COMMENTARY — New era of northern development

Several recent events and initiatives, such as the crossing of the Northwest Passage by a Russian icebreaker, indicate that the Arctic is experiencing an economic awakening.

The passage of a hammer and sickle on the bow of a black and yellow icebreaker through Canada’s Arctic waters confirms the Cold War is over. Or perhaps it marks the start of a different cold war.

This past summer, the best of Russia’s diesel ice-breaking fleet, the 26,000-horsepower Kapitan Khlebnikov, navigated Canada’s Northwest Passage to show our pristine north to interested tourists.

Chartered by a Toronto-based travel outfitter, the Khlebnikov navigated the passage from east to west, taking time out to journey up the west coast of Ellesmere Island to Tanquary Fiord to see the seldom-visited Ellesmere Island National Park.

The transit through a mixture of open water and 2-metre-thick ice was routine for this class of ship, of which the Russians have several. (Tared with Russia’s 75,000-horsepower nuclear icebreakers.)

The Khlebnikov navigated the same route being proposed by Canarctic Shipping for transporting mineral concentrates from the Coronation Gulf. Clearly, this confirms the viability of deep-water access to that area by ice-capable ships. The Khlebnikov’s voyage marks the first time in history that a Russian ship has legally travelled the Northwest Passage. The trip’s success will ensure that more occur in future, and bookings are already being taken for this year’s trip.

The Khlebnikov’s voyage also should signal to the federal government that technology has caught up with the Canadian Arctic, and specifically with mining in the Coronation Gulf area.

With a Canadian economy slowly running aground, it’s time for government to help launch a new era of northern development, especially south of the Coronation Gulf.

The federal government has no reason not to help, for while benefits will accrue to the Northwest Territories, the bulk of them will go to southern companies and residents.

— From Northern Mining Notes, published by the Northwest Territories Chamber of Mines, Yellowknife.