Today's Events 

The House and Senate are in recess until Monday, April 16. 

Roundtable on Deepwater Port and Other Arctic Needs, Today. US Sen. Mark Begich will host a roundtable with Coast Guard officials, shipping experts and others on Monday to discuss the need for a deepwater port that can support increased traffic in the Arctic Ocean. Participants are expected to be:

* Rear Adm. Tom Ostebo of the US Coast Guard;

* Col. Reinhard Koenig, Army Corps of Engineers;

* Matthew Forney, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration;

* James Hemsath, Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority.

The roundtable will be held in Anchorage, from 3 to 4 pm today at the Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program (ANSEP) Atrium, 311 Providence Drive, on the Univ. of Alaska Anchorage campus. The roundtable will be the first of several Begich plans to host on the need for more Arctic infrastructure as shipping traffic grows.

Media 

UK Cuts Antarctic Research as More Players Compete for Arctic Resources. The British polar research community is at a loss about its own future after it became known that the government plans massive cuts, more than 25 per cent, to the budget of the British Antarctic Survey (BAS). The cuts are ordered as a means to reduce the UK's national deficit. In the exclusive story, British newspaper The Independent on Sunday said the government was seeking a cut of 13 million pounds from an overall budget of 48 million. BAS is the leading UK polar research body which actually started as a purely military establishment during the Second World War as part of Operation Tabarin.  The purpose was to deter enemy ships and to strengthen Britain's claim to the Falkland Islands.  But as years went by it grew into one of the world's most respected polar research institutions.  It was three of BAS scientists, who discovered the "ozone hole" in the Antarctic. BAS research encompasses geology, climate change, marine science, biodiversity as well as monitoring natural hazards such as sea-level rises. Scientists at BAS Headquarters in Cambridge say that it is ever more shameful, because it comes during the centenary of the death of Captain Robert Scott of the Antarctic in 1912, during his ill-fated voyage to the South Pole. The Voice of Russia 

USGS: Some Alaska Polar Bears Losing Their Fur. Alaska polar bears are losing their fur and U.S. Geological Survey scientists don't know why. In the past two weeks, nine of 33 bears checked by scientists in the southern Beaufort Sea region near Barrow were found to have alopecia _ loss of fur _ and skin lesions, said Tony DeGange, chief of the biology office at the USGS Science Center in Anchorage. Three of four bears inspected Thursday near Kaktovik showed the symptoms as well. Scientists have been collecting blood and tissue samples from the afflicted bears, but they do not know the cause or the significance of the outbreak, the Anchorage Daily News reported. WTOP

Second Icebreaker Planned for Polar Research. A new icebreaker is scheduled to join Xuelong, the country's only Antarctic research vessel, in 2014, highlighting China's ambition for further exploration and scientific study in polar regions. At a news conference in Shanghai on Sunday to mark the return of Xuelong, or Snow Dragon, from its 28th Antarctic expedition, officials said the new vessel is being designed and will undergo tests starting in two years. One Arctic expedition and two Antarctic expeditions are planned by 2015. China Daily

Military Operation to Start in Resolute: Exercise marks military's 1st official return since August plane crash. The Canadian military's Operation Nunalivut starts in Resolute, Nunavut, on Tuesday. About 150 people, including Canadian Rangers and military personnel, will participate in the exercise. The challenging High Arctic environment and the potentially severe weather will set the stage for two missions. CBC News

Russia, US Coast Guards Meet All Week in Juneau. In a reaffirmation of ongoing cooperative efforts, the Russia and U.S. coast guards have finalized and signed an agreement on joint actions dealing with increased vessel traffic and illegal and unreported fishing in the countries' northern waters. U.S. Coast Guard Rear Adm. Thomas Ostebo, District 17 commander, and Russian Lt. Gen. Rafael Daerbaev, chief of the Northeast Border Guard of the Coast Guard of the Russian Federal Security Service, singed the document of understanding Wednesday in Juneau. Juneau Empire

Flame Retardant Chemicals Show Up in High Arctic: Air-monitoring state at Alert finds chemicals used on furniture and kids' clothing. New research shows chemicals commonly used to keep flames from spreading are now being found in northern environments. Environment Canada scientist Dr. Hayley Hung has found new flame retardants - chemicals often sprayed onto products like furniture, computer equipment or children's clothing - are drifting from the south all the way up to the High Arctic. The chemicals were detected at an Environment Canada air-monitoring station at Alert, Nunavut, about 800 kilometers from the North Pole. CBC News

Melting Ice May Reshape Our Maps: Increasing co-operation among nations with Arctic interests is offset by growing military tensions. This year's frenzy of oil and gas exploration in newly accessible Arctic waters could be the harbinger of even starker changes to come. If, as many scientists predict, currently inaccessible sea lanes across the top of the world become navigable in the coming decades, they could redraw global trading routes - and perhaps geopolitics - forever. This summer will see more human activity in the Arctic than ever before, with oil giant Shell engaged in major exploration and an expected further rise in fishing, tourism and regional shipping. But that, experts warn, brings with it a rising risk of environmental disaster not to mention criminal activity from illegal fishing to smuggling and terrorism. Vancouver Sun

Legislative Action  

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