How we value the Coast - Arctic Coastal Ecosystem Services on Qikiqtaruk, Canada
Arctic coasts are strongly impacted by global climate change. While coastal erosion is one of the most visible consequences, changes in the supply and demand of ecosystem services (ES) are also having an increasingly significant effect on the communities living along these coasts. While the concept of ecosystem services is relevant, it is underutilized, particularly in Arctic regions. In the scope of my PhD project, we will access in the first part the supply of ES on Qikiqtaruk (Herschel Island), Canada followed by stakeholder interviews to quantify the demand of coastal ES. This project will involve measuring physical and biological parameters, including permafrost and active layer temperatures, water quality (turbidity and salinity), and fish catches, with a particular focus on the condition of the fish. These measurements will help characterize the ecosystems present on the island. Combining these results with the stakeholder interviews and participatory mapping will provide a detailed overview of the use of, and need for, ecosystem services on the Arctic coast of Qikiqtaruk. The special role of the island as a Territorial Park, as well as its importance for traditional land use and education, will be considered, and we will try to co-produce outputs that can be used by the Herschel Island–Qikiqtaruk Rangers and inform potential policy decisions around the Territorial Park. The future direction of this project will be shaped by consultation meetings with local stakeholders during the upcoming field season. One potential approach is to extend the assessment of coastal ecosystem service supply and demand to the wider Inuvialuit Settlement Region in order to address these issues on a regional scale.
AWI Organizations > Geosciences > Permafrost Research