The Arctic Environmental Problems - New Ecoinformatics Tools in Environmental Science: Applications and Decision-making - page 501

seals, and whales) were studied, as well. The assessments of comparative contribu-
tions of global, regional, and local sources of radioactive environmental contami-
nation during the time-period from nuclear tests till recent time have been analyzed
and used as a source of information for environmental predictions. An important
optimistic conclusion concerning consequences of potential accidents is that for all
prescribed scenarios of radioactive emissions, it is highly improbable that large-scale
contamination of the Arctic Ocean will take place with ruinous impacts on marine bio
resources. High biological assimilation capacity in combination with speci

c fea-
tures of hydrodynamic and other processes is supposed to serve a barrier against
dangerous pollution of the Arctic Ocean.
Kalabin (2000) has accomplished a study of environmental dynamics and
industrial potential of the Murmansk region, the most urbanized and industrially
developed trans-polar region of the planet. Under these conditions, speci c features

of environmental dynamics result in the enhancement of anthropogenic impacts. In
this context, Kalabin (2000) has analyzed critical environmental loads for some of
the northern ecosystems and emphasized a necessity to investigate their assimilation
(buffer) capacity, as a principal aspect of sustainable functioning natural systems.
The solution of regional problems of sustainable development requires a careful
analysis of the interaction between eco-dynamics and socio-economic development.
The progress achieved in studying the Arctic environment variability is due to
the accomplishment of a number of international research programs. The Arctic
Climate System Study (ACSYS) project developed in 1991, as well as the WCRP
initiative is of particular importance and practicable program for the next decade, to
assess the role of the Arctic in global climate. Five areas are emphasized:

(1) Ocean circulation;
(2) Sea ice climatology;
(3) The Arctic atmosphere;
(4) The hydrological cycle; and
(5) Modeling.

c goal of ACSYS, which started its main observational phase on
January 1994 and will continue for a 10-year period, includes the three main objectives:

The scienti

(1) understanding the interaction between the Arctic Ocean circulation, ice cover,
and the hydrological cycle;
(2) initiating long-term climate research and monitoring programs for the Arctic;
(3) providing a scienti c basis for an accurate representation of Arctic processes

in global climate models.

The Arctic Ocean Circulation Program of ACSYS consists of the four components:

(1) the Arctic Ocean Hydrographic Survey to collect a high-quality hydrographic

data-base representative of the Arctic Ocean;

(2) the Arctic Ocean Shelf Studies which are aimed at understanding how the

shelf processes partitions salt- and fresh-water components; at defining the
dynamics and thermodynamics of the shelf waters as well as other processes;