Global warming is causing the former secret US Army base Camp Century, located in the ice in northern Greenland, to "thaw". As a result, harmful substances and nuclear waste can enter the ocean, which, as the military believed, are reliably hidden by ice and snow.
According to the forecast of scientists, published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters, toxic waste may remind of itself at the end of the 21st century. By then, the rate of ice loss may be greater than the annual replenishment due to precipitation in the form of snow. If waste begins to enter the ocean, it will threaten the ecosystems of fish and animals, on which the well-being of the local population depends.
The Greenland ice sheet is currently melting at a rate of 8,000 tons per second. Thus, the region loses 280 billion tons of ice annually.
In addition to damage to the environment, cleaning up nuclear waste can lead to political squabbling. The base was built by the USA, permission was granted by Denmark, and Greenland is now a self-governing territory.
However, if the problem can be resolved amicably, it could serve as a model for resolving other international disputes related to climate change.
