we man O’Neill, Sherbrooke; Marianna Shep- similar research around the world. still look for a more secure source of funds so herd, York; Gordon Shepherd, York; Robert Eureka is clearly much better off than that we can plan for the next decade or two Sica, Western Ontario; Kevin Strawbridge, it was a few years ago, and is in fact well on – when things will really start to heat up. EC; Kaley Walker, Toronto; Bruce McArthur, the way to becoming one of the best re- EC; Jim Whiteway, York. search sites in the world. State-of-the-art Jim Drummond holds a Canada Research Details on CANDAC and the PEARL equipment is being installed and scientific Chair in Remote Sounding of Atmospheres laboratory can be found at: www.candac. ca. results are already emerging. But all is not He is a professor of Physics and Atmos-

THE CENTRE D’ETUDES NORDIQUES AND THE QAUJISARVIK NETWORK Yves Bégin Qaujisarvik is a network of Northeast Cana- ment) and several partner organizations in stations along a nearly 3,500km south-north dian research stations maintained by the northern Quebec and elsewhere in Canada. transect through all the Northeast Canadian Centre d’études nordiques (Laval University, The Centre d’études nordiques (CEN – ecozones. Most of the Qaujisarvik (which University of Québec at Rimouski [UQAR] and centre for northern studies) and its northern means research station in Inuktitut) facilities the National Institute for Scientific Research partners received funds to form a network of are owned by universities (Laval and UQAR), [INRS] Centre for Water, Earth, and Environ- eight eastern arctic and subarctic research 15 while some belong to or . (73°08'N, 80°00' requires specially adapted facilities. Respon- All are dedicated to university research. W). The laboratory is in a permanent sible management of northern areas re- 1 The Radisson Ecological Research Station tent-shelter (Weatherhaven type). CEN quires understanding of the role of abiotic (53°47' N, 77°37' W) is owned by the researchers and their colleagues have and biotic factors in northern ecosystems, municipality, which provides it without been using the site for two decades; their and works to the benefit of the resources charge by emphyteutic lease to the CEN. research contributed to the creation of they contain. This kind of research is impor- The station’s laboratory includes facili- the park. tant both for northern residents and for ties for dendrochronology, environmen- 8 Ward Hunt Island station, property of Canada’s status as a leading circumpolar tal telemetry, sedimentology, and organ- Quttinirpaaq National Park on Ellesmere centre of northern research. ic compound tracing. Island (83°01' N, 75°00' W) is the most Our funding, obtained from the Can- 2 The CEN research station at Whapma- northerly research station in Canada. It ada Foundation for Innovation and the Que- goostui-Kuujjuarapik (55°17'N, 77°46'W) has three Parcoll type buildings. bec Ministry of Education, Recreation and is the network’s showpiece. Its five build- CEN research concentrates on four Sports, totals $3,037,000 and will enable ings include an experimental greenhouse, themes. improvements to the northern facilities, laboratories, a cafeteria, and workshops. 1) The origin and resilience of natural including building renovations and new lab- 3 The station at the future Lac à l’Eau- ecosystems and biodiversity: We study oratory equipment. This network constitutes Claire Park (56°00' N, 75°00' W) in- the development of terrestrial the terrestrial component of research infra- cludes five buildings, is useable from May over time that leads to the formation and structure made available to ArcticNet re- to October, and has an airstrip nearby. resilience of the ecosystems supporting searchers by CEN, half of whose researchers The Kativik Regional Government owns biodiversity. are ArcticNet members. the station; CEN is the main user. 2) The impact of animal populations on 4 The Umiujaq cold weather technology northern ecosystems: Northeastern Cana- Yves Bégin is former director of the Centre laboratory (56°32' N, 76°31' W), owned da is host to large migratory animal pop- for Northern Studies, Laval University. He by the Umiujaq landholding corporation ulations to which migratory species con- is currently director of the Centre eau, terre and maintained by , ventions apply. CEN researchers devote et environnement (centre for water, land has two freezer rooms that allow work on significant effort to these populations and environment) at the Institut national frozen materials, as well as preparation which have a major impact on northern de recherche scientifique (national insti- workshops, clean rooms, and a storage environments because of their increasing tute of scientific research), University of shed. The facility is suitable for work on numbers. Quebec. cores, paleosols, archaeologi- 3) Permafrost: Permafrost melt and result- cal artifacts, and microbiological samples. ing ecosystem destabilization, resulting Principal Northern Partners 5 The Boniface River station (57°44' N, from climatic warming, constitute a For the research stations, from south to 76°10'W), which belongs to CEN, is in a major problem. Using new technologies north: Locality of Radisson, Hydro-Québec, “sanctuary” of old at their range we are analyzing permafrost degrada- Cree Regional Council, Cree First Nation of limit. It is a laboratory for the study of tion processes and their consequences on Whapmagoostui, Northern Village of Umiu- climate change impacts on natural eco- inhabited and natural zones. jaq, Kativik Regional Government, Makivik systems. The site has an airstrip. 4) Water resources: Records from instru- Corporation, Sirmilik National Park, Qut- 6 In (58°06' N, 68°24' W), the mental measurements that enable us to tinirpaaq National Park. Research Centre, which is own- evaluate water resource cover only a few Research institutions: Laval Unversity, ed by Makivik Corporation, is open to decades. Indirect methods (dendrochro- University of Québec at Rimouski, National researchers in all fields who work with nology, varves, paleolimnology) enable Institute for Scientific Research [INRS]-Centre northern communities. The station is us to extend these chronologies further for Water, Earth, and Environment. modern and well equipped for laborato- into the past. Using paleolimnology we Other partners: Ouranos, ArcticNet, ry work. are studying water quality over time in Geological Survey of Canada. 7 station, owned by CEN, is in order to document ecological changes. Number of principal researchers: 60. Because much of is Number of users: 160. difficult to reach, sustained research there

CANADIAN POLAR COMMISSION 16 SOCIAL HOUSING NORTH Avi Friedman

I was foreign to the when I accept- BUILDING superstructure sits, welded to their heads. ed an invitation to visit , Nunavut’s IN THE NORTH When a heated building sits directly on the capital, where I was about to design social Designing for extreme temperatures and a ground, a zone of thawed soil in the peren- housing. My design and building knowledge very short construction period poses awe- nially frozen soil develops. It can affect the above the 60th parallel and familiarity with some challenges. Perhaps the biggest of stability of the permafrost and, as a result, the Inuit dwelling culture were rudimentary. them all is logistical. Every building compo- damage lower floors. This is now reported The barren landscape of and nent needs to be ferried from the south by often, a result of climate change. boat during the warmer season. Failing to FALL/WINTER 2007 the challenges faced by local architects were Climatic considerations affecting an eye-opener, which could offer a lesson deliver a large item on time may mean that designs have extreme importance in the for the rest of us southerners. the building process may come to a halt or north. Energy costs for instance, much high- Northern Canada is in transition. The that the piece will have to be flown in – a er due to the cost of transporting oil, must be marks of new mineral discoveries, cultural costly prospect. It gives real meaning to the kept down, and inhabitant comfort made a transformation and climate change are vis- term “miss the boat”. Lack of a deep water priority. Harold Strub’s excellent book, Bare ible and introduce new paradigms affect- harbour in Iqaluit also requires the transfer of Poles (Carleton University Press, 1999) sys- ing design. A good place to start, however, is goods from boats to barges to land and truck- tematically lists many of the aspects a de- with the fundamentals. ing them to sites. It also means that most signer needs to consider. Canada’s modern presence in the building needs to be conceived as a well- Blowing in frigid arctic weather north is linked to trade, the military, and designed kit of parts for rapid assembly. is one such phenomenon. There is simply sovereignty over land which some suggest Linking buildings to municipal utilities not much that can block wind and snow- contains our future riches. Until the end of and constructing infrastructure pose other drift formation above the tree line but the the 19th century, the Canadian Arctic, the formidable challenges. As the terrain freezes structures themselves. Urbanistically, build- home of many Inuit groups, was visited oc- to a depth of two to three metres, the use of ings need to be sited to shelter each other. casionally by explorers and for a time fre- conventional pipes is forbidden. Instead, The long axis of each building needs to be quented by whalers. In 1914, the Hudson’s freshwater runs in insulated conduits whose aligned with the wind and raised above Bay Company began to set up trading posts contents need to be kept in constant motion grade to form an open crawlspace. A blocked throughout the arctic. Growth came to Iqa- to avoid freezing. The community, therefore, underbelly will cause snow accumulation on luit, formerly Frobisher Bay, in World War has circulation pumping stations through- the building’s other side. The structure’s sil- II. when the Americans built an air base in out. Up until recently, most homes in Iqaluit houette also needs to be streamlined and the the area. During the 1950s era, the were not connected to central freshwater roof’s height shallow. Entrances with wind base was turned over to the Canadian gov- supplies and sewer disposal. Instead, each locks cannot face the wind and deflectors to ernment and became part of the DEW (Dis- home was frequented daily by trucks which reduce zones of stagnating air are necessary. tant Early Warning) Line. The place drew supplied them with fresh water and collected The importance of sunlight in north- southerners, who needed basic amenities. grey water. Thirty percent are still served in ern cannot be overstated. At higher Additional expansion took place in the 1970s this way. latitudes, the angle of incoming sunlight with the building of a hospital, school, Despite a vast land mass, finding ter- remains so low that it reaches its greatest homes, apartment buildings, hotels and to build on is not easy in the north, since intensity by projecting on vertical surfaces other traits of a modern town. In 1999, with much of the ground under the topsoil is per- such as walls, rather than the horizontal the division of the , manently frozen. Conventional southern surfaces like flat roofs, roads, and parking Iqaluit became the capital of Nunavut, popu- foundation practices, deep or shallow, can- lots, as occurs at lower latitudes. It is very lation 30,000, a region that occupies one- not be applied here, and the rocky terrain wise to ensure that sunlight is captured and fifth of Canada’s land mass and assumes its does not make things easier once appropriate focused by vertical surfaces to create ther- own governance, structure, and cultural land is found. Steel piles need to be driven mally appropriate microclimates. It is also identity. into the ground, and beams, upon which the

17 important to consider that during the sum- gently sloping terrain, a stream that borders tial part of a household’s economy and diet. mer, the sun reaches most of the horizon’s its eastern side and a mountainous view at Fishing gear, hunting equipment, skidoos circumference once a day. Therefore, sun- the rear. and a (sledge) are part of a fami- light will reach almost all exposed sides of Several cultural and lifestyle attrib- ly’s possessions which need to be safely the building at some point during the day. utes invoked ideas when I began contem- stored. Once the hunt is over, carcasses are During the winter, however – when the plating an approach to site planning. First, processed indoors and the meat stored for sunlight is needed most – it is often only the notion of demarking property does not consumption over the long winter. available for a couple of hours and only exist in the north. One will be hard pressed One is also struck by the inherent ar- from the south (Strub, 1999). to find a fence surrounding a yard. Residents tistic talent of the Inuit. Behind many homes freely walk or even drive through each you can hear the sound of power tools and DESIGNING other’s places. Clusters of homes have a see locals sculpting soapstone into magnifi- SOCIAL HOUSING strikingly different appearance to what we cent works of art. Some large pieces are also The building site for the social housing pro- are used to in the south. Also, tents are still displayed in various spots throughout the ject was located at the heart of an interest- used as summer dwellings. Due to over- community. In the north, artwork supports ing and diverse part of Iqaluit. Close to the crowding and a need for cool places, the many households’ economies and its pro- waterfront and across from a visitors’ cen- Inuit erect them adjacent to their homes or duction must be accommodated in the dwell- tre, library, museum and a school, it has a on the nearby . ing’s design. Fishing and hunting form an essen- North and south elevations

CANADIAN POLAR COMMISSION 18 FALL/WINTER 2007

Drawing of one of the social housing rows Lack of trees lends northern commu- ones, which acknowledged wind direction nities a barren image. Yet, the beauty of the and solar exposure. Crossing foot and skidoo tundra, with its rock formations, flora and paths were laid on existing ones, and soap- allowed for plenty of other storage facilities fauna, is captivating and can be made part stone sculpting areas equipped with electric needed by young families. of the landscaping and streetscaping. It is outlets and tool sheds were designated at the Canada’s north is changing rapidly. surprising to find the large number of spe- rear. Where the paths cross, a square and With an increased need for culturally appro- cies that survive the harsh weather and car- seating arrangement made of rocks were priate housing, a vast new territory and op- pet the wild landscape. planned. Sites were also allocated for chil- portunities have been opened for architects The need for housing, social housing dren’s play areas, an arctic garden and to explore sensibly. in particular, in the North is staggering. Iqa- large-scale sculptures by local artists. luit, for example, saw a 20% population Having individual entrances to homes Avi Friedman teaches architecture at increase in five years, according to Canada rather than common ones was meant to fos- McGill University, where he also directs Mortgage and Housing Corporation statis- ter personalization. Colours present in local the Affordable Homes Program. tics. With a large youth segment of the pop- art were chosen for the wood siding exterior ulation and excessively high costs of dwell- facades. The roof’s parapet, it is hoped, will Credits ings, locals have very few shelter options also have a feature that draws its roots from Architect, Avi Friedman outside social housing. The problem is com- local culture. Photos, Avi Friedman pounded by high levels of unemployment, A flexible approach was taken to the Client, Nunavut Housing Authority and City overcrowding, and substance abuse. Foster- design of the interiors of two families’ two- of Iqaluit, Michelle Bertol, Lands and Plan- ing a strong personal identity, respecting storey dwellings. Sun exposure required that ning Director local dwelling culture, and creating a place north- and south-facing layout prototypes Architect team, Avi Friedman, Jeff Jerome, that embeds itself in the physical landscape be designed. Within the very same foot- Fa Xivong Wu were therefore key planning and design prints, one- or two-bedroom plans were Environmental engineers, Rowan Williams objectives. offered. At the rear, a storage space for hunt- Davis & Irwin, Inc. The orientations of the proposed build- ing and fishing gear with access from the ings were woven into the pattern of the old interior was planned. Also, we included in the design a multi-purpose room in which carcasses could be prepared and which

19 ORAL HISTORY IN NUNAVUT: AN OVERVIEW OF ITS PAST AND PRESENT VITALITY François Trudel In October 2006 the 15th International Inuit such as deepening the informants’ aware- internet), and access to self-government. Studies Conference: “Orality in the 21st Cen- ness of the importance of their history (em- These rapid changes drew the previously tury – Inuit Discourse and Practices” took powerment) or as an aid to understanding scattered and isolated Inuit into the wider place in . A great success, it has inspired how a given society constructs or represents current of Canadian and global society. As a a diversity of papers that will soon offer new its past (social memory). result Inuit became increasingly proficient insights into this vast and important subject. Numerous links and overlaps connect at writing and interested in both recording In the meantime it would be useful to look at oral tradition and oral history. Oral tradition their ancient traditions and knowing more one important aspect of the conference often supports and enriches oral history; about their recent history. A variety of oral theme: the vitality of oral history practice oral history can serve as a catalyst for oral history publications resulted, of which the among Nunavut Inuit, both over the recent tradition. Both are essential components of following represent only a selection. past and today. Canadian aboriginal cultures today. They The Oblate mission magazines Eski- provide perspective on past ways of life as well as on the present and even the future. They are collected, studied, categorized, and preserved by organizations such as schools and other institutions, elders’ societies, gov- ernment ministries, etc. and by many re- searchers including folklorists, anthropolo- gists, archaeologists, historians, linguists – and most importantly indigenous peoples. Some interpret this interest, which is partic- ularly strong in northern Canada, as a re- flection of indigenous societies’ desire to document their own perspectives on their past, mainly through elders’ oral testimony, in light of the many disruptions to their an- cestral way of life, some recent and others dating from years back. mo (1946) and Inummariit (1972), the Nunavut Inuit have seen their oral Department of Indian Affairs and Northern tradition studied since the end of the 19th Development magazine Inuktitut (1959), To begin we should look at the differ- century by well known ethnologists such as and the Inuit Tapirisat of Canada’s Inuit ence between oral tradition and oral history. Franz Boas and , and many Today (1971), were among the first publica- Oral tradition is an old and widely used term others. Some contributed to the substantial tions to circulate a growing number of arti- that refers to oral messages (narratives, tales, information on Inuit traditional life featured cles on Inuit oral traditions and to give Inuit proverbs, legends, myths, etc.) passed down in Volume 5, Arctic, of the Handbook of themselves a chance to publish their stories, through the generations. These can reveal North American Indians, edited by David sometimes in bilingual and even trilingual elements of the past, especially of societies Damas (1984). Oral history found fertile form. Combined with local radio and news- that do not use writing. Oral history, on the ground in the major changes to Inuit society papers, and such other publications as auto- other hand, is a term that has been used for over the past half-century: evangelization biographies of Inuit, they contributed to only a half a century. It refers to the collec- by missionaries, the move to permanent set- raising interest in oral history and its rich- tion of accounts and reminiscences by inter- tlements, schooling, the introduction of new ness and complexity among Inuit and the viewing informants about events and situa- forms of communication (radio, television, Canadian public . tions from their lives. It has several aims,

CANADIAN POLAR COMMISSION 20 Also important is the Inuit Land Use sored research on a variety of subjects in- receive by mail from Pitseolak a history of and Occupancy Project, initiated by the Inuit volving aboriginal oral tradition and oral his people which he had written in Inuktitut Tapirisat of Canada to support Inuit land history, both from the recent past and the syllabics. She used this manuscript, translat- claims in the Northwest Territories. The present. Anthropologist Nancy Wachowich ed into English, as a starting point for report, produced under the direction of Mil- researched the perspectives of three Pond recording Pisteolak’s knowledge of “old Inuit ton Freeman, was published in 1976. The Inlet women of different generations in an ways” before they were forgotten. Assisted by investigation needed to deal with the terres- effort to record Inuit oral tradition but also to interpreters she taped over 150 hours of trial and marine environments, with the show how it differs from that of the many interviews with him, and had them translat- present and the past, and to produce a clear other research efforts carried out in the ed into English in Cape Dorset. Substantial statement, by the Inuit themselves, of their region by specialists. The resulting book, extracts, translated more fully, were pub- relationship to the land. It also had to prove Saqiyuq (2000), describes in detail the lished in People From Our Side along with

FALL/WINTER 2007 unequivocally that Inuit had used this area methodology used to transform the women’s as complete a version as possible of Pitseo- “from time immemorial” and that they were spoken words into writing. The author lak’s life-story manuscript. This book, pub- still doing so. brings to the fore such characteristics of Inuit lished two years after Pitseolak’s death, is Many Inuit from all NWT communi- oral tradition as its poetic quality, oscillation one of the rare works on Canadian Inuit that ties, including what is now Nunavut, partic- between past and present, el- ipated in in-depth interviews with research- lipses of memory, and complexi- ers on a wide range of topics: archaeology, ty of narration, as well as the history, ethnography, toponomy, geneology, difficulties of retaining originali- cartography, hunting and trapping, fishing, ty. The book presents not so and life stories. An extensive indigenous much three life histories, as was memory project on ancient and recent histo- originally intended, but rather ry, it drew on the knowledge of active adults 117 short narratives in roughly and elders in each community and produced chronological order, with a sec- major oral archives and detailed reports on tion for each narrator including the occupation and use of the land. In addi- a short biography and a the- tion to providing a basis for settling the land matic description. The book has claims it helped familiarize Inuit and re- no conclusion. searchers with many aspects of oral history Most oral history re- research, and also stimulated interest in search in Nunavut takes place doing further research. in a quite different context from Another major investigation that drew that of public enquiries. The on oral history was the Royal Commission work of Dorothy Eber, a former on Aboriginal Peoples (1992–96), which journalist interested in Inuit produced, for the first time, a detailed image research, was supported by a of historical and contemporary relations 1970s Canadian Museum of combines an autobiographical manuscript between aboriginal and non-aboriginal peo- Civilization (its current name) program to with an oral biography and distinguishes ples in Canada. The Royal Commission held record oral histories of Canadian ethnic clearly between the two genres. This opens public hearings in about one hundred com- groups often ignored by official and acade- windows on several aspects of history and munities across the country, and gathered mic histories. The program spawned many individual and collective Inuit memories, many statements from Inuit on diverse as- publications featuring the knowledge and including the richness and complexity of oral pects of their interactions with southerners, perspectives of these groups. One, published tradition and history compared with written including relocation by the Canadian gov- in 1975, with a new version in 1993, was a material. ernment of several Inuit groups in the Cana- collaborative work between Peter Pitseolak Another book by Eber (When the dian Arctic, as well as the treatment of young and Dorothy Eber. Eber met Pitseolak while Whalers Were Up North, 1989) focusses on Inuit in church-run residential schools. doing biographical research on Cape Dorset Inuit recollections of the whaling era in the The Royal Commission also spon- artists. Later she was pleasantly surprised to 21 Eastern Arctic. While holding an identifi- whalers. This book of oral history lets the lish) in four series of works entitled Inter- cation session of photos from the 1940s to Inuit voices speak for themselves, devoting viewing Inuit Elders, Inuit Perspectives on 1960s in Cape Dorset in 1981, Eber showed considerable space to Inuit reminiscences the 20th Century, Memory and History in her informants a photo from 1881, thinking and placing them in context using historical Nunavut and Life Stories of Northern no one would know the Inuk it portrayed. information. The author has chosen to pre- Leaders. Distributed by the college, these To her complete surprise they easily recog- sent this information as a resource only, are also available for consultation on the nized him as Johnnibo, who had been taken without analysis or comment. college web site. All books in the series draw to Connecticut by whalers as a court wit- Other oral history projects are being on the memories of Inuit elders on a host of ness. Through archival research in New undertaken by elders’ societies in Nunavut, themes and subjects related to traditional life England, Eber discovered the extent of Amer- assisted by northern residents and special- and change: traditional justice, child-rear- ican whaling activity in and ists, and with support from governments ing practices, cosmology and shamanism, and the degree to which Inuit and other organizations. As one of these, the dreams and their interpretation, the military participated. She doubted, though, that Oral History Project – from one of presence in Iqaluit, etc. there would be many Inuit recollections left the communities most intent on preserving The purpose of this ongoing project, of the time. Subsequent research in several and using and knowledge in which was outlined in the introduction to contemporary Nunavut – was the the series Interviewing Inuit Elders (1999– subject of a previous article in 2001), concerns the need to preserve oral Meridian (Fall/Winter 2001), we tradition and in the will look briefly at another, the context of the creation of Nunavut in 1999, Iqaluit Oral History Project, some- in order to incorporate them into Nunavut times called the Oral Traditions government structures, and also for reasons Project. This is a collaborative of “identity and morality”. Another funda- project of Nunavut Arctic College mental reason is the importance for Inuit to and the Iqaluit Elders’ society. publish knowledge in their own language This project, supervised by from the perspective of their own culture Susan Sammons, a northern resi- and values to act as a counterweight to stud- dent and coordinator for the ies by non-Inuit, mostly in English, that fre- Nunavut Arctic College Inuit Stud- quently contain inaccuracies. The Iqaluit ies and Interpreter/Translator pro- Oral History Project objectives include pro- grams, was first a cooperative viding academic and practical training to effort between the college and Nunavut Arctic College students, awakening European academic institutions to their interest in both Inuit and western per- “stimulate research on oral tradi- spectives on oral traditions, collecting and tions” and develop books and recording oral traditions from elders invited manuals useful to the students of into the classroom, developing structured arctic communities enabled her to learn the College. It began in 1996 as a Nunavut group research with chosen themes, pro- of the many stories, family traditions, and Arctic College course on oral traditions that ducing the interview transcripts themselves, rumours regarding the American and Scot- invited elders to be interviewed in Inuktitut either in syllabics or roman orthography, tish whalers going back to the whaling era by students who were helped by academics and undertaking analysis and writing re- (1850–1910). described as “facilitators”. The formula ports on their research. Some elders had only superficial proved so interesting and productive for all The more general methodology of knowledge of the subject, while others could involved that it was decided to continue and this project consists of inviting academics discuss it in substantial detail. Little by little, develop it into a more structured oral history into class to familiarize the students with the using interviews and archival photographs, project involving close collaboration from basics of their research and with the funda- Eber succeeded in stimulating sufficient Canadian and international universities. So mentals of oral history research (developing Inuit recollections to paint a broad picture of far it has given rise to a large number of questions, interview techniques). Once the the history of contacts between Inuit and bilingual publications (Inuktitut and Eng- relatively short training period is completed,

CANADIAN POLAR COMMISSION 22 elders are invited into class to be interviewed fessional researchers were invited to under- trate a few aspects of oral history practice in by students directed by facilitators, who also take the research and to organize and pro- Nunavut, which is just one of the many discuss the nature and progress of the re- duce the book, which is original in many aspects of historical and ethnohistorical search with students. ways. research taking place in that vast territory. Part of the course includes transcrib- The book is essentially a compilation Oral history in Nunavut draws on a ing and translating interviews under the of a great many Inuit oral accounts from vast reservoir of oral traditions developed supervision of the college instructors. Stu- Nunavut’s three regions on the many ele- and maintained over the centuries by an- dents also write brief analytical essays on ments of their traditional way of life. Most of cient Inuit and their descendants. Influenced the interviews. these accounts had been collected, some by the disruptions to the Inuit way of life Since its beginning this project has many years earlier and others more recent- over the past half-century, oral history took been stimulating thought on the nature of ly, by a wide variety of Inuit and non-Inuit root in the 1970s, grew steadily during the

FALL/WINTER 2007 Inuit knowledge and how it is produced and researchers: Inuit interested in local history, 1980s, and has blossomed since the begin- transmitted. It has shown that orality re- ethnographers, employees of Inuit organiza- ning of the 1990s. It is an integral part of mains the principal means of knowledge tions, land claims researchers, missionaries, research in Nunavut and seems destined to transmission and expression among Inuit, and government employees. Some were col- continue, at least into the foreseeable future. despite their adoption many years ago of the lected by the project researchers. syllabic writing system and the focus on This book presents authentic Inuit writing in the educational system; and there culture. In the title the word uqalurait refers are other stimulating ideas here that merit to snowdrifts Inuit use as direction finders lengthy discussion. The project suggests that when travelling. In the foreword, Inuit refer Inuit knowledge is so personal and linked to to its contents as Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit, the elders that it cannot constitute a homog- that is, ancestral knowledge that has been enous body of knowledge, contrary to the crucial to Inuit survival. Organized to reflect views of many specialists. This knowledge the objectives listed above, the book uses the appears so personal and linked to its social structure of a qamutiik (sledge) as a met- context and its individual sources that it aphor. Just as a qamutiik has two main loses all meaning and significance when parts, the runners, Uqalurait has two main This oral history – of which very few of its separated from its context and the people sections: Inuit Identity, which describes 23 supporters attempt a rigorous definition – is who carry it. elements common to traditional Inuit cul- practiced by Inuit and non-Inuit, sometimes Another large-scale oral history pro- ture in Nunavut (from naming children to in cooperation, in a variety of contexts and ject culminated a few years ago in the book preparing skins and making clothing); and for a multiplicity of reasons. Uqalurait: An Oral History of Nunavut Regional Identity, which uses seasonal For Nunavut Inuit the main motivators (2004). Initiated in 1993 by David Webster, a rounds specific to four groups (Ahiarmiut, are those of identity. This means recording long-time arctic resident, this project, sup- Arviligjuarmiut, , Inuinnait) to the oral traditions of their elders, especially ported by Parks Canada, had several objec- show cultural variations. Like the cords that those who knew the traditional way of life tives: a) to produce a history of Nunavut for hold the qamutiik’s crossbars to its runners which has now nearly disappeared, and the inhabitants of Nunavut, written from but allow it to bend, the themes of flexibility, writing it down, thus preserving and making their perspective; b) to make this history sacrifice, social control, sharing, and respect it available to present and future generations, and its perspective known outside Nunavut; – the values that have held together and whether in school or other contexts (such as c) to provide an account of the fundamen- maintained Inuit society for millennia – run the Nunavut government). This also increas- tals of Inuit culture before sustained contact through the book. ingly means promoting through oral history with Europeans; d) to offer a view of the A complete overview of the vitality of their own perspectives on history, which they close relationship between Inuit and their oral history in Nunavut over the recent past view as having been neglected, and even land; and e) to bear witness to the complexi- and today would require discussing many misrepresented, for too long by non-Inuit. ty of the Inuit way of life. To reach these - more of the great variety of related publica- This is a form of empowerment. jectives a steering committee of Inuit from tions and projects than it is possible to men- Many non-Inuit recognize and share across Nunavut was formed, and two pro- tion here. This article, however, does illus- these aims of Inuit oral history practice, but 23 also see other uses. For some, oral history is François Trudel is Adjunct Professor of Nunavut Arctic College, 1999–2001, Inter- a source of complementary research data Anthropology at Laval University, and viewing Inuit Elders Series, 5 Volumes, (in archaeology, history, and social and cul- Vice Chairperson of the Canadian Polar Iqaluit, Nunavut Arctic College. tural anthropology, for example), some- Commission. Pitseolak, P. and D.H. Eber, 1993 [1975]. Peo- times providing information crucial to a ple from Our Side. A Life Story with complete study. For others, oral history References Cited Photographs and Oral Biography. practice among Nunavut Inuit is a way to Bennett, J. and S. Rowley (eds.), 2004. Montréal and Kingston, McGill-Queen’s better understanding of social memory, or a Uqalurait. An Oral History of Nuna- University Press. way to construct the history of the Inuit in- vut. Montréal and Kingston, McGill- Wachowich, N., 2000. Saqijuq – Stories volved, if not of all Inuit. Queen’s University Press. from the Lives of Three Women. Mont- Thanks to a number of oral history Damas, D. (ed.), 1984. Arctic, Vol. 5 of W.C. réal and Kingston, McGill-Queen’s Uni- research projects carried out over several Sturtevant (gen. ed.): Handbook of versity Press. decades in Nunavut, much more is now North American Indians, Washington, known about Inuit social memory, which in Smithsonian Institution Press. This article is based on a previous publica- general resembles the indigenous perspec- Eber, D.H., 1989. When the Whalers Were tion by the author entitled “De l'ethnohis- tives of history described by the Royal Com- up North: Inuit Memories from the toire et l’histoire orale à la mémoire sociale mission on Aboriginal Peoples. There are Eastern Arctic. Montréal and Kingston, chez les du Nunavut”, Anthropologie nonetheless many other questions to explore McGill-Queen’s University Press. et Sociétés, Vol. 26, nos. 2–3, 2002, pp. 137– in the vast area of Inuit orality at the start Freeman, M.M. (ed.), 1976. Inuit Land Use 159. of the 21st century, including the effects of and Occupancy Project: A Report. Pre- writing it down, its use in the structures of pared for the Department of Indian Af- modern Inuit life, and its future role as a fairs and Northern Development, Ottawa. hallmark of Inuit identity. Department of Supplies and Services, Canada.

BOOK REVIEW John Bennett

Essential Song: Three Decades of with their many layers of meaning are now series of observations from three decades of Northern Cree Music, by Lynn Whid- fading from memory as intergenerational teaching music in northern teacher-educa- den. Foreword by Eric Robinson, Afterword links weaken and the influence of mass- tion programs. These include the mixed re- by Stanley L. Louttit. Wilfrid Laurier Univer- media entertainment grows. The author has sults of attempting to teach western ap- sity Press, 2007. $85.00 Cloth, 190 pp., with created this work, which includes an audio proaches to music, and music evaluation, to audio CD. ISBN: 0-88920-459-4. CD, “in the hope that young people will rec- students with a very different relationship to ognize that they have a music heritage, that music; the cooperative and quiet classroom Essential Song explores the world of Cree they will cherish their song tradition, and atmosphere her Cree students created in the music Lynn Whidden came to know through that they will build upon it to create songs for 1970s and 1980s; how they did tasks “when her research in Chisasibi, Quebec and Thomp- the youth of the twenty-first century” (page the time and feeling were right” and how son, Manitoba. Cree hunting songs have a xvi). wise educators learned to wait until all stu- fundamental place in subarctic hunting life, One of the strengths of this book is its dents had arrived before starting class; her and the hunters who composed, sang, and view of Cree music, past and present, as assertion that “the Native personality has passed them down through the generations integral to the lives of the people who have been a poor fit with an institution where considered them essential hunting tools. Part created and used it. In the prologue, “The performance is assessed largely by the abili- prayer, part prediction, and part hunting Cree Come to Campus”, which is dedicated to ty to meet deadlines” (page xii); and how by manual, these highly original sung poems her students, the author sets the stage with a the 1990s her students had become more

CANADIAN POLAR COMMISSION 24 punctual, outspoken, and consciously proud finally powwow, including why and how of their heritage. Cree adopted music from these traditions. While hunting songs are at the core The section on hymn singing is preceded by of this book, it also traces the Cree’s adop- a concise account of missionary activity tion of other music as they encountered out- among the Cree, and which elements of side influences. Ethnographic and historical Christianity appealed to them. The author information – the list of sources and the bib- discusses the syllabic writing system, created liography are substantial – provide context. in the 19th century from Pitman shorthand The author uses music notation and analysis by the Methodist missionary and linguist only where necessary to explain changes in James Evans, which revolutionized commu- Cree music over time and to show how the nication among the Cree and Inuit and en-

FALL/WINTER 2007 Cree altered music they adopted from other abled the quick spread of both Christianity traditions. and literacy among them. The adaptation of Most of the music discussed in the Cree syllabics to the Inuit language was book and heard on the accompanying CD made, not by the Inuit themselves as the consists of hunting songs sung by six elderly book states (page 38), but rather by Anglican men who lived in Chisasibi in the early missionaries John Horden and E.A. Watkins. 1980s. Short profiles and photographs hint Also mentioned is the Scottish dance guage change over time and the highly indi- at the personality behind each voice. Sam- music that the Cree heard from traders and vidual nature of the songs means that many son Lameboy, for example, learned to play on the fiddle. They changed of the words are enigmatic, and most songs admired his mother, who lived to be a the regular metre and phrasing of the Scot- untranslatable. The singers, well aware of hundred and was very wise. (…) [He] tish originals by adding and subtracting this, preface each song with a short expla- had a profound knowledge of the hunt- beats (Inuit musicians have also done this), nation like this one: ing way of life. (…) His songs focused on followed their hunting song tradition of This is a toboggan song, how it was used the hunt. He began by saying that it was unique individual versions and constant for travelling hard living off the land, so the people alterations, and generally introduced enough This was the only way we travelled a were always fit, mentally and physically. innovations that author considers the result a long time ago When the hunting was poor, the people new genre of music. An example of Cree fid- This song tells a story with pictures, you starved. He joked that now “the store does- dling would have been a welcome addition could almost see them n’t run away from you. (page 11) to the CD, as the transcription of the reel I learned this song from my father and Cree used these songs for a variety of “Soldier’s Joy” (page 42) has a regular metre taught it to my elder sons purposes: ceremonies, healing, hunting, and is little different from versions played When we were trapping in the fall physical and spiritual protection, and more. elsewhere. The chapter also describes an We sing about each way of travelling – Their context is the subarctic bush, where elegant Cree adaptation of the Scottish sword canoe or toboggan each sound is significant, where hunters dance using scarves. (George Pepabano, page 57) know how to use both sound and silence to The Cree first heard country music on The author uses these introductions to advantage – and where, in spine-chilling the radio in the 1930s thanks to powerful discuss the meanings and significance of the stories from James Bay, evil announces its commercial radio transmitters in the south- songs, and also comments on song presen- presence through sound: the night shattered ern US. Later, northern stations broadcast tation, including rhythmic elements, form, by an indescribable scream, heavy footsteps country music and messages to trappers in melodic elements, the highly individual approaching a tipi through the darkness, the bush from their families. The author dis- styles of the singers, and the Cree sound the sound of a coarse hand touching a cusses the reasons this music became popu- ideal – the distinctive Cree sound that colours canoe. lar with Cree as their society changed fur- their adaptations of other kinds of music. These songs can have multiple mean- ther, and the way popular performers like Next the book traces the history of ings, partly because the polysynthetic Cree Ernest Monias of Cross Lake, Manitoba, as outside influence on Cree music: hymns, language lends itself to word play. This, well as many lesser known local singers, Scottish dance music, gospel, country, and combined with the obscuring effect of lan- have used it to express their own feelings, at 25 the same time striking chords in the hearts NEW BOOKS HORIZON of their listeners. Finally the book deals with the recent Arctic Hell-Ship: The Voyage of HMS use by some northern Cree of powwow Enterprise 1850–1855, by William music, which originated in southern Barr. University of Alberta Press, 2007. ISBN: culture and has no relation to Cree music. 0-88864-472-8. While the music and other aspects of the highly structured and competitive powwows In 1850, captained the are foreign to Cree ways and traditions, their HMS Enterprise on a voyage to the Arctic affirmation of Indian identity and promotion via the Bering Strait in search of the missing of a healthy life free of addictions find strong Franklin expedition. Arctic Hell-Ship des- appeal. cribes the daily progress of this little-known The first appendix lists hymns fre- Arctic expedition, and examines the steadily quently sung in Chisasibi; the second lists worsening relations between Collinson and the 86 songs the author recorded there in his officers. William Barr has based his re- 1982 and 1984, with the singers’ explana- search on a wide range of original archival Sharing Our Success: tions and interpreters’ comments. The ac- documents, and the book is illustrated with Promising Practices in Aboriginal companying 52-track CD includes 44 of a selection of vivid paintings by the ship’s Education these songs, as well as hymns, country assistant surgeon, . The Society for the Advancement of Excel- songs, gospel songs, and powwow songs. lence in Education In this lucid and engaging work Lynn Cold Comfort: My Love Affair with November 23–24, 2007 Whidden has created a valuable resource for the Arctic, by Graham W. Rowley. Second , Manitoba young northern Cree who seek to strengthen Edition. McGill-Queen’s University Press, www.saee.ca/successconference/index.html their communities by building more ele- 2007. ISBN: 9780773530058. ments from their own culture into their lives; Tourism and Global Change and, for anyone with an interest in subarctic This new edition of Cold Comfort, a memoir in Polar Regions: cultures, in the music of the Canadian north of the British Canadian Arctic Expedition An International Conference – or in Cree expression of the universal (1936–39), contains the beginnings of the November 29 – December 1, 2007 human need for song – Essential Song is author’s planned sequel. It includes chapters Oulu, essential reading. on Operation Musk-Ox and the Canadian www.thule.oulu.fi/iguconference Defence Research Board, and an afterword John Bennett is editor of Meridian. by Susan Rowley and John Bennett on the author’s involvement in the north.

Canadian Polar Commission The opinions expressed in this newsletter do not is published by the Canadian Polar Commission. Suite 1710,Constitution Square necessarily reflect those of the Canadian Polar 360 Albert Street Commission. ISSN 1492-6245 Ottawa,Ontario © 2007 Canadian Polar Commission K1R 7X7 Tel.: (613) 943-8605 Editor: John Bennett Toll-free: 1-888-765-2701 Translation: Suzanne Rebetez,John Bennett Fax: (613) 943-8607 Design: Eiko Emori Inc. E-mail: [email protected] www.polarcom.gc.ca

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