Northwest Passage Traffic Breaks Record

Now the summer season is over and the numbers are out. A record number of vessels, mostly sailing boats, but everything from from rowboats to cargo ships, traveled through the Northwest Passage this year, according to the Canadian Coast Guard, to a total of 23, up from 17 last year. The trips in the Northwest Passage "included a rising number of adventurers from around the world keen to explore the fabled Arctic waterway," said Jean-Pierre Lehnert, the officer in charge of the Coast Guard's marine communication and traffic services center in Iqaluit.

"The increase is mostly due to the adventurers, that number increased a lot. And also, we had those two cargo vessels that made the Northwest Passage."

Research continues in hopes of lessening the degree of damage all this ship traffic will ultimately cause. The Open Passage Expedition successfully sailed through the Northwest Passage with the goals of telling the story of how climate change is affecting Arctic communities. The Arctic is garnering global attention today because climate change is causing its sea ice to melt at a rapid pace, affecting the region's communities and the wildlife they rely on for food and livelihood.

This week in Denmark, the Copenhagen Climate Treaty Summit gets underway. Officials from more than 190 countries have gathered in hopes of producing a new agreement to curb climate change.

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