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52-495: According to documents declassified in 1996, Camp Century was a preliminary camp for Project Iceworm whose end goal was to install a vast network of nuclear missile launch sites that could survive a first strike . Missiles were never fielded at the facility and obtaining the necessary consent from the Danish Government to do so was never broached. The camp operated from 1959 until 1967. It consisted of 21 tunnels with

104-570: A determination that there is no chance for remobilization of debris and contaminants before year 2100 and projections have been adjusted with weather measurements from the station at Camp Century. This latter study, used versions of the CanEMS2 and RACMO2 climate models that are calibrated to climate observations at Camp Century. William Colgan, project leader of the Camp Century Climate Monitoring Programme of

156-491: A hospital, a shop, a theater and a church. The total number of inhabitants was approximately 200. From 1960 until 1963, the electric supply was provided by the world's first mobile/portable nuclear reactor , designated PM-2A and designed by Alco for the U.S. Army. Water was supplied by Rod wells melting glaciers, and tested for germs such as the plague . Within three years after it was excavated, ice core samples taken by geologists working at Camp Century demonstrated that

208-403: A nontrivial quantity of PCBs , and 24 million liters of untreated sewage into the environment as early as the year 2090. Transition in ice sheet surface mass balance at Camp Century from net accumulation to net ablation is determined plausible within the next 75 years under one climate model, and after another 44 to 88 years the buried wastes could be exposed (between 2135 and 2179). As of 2016,

260-499: A regional, national or international level by government organizations. The largest international agency, set up in 1972, is the United Nations Environment Programme . The International Union for Conservation of Nature brings together 83 states, 108 government agencies, 766 Non-governmental organizations and 81 international organizations and about 10,000 experts, scientists from countries around

312-557: A total length of 9,800 feet (3.0 km) and was powered by a nuclear reactor . Project Iceworm was aborted after realization that the ice sheet was not so stable as originally assessed, and that the missile basing concept would not be feasible. The reactor was removed and Camp Century later was abandoned. However, hazardous waste remains buried under the ice and has become an environmental concern. Ice core samples from Camp Century were used to create stable isotopes analyses used to develop climate models . Analysis of soil contained in

364-407: Is a tool of environmental management forming a part of project approval and decision-making. Environmental assessments may be governed by rules of administrative procedure regarding public participation and documentation of decision making, and may be subject to judicial review. The environmental movement (sometimes referred to as the ecology movement) is a social movement that aims to protect

416-457: Is currently available. This financial disparity raises questions about the global commitment to equitable climate action and underscores the need for a substantial increase in support and resources. The IPCC's analysis suggests that with adequate financial investment and international cooperation, it is possible to embark on a pathway towards resilience and sustainability that benefits all sections of society. Environmental impact assessment (EIA)

468-647: Is defined as any change or disturbance to the environment perceived to be deleterious or undesirable. The environmental degradation process amplifies the impact of environmental issues which leave lasting impacts on the environment. Environmental degradation is one of the ten threats officially cautioned by the High-level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change of the United Nations . The United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction defines environmental degradation as "the reduction of

520-563: Is inequitably distributed. The movement began in the United States in the 1980s. It was heavily influenced by the American civil rights movement and focused on environmental racism within rich countries. The movement was later expanded to consider gender, international environmental injustice, and inequalities within marginalized groups. As the movement achieved some success in rich countries, environmental burdens were shifted to

572-445: Is the assessment of the environmental consequences of a plan, policy, program, or actual projects prior to the decision to move forward with the proposed action. In this context, the term "environmental impact assessment" is usually used when applied to actual projects by individuals or companies and the term " strategic environmental assessment " (SEA) applies to policies, plans and programmes most often proposed by organs of state. It

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624-524: The Danish Government to do so was never broached. To study the feasibility of working under the ice, a highly publicized "cover" project, known as Camp Century , was launched in 1960. Unstable ice conditions within the ice sheet caused the project to be canceled in 1966. Details of the missile base project were secret for decades, but first came to light in January 1995 during an enquiry by

676-927: The Global South (as for example through extractivism or the global waste trade ). The movement for environmental justice has thus become more global, with some of its aims now being articulated by the United Nations . The movement overlaps with movements for Indigenous land rights and for the human right to a healthy environment . The goal of the environmental justice movement is to achieve agency for marginalized communities in making environmental decisions that affect their lives. The global environmental justice movement arises from local environmental conflicts in which environmental defenders frequently confront multi-national corporations in resource extraction or other industries. Local outcomes of these conflicts are increasingly influenced by trans-national environmental justice networks. The 2023 IPCC report highlighted

728-533: The United States Department of Defense to Danish officials in 1960, was to test various construction techniques under Arctic conditions, explore practical problems with a semi-mobile nuclear reactor, as well as supporting scientific experiments on the icecap. A total of 21 trenches were cut and covered with arched roofs within which prefabricated buildings were erected. With a total length of 3,000 metres (1.9 mi), these tunnels also contained

780-419: The government of Denmark , leading to a political dilemma for Prime Minister H. C. Hansen . The camp was in operation until 1967, when shifting icecaps made habitation impossible. Subsequently, the camp was abandoned and the remains of the facility were buried by the icecaps and ultimately, were crushed by them. Camp Century was designed as an arctic subsurface camp and the cut-and-cover trenching technique

832-625: The rights of indigenous people , the rights of peasants , or threats to communities whose livelihoods are dependent on the ocean. Outcomes of local conflicts are increasingly influenced by trans-national environmental justice networks that comprise the global environmental justice movement. Environmental justice is a social movement that addresses injustice that occurs when poor or marginalized communities are harmed by hazardous waste , resource extraction , and other land uses from which they do not benefit. The movement has generated hundreds of studies showing that exposure to environmental harm

884-574: The " triple planetary crises ": climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss. 1800s: Martineau · Tocqueville  ·  Marx ·  Spencer · Le Bon · Ward · Pareto ·  Tönnies · Veblen ·  Simmel · Durkheim ·  Addams ·  Mead · Weber ·  Du Bois ·  Mannheim · Elias Human impact on the environment (or anthropogenic environmental impact) refers to changes to biophysical environments and to ecosystems , biodiversity , and natural resources caused directly or indirectly by humans . Modifying

936-552: The Army decided to operate Camp Century as a summer-only camp. It did not reactivate the PM-2A reactor . The camp resumed operations in 1964 using its standby diesel power plant, the portable reactor was removed that summer, and the camp was abandoned in 1966. When the camp was decommissioned in 1967, its infrastructure and waste were abandoned under the assumption they would be entombed forever by perpetual snowfall. A 2016 study found that

988-695: The Danish Foreign Policy Institute (DUPI) into the history of the use and storage of nuclear weapons in Greenland . The enquiry was ordered by the Parliament of Denmark following the release of previously classified information about the 1968 Thule Air Base B-52 crash that contradicted previous assertions by the Government of Denmark. To test the feasibility of construction techniques a project site called " Camp Century "

1040-562: The Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland, conclusively stated "Since the amount of annual snow will continue to exceed the annual melting, the mapped debris field will continue to be buried deeper in the Greenland ice sheet. In other words: there is no risk that the debris will come to the surface due to melting before 2100". In April 2024, NASA flew across Greenland to explore the ability of synthetic-aperture radar to map

1092-571: The Soviet Union in case of nuclear war . The missile locations would be under the cover of Greenland's ice sheet and were supposed to be periodically changed. While Project Iceworm was secret, plans for Camp Century were discussed with and approved by Denmark. The facility, including its nuclear power plant, was profiled in The Saturday Evening Post magazine in 1960. The "official purpose" of Camp Century, as explained by

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1144-456: The benefit of both the environment and humans. Environmentalism is a social and environmental movement that addresses environmental issues through advocacy, legislation education, and activism. Environment destruction caused by humans is a global, ongoing problem. Water pollution also cause problems to marine life. Most scholars think that the project peak global world population of between 9-10 billion people, could live sustainably within

1196-892: The capacity of the environment to meet social and ecological objectives, and needs". Environmental conflicts, socio-environmental conflict or ecological distribution conflicts (EDCs) are social conflicts caused by environmental degradation or by unequal distribution of environmental resources . The Environmental Justice Atlas documented 3,100 environmental conflicts worldwide as of April 2020 and emphasised that many more conflicts remained undocumented. Parties involved in these conflicts include locally affected communities, states, companies and investors, and social or environmental movements; typically environmental defenders are protecting their homelands from resource extraction or hazardous waste disposal. Resource extraction and hazardous waste activities often create resource scarcities (such as by overfishing or deforestation ), pollute

1248-404: The disproportionate effects of climate change on vulnerable populations. The report's findings make it clear that every increment of global warming exacerbates challenges such as extreme heatwaves, heavy rainfall, and other weather extremes, which in turn amplify risks for human health and ecosystems. With nearly half of the world's population residing in regions highly susceptible to climate change,

1300-694: The documents published by Denmark in 1997, the U.S. Army's "Iceworm" missile network was outlined in a 1960 Army report titled " Strategic Value of the Greenland Icecap ". If fully implemented, the project would cover an area of 52,000 square miles (130,000 km ), roughly three times the size of Denmark. The launch complex floors would be 28 feet (8.5 m) below the surface, with the missile launchers even deeper. Clusters of missile launch centers would be spaced 4 miles (6.4 km) apart. New tunnels were to be dug every year, so that after five years there would be thousands of firing positions, among which

1352-409: The earth's ecosystems if human society worked to live sustainably within planetary boundaries . The bulk of environmental impacts are caused by excessive consumption of industrial goods by the world's wealthiest populations. The UN Environmental Program, in its "Making Peace With Nature" Report in 2021, found addressing key planetary crises, like pollution, climate change and biodiversity loss,

1404-578: The environment to fit the needs of society (as in the built environment ) is causing severe effects including global warming , environmental degradation (such as ocean acidification ), mass extinction and biodiversity loss , ecological crisis , and ecological collapse . Some human activities that cause damage (either directly or indirectly) to the environment on a global scale include population growth , neoliberal economic policies and rapid economic growth , overconsumption , overexploitation , pollution , and deforestation . Some of

1456-506: The environment, and degrade the living space for humans and nature, resulting in conflict. A particular case of environmental conflicts are forestry conflicts, or forest conflicts which "are broadly viewed as struggles of varying intensity between interest groups, over values and issues related to forest policy and the use of forest resources". In the last decades, a growing number of these have been identified globally. Frequently environmental conflicts focus on environmental justice issues,

1508-398: The equipment's ability to survey features within the profile of the ice cap. The multidimensional Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR) revealed a feature under the ice that NASA was able to identify as the remnants Camp Century. Project Iceworm 77°10′N 61°08′W  /  77.167°N 61.133°W  / 77.167; -61.133 Project Iceworm

1560-459: The extent that many already had reached their design margins. After that, extensive snow trimming was required to maintain the trenches. The trenches were covered with a steel arch and the longest trench extended to 1,100 feet (340 m), while both its width and height were 26 feet (7,9m). The subsurface camp provided good protection from the elements and had modern bathroom, dining, and medical facilities. Prefabricated buildings were placed inside

1612-437: The glacier was moving much faster than anticipated and would destroy the tunnels and launch stations in about two years. The facility was evacuated in 1965, and the nuclear generator removed. Project Iceworm was canceled, and Camp Century closed in 1966. The project generated valuable scientific information and provided scientists with some of the first ice cores , still being used by climatologists as of 2005. According to

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1664-410: The ice sheet surface. In either scenario, eventually highly diluted contaminates in melt water could be released at the coast 250 km away, and the contamination is estimated to occur in the twenty-second century or later. A 2021 assessment of the future evolution of Camp Century demonstrated that meltwater never reached the base, in fact, it never penetrated more than 1.1 meters. This data supports

1716-483: The icecap is in constant, slow movement, spreading outward from the center. This spreading movement, over a year, causes tunnels and trenches to narrow, as their walls deform and bulge, eventually leading to a collapse of the ceiling. By mid-1962 the ceiling of the reactor room within Camp Century had dropped and had to be lifted 5 feet (1.5 m). During a planned reactor shutdown for maintenance in late July 1963,

1768-530: The majority of the solid waste at the facility was buried at an approximate depth of 36 m (118 ft). Climate models differ. A Norwegian climate model suite (NorESM1) shows that increased snow fall is not overcome by increased melting, so the remains of the base could become deeper under the ice. A Canadian model suite (CanESM2), gives an anticipated 2090 solid waste depth of 67 m, and between 44 and 88 years of persistent ablation that could be required to melt all overlying granular snow and expose wastes at

1820-477: The natural world from harmful environmental practices in order to create sustainable living . Environmentalists advocate the just and sustainable management of resources and stewardship of the environment through changes in public policy and individual behavior. In its recognition of humanity as a participant in (not an enemy of) ecosystems , the movement is centered on ecology , health , as well as human rights . Environmental issues are addressed at

1872-493: The odor, but did not eliminate the fundamental condition. In 1962, core samples were taken in the areas near the sump and found that liquid wastes had permeated up to 170 feet (52 meters) horizontally. Thus, this accelerated trench deformation and odor from the sump affected nearby trenches containing sleeping quarters. Women's Army Corps units were not stationed at Camp Century. It was not until 1978 that women were merged into regular units so they never were among those serving at

1924-441: The portion of the ice sheet covering Camp Century will start to melt by 2100, if current trends continue. When the ice melts, the camp's infrastructure, as well as remaining biological, chemical and radioactive waste , will re-enter the environment and potentially disrupt nearby ecosystems. This includes 200,000 liters of diesel, PCBs and radioactive waste. Environmental impact Environmental issues are disruptions in

1976-416: The problems, including global warming and biodiversity loss, have been proposed as representing catastrophic risks to the survival of the human species. Environmental degradation is the deterioration of the environment through depletion of resources such as quality of air , water and soil ; the destruction of ecosystems ; habitat destruction ; the extinction of wildlife ; and pollution . It

2028-470: The remote outpost of Camp Century. In October 1965, the U.S. Army concluded that subsurface ice camps are feasible and practical, that nuclear power offers significant advantages, and that the wealth of data and experience obtained from Camp Century would be of inestimable value in future designs. However, today only elevated structures are in common use on permanent snow fields. No large subsurface ice camps are known to have been constructed after Camp Century

2080-563: The samples suggests that the site was ice-free as recently as 400,000 years prior, indicating a much reduced Greenland ice sheet and therefore much higher sea levels. Since 2017, the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland has maintained a climate monitoring presence at Camp Century with the Camp Century Climate Monitoring Program. This monitoring presence includes measuring climate variables, snow and ice temperatures, and ice-penetrating radar surveys of

2132-529: The several hundred missiles could be rotated. The US Army intended to deploy a shortened, two-stage version of the U.S. Air Force's Minuteman missile , a variant the Army proposed calling the Iceman . Although the Greenland icecap appears, on its surface, to be hard and immobile, snow and ice are viscoelastic materials, which slowly deform over time, depending on temperature and density. They also create dangerous working conditions. Despite its seeming stability,

Camp Century - Misplaced Pages Continue

2184-461: The subsurface debris and contaminant field. As explained by the United States Department of Defense to Danish officials in 1960, the purpose of Camp Century was to test various construction techniques under Arctic conditions, to explore practical problems with the PM-2A semi-mobile nuclear reactor , and to support scientific experiments on the icecap. Construction on the camp and the sub-glacial nuclear reactor began without explicit permission from

2236-420: The trenches. The camp maintained a number of vehicles and had abundant storage for fuel and food. The reactor provided plenty of power and proved it could be installed, operated, and removed in such a remote location. The reactor powered the base for more than three years, but was shut down due to unexpected accelerated compression of the reactor trenches that partly was due to residual heat in the reactor area that

2288-548: The urgency for global actions that are both rapid and sustained is underscored. The importance of integrating diverse knowledge systems, including scientific, Indigenous, and local knowledge, into climate action is highlighted as a means to foster inclusive solutions that address the complexities of climate impacts across different communities. In addition, the report points out the critical gap in adaptation finance, noting that developing countries require significantly more resources to effectively adapt to climate challenges than what

2340-457: The usual function of ecosystems . Further, these issues can be caused by humans ( human impact on the environment ) or they can be natural. These issues are considered serious when the ecosystem cannot recover in the present situation, and catastrophic if the ecosystem is projected to certainly collapse. Environmental protection is the practice of protecting the natural environment on the individual, organizational or governmental levels, for

2392-531: The world. International non-governmental organizations include Greenpeace , Friends of the Earth and World Wide Fund for Nature . Governments enact environmental policy and enforce environmental law and this is done to differing degrees around the world. There are an increasing number of films being produced on environmental issues, especially on climate change and global warming . Al Gore's 2006 film An Inconvenient Truth gained commercial success and

2444-570: Was a top secret United States Army program of the Cold War , which aimed to build a network of mobile nuclear missile launch sites under the Greenland ice sheet . The end goal was to install a vast network of nuclear missile launch sites that could survive a first strike . This was according to documents declassified in 1996. The missiles , which could strike targets within the Soviet Union , were never fielded and necessary consent from

2496-439: Was abandoned. When the camp was decommissioned in 1967, its infrastructure and waste were abandoned under the assumption they would be entombed forever by perpetual snowfall. In 2016, however, a group of scientists evaluated the environmental impact of the abandoned facility and estimated that due to changing weather patterns over the next few decades, meltwater could release the nuclear waste , 200,000 liters of diesel fuel,

2548-608: Was achievable if parties work to address the Sustainable Development Goals . Major current environmental issues may include climate change , pollution , environmental degradation , and resource depletion . The conservation movement lobbies for protection of endangered species and protection of any ecologically valuable natural areas, genetically modified foods and global warming . The UN system has adopted international frameworks for environmental issues in three key issues, which has been encoded as

2600-415: Was required to maintain the feed water pools. Both snow trimming required to maintain the trenches and sewage disposal were ongoing problems with the facility. The sewage sump was 150 feet (46 m) from the nearest building and initially, was not vented. As a result, the odor of sewage became almost unbearable in the nearest quarters after the first year of operation. Subsequent venting of the sump reduced

2652-676: Was started by the United States military, located at an elevation of 6,600 feet (2,000 m) in Northwestern Greenland , 150 miles (240 km) from the American Thule Air Base . The radar and air base at Thule had been active since 1951. Camp Century was described at the time as a demonstration of affordable ice-cap military outposts. The secret Project Iceworm was to be a system of tunnels 4,000 kilometres (2,500 mi) in length, used to deploy up to 600 nuclear missiles, that would be able to reach

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2704-406: Was used for its construction. The layout of the camp consisted of a series of parallel main trenches in which buildings and other structures were housed. With appropriate maintenance, the camp design had a projected lifespan of ten years. It was manned for five years and abandoned after eight years. The trenches constructed in 1959 had compressed both vertically and horizontally within four years, to

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