Loose Propeller Nut Strands Coast Guard Icebreaker [Canada]. The Coast Guard icebreaker Louis St. Laurent has freed innumerable ice-locked vessels, explored the unseen depths of the Arctic bottom and hosted prime ministers and the world's top Arctic scientists. Recently, however, the bright red workhorse of Canada's marine Arctic presence has been doing not much of anything. For the past two weeks, the 111-metre icebreaker has been stranded off the Nunavut coast by a loose propeller nut. Since Sept. 27, the ship's bobbing red form has been a familiar sight from the shores of the 1,500-person Arctic hamlet of Cambridge Bay. National Post 

Arctic Council- Search and Rescue Agreement Signed. The first international agreement written exclusively for the Arctic region was signed at the ministerial meeting in Nuuk, May 12 2011. The agreement, which deals with search and rescue of aeronautical and maritime vessels and passengers, is also the first international agreement made by the Arctic Council. The Agreement titled "Aeronautical and Maritime Search and Rescue in the Arctic" was made in accordance with the 1979 International Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue (SAR) and the 1944 Convention on International Civil Aviation, but serves to further strengthen aeronautical and maritime SAR cooperation in the Arctic. gCaptain 

A White-Hot Future for Oil and Gas. Opportunities in oil and natural gas have rarely been so bountiful. New finds and technological advances and fresh access to some countries are pushing exploration and production into areas once considered peripheral. Some of the most promising new fields are in deep water off the coast of Brazil. Experts say they could yield as much oil as the North Sea. There have been significant strikes off the coast of French Guiana, north of Brazil, and off Ghana in West Africa. New York Times

Russia to Clean Up Its Polluted Arctic Region. Russia has launched a cleaning up operation in its Arctic region. A programme to revive Franz Josef Land is being worked out following an expedition to the archipelago. Moreover, Russia will allocate 10 million Euros to the Arctic Council for supporting cleaning up projects in the Polar Region in 2011-2013. Franz Josef Land is one of the key Arctic territories that need urgent ecological support for cleaning up hazardous waste. Earlier, there were a military base and a hydro-meteorological station, but at present the territory is a huge garbage dump site. Semi-destroyed warehouses, hangers, machines and equipment and about 400,000 barrels of oil products remind of active life that existed in the 60s and 70s. The barrels will be removed first because some of them have rusted and oil has been leaking into the soil. Further destruction of containers poses a serious and chronic threat to the environment. Voice of Russia 

Market Opportunities and Entry Strategies, Analysis and Forecasts to 2016 [Canada]. This 167 page report provides a top level overview of the Canadian defense industry, offering insights into market opportunities and entry strategies adopted by foreign OEMs to gain a market share in the Canadian defense industry. In particular, it offers in-depth analysis of defense industry market size from 2005 through 2010 and forecasts until 2016 and provides an insight into the Canadian defense industry with current, historic and forecast market values. The report predicts an increase in the forecast period (2011-2016). The reduced growth rate of the defense budget during the forecast period is due to budget cuts announced by the government to reduce its fiscal deficit. As a result, the defense budget is expected to decrease by 2016.  Canadian defense expenditure is mainly driven by the modernization of its armed forces outlined in the Canada First Defence Strategy (CFDS), the country's participation in various peacekeeping missions around the world, and the need to ensure the sovereignty of the Arctic region, which has become vulnerable to foreign intrusions due to climate change and speculation surrounding oil reserves in the area. Defense Update