Oh Canada

A Vancouver Sun headline recently caught my eye:

Climate Change Could make Canada a Major World Power

[click here for original article]

My first thought: sweeeet.  The article goes on to explain how increased warming will lead (and already has to some extent) to ice in the Arctic receding.  As we technically have sovereignty in a large portion of the Arctic (along with Russia, Scandinavia, Iceland, and Alaska), this would enable us to get at some of its nice, juicy resources.  Before the environmentalists cry foul, remember: this is after climate change, there isn't much worth preserving now.  Anyways, just like Japan, China, and a host of smaller countries in the Pacific Rim have emerged in recent decades as industry hot spots.

With the coming resource boom will also come many, many jobs.  And as the northern regions of the NORC's (Northern Rim Countries) are all rather unpopulated, there will be a rush of immigration and population growth.  Our unmatched fresh water supplies will help too.

So what should we all expect?

What kind of timeframe are these changes on?

As much of this development depends on climate change, lets look at that.  Its my guess that CO2 emissions will continue to increase a little over the next decade and a half, perhaps two decades.  By that time, oil supplies should be low enough and technology will have advanced enough for us to stop the slow increase, and start the long trek towards pre-industrial age levels.  Of course, the planet's temperature has a lot of "inertia".  Even if we stopped pumping out CO2 tomorrow, it would keep on getting warmer.  So Arctic melting is close to inevitable.

The article estimates that the development and population rush in the Arctic will occur within 40 years.  This is pretty conservative, I think we will start seeing big things happening up north within 20.

Any-who, time to wrap this up.  I'd like to get your opinion on the issue.  Are you looking Canadian, Russian, Scandinavian, or Alaskan and are looking forward to industrial might?  Do you feel that this is only stepping on Nature's face after melting her poles?  What's YOUR take?

Thanks for the read.