US Coast Guard Looking North to Arctic

An interview with the USCG OIC for Alaska reveals some interesting concerns about the Arctic Circle and navigation over the globe.

"We have to have presence up there to protect our claims for the future, sovereignty claims, extended continental shelf claims," Colvin told The Associated Press in a wide-ranging interview conducted aboard a C-130 on a lumbering flight to the Arctic Ocean.
The advent of Russian shipping across the Arctic is of particular concern to Alaska and the U.S. because "there's one way in and out of the Arctic Ocean for over half the world, and that's the Bering Strait," Colvin said.
The 56-mile wide strait lies between northwestern Alaska and Siberia, separating the North American and Asian continents and connecting the Bering Sea to the Arctic Ocean.
"The Bering Strait will end up becoming a significant marine highway in the future, and we're seeing it with Russia, the way they are promoting this maritime transportation route above Russia right now, today."
Warming has facilitated such travel. The National Snow and Ice Data Center at the University of Colorado reported last month that Arctic sea ice coverage was recorded at a summer low of 1.84 million square miles. It said sea ice melted to the third-lowest level since satellite monitoring began in 1979.
More open water is something Colvin's veteran icebreaker captains confirm.
They're also concerned about the state of their fleet.
The Coast Guard has three icebreakers, of which only one — the Healy — is operational. The two other icebreakers, the Polar Sea and the Polar Star — "are broken right now," Colvin said. Both are docked in Seattle, with the Polar Sea expected back in service next June. The Polar Star isn't expected back until 2013.
Help could be on the way. A bill that awaits President Obama's signature would have the government conduct a 90-day review of the icebreaker fleet, looking at possibly renovating the current fleet and building new icebreakers.
Colvin said it's imperative the Coast Guard has icebreakers operating in the Arctic, and not only to have a presence there to protect U.S. claims.
"We need to have U.S. vessels with U.S. scientists operating in the U.S. Arctic, conducting research," he said.

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By: Brant