... "Scientists say the problems Mr. Nasalik observes result from climate change and the gradual increase in contaminants like pesticides and industrial compounds like mercury and PCB's that are transported by wind and currents from the industrialized south and accumulate in the fatty tissues of Arctic animals. The people who eat such animals are also affected, and high levels of contaminants have been found in the breast milk of Eskimo women."

...The Meteorological Service of Canada reports that the summers of 2002 and 2003 were particularly warm in the eastern Canadian Arctic, and the last three winters have also been unseasonably mild. The Yukon and Alaska have been downright scorching in recent months, with temperatures in Whitehorse reaching over 85 degrees nine days in a row in June.

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