Alaska Needs Fridges

Climate change is frequently described in terms of sea level rise or shifting growing seasons. Climate change is also affecting what had been sustainable lifestyles that had adapted to their environment. One of the ways people lived in the arctic regions was by storing food in ice cellars, shafts dug into and through the permafrost what kept the food naturally cold. No electricity required. Now, however, with permafrost melting, land shifting, and ice turning to water, the cellars aren’t cold enough to safely store the meat, and sometimes are filling with water. The inability to store food for long times means more food must be flown in, equipment and fuel must be flow in, and more money flows out. Even if the sea rise doesn’t affect a village, a lack of food safety can threaten it.

(Click on the photo for the link.)

“These Ice Cellars Fed Arctic People For Generations” – National Geographic