Global Warming Expert Predicts Impact In Far North

Global Warming Expert Predicts Impact In Far North

Friday, February 09, 2007 at 14:37

Fishers and trappers in Saskatchewan’s Athabasca basin could one day notice some significant effects of climate change, according to a scientist in the Northwest Territories.

Doug Ritchie of the Ecology North Institute in Yellowknife says caribou could find it tougher to find the same amount of food as usual.

He says increased melting and freezing of the snowpack, along with new insect infestations, will pose new challenges for the animal.

Ritchie says fish quality will be affected, as well. He notes some elders in the region indicate the fish they catch now are soggier than they used to be, and deteriorate faster.

He adds the lake trout is a fish he is particularly worried about.