Self-Rated Health, Life Balance and Feeling of Empowerment When Facing Impacts of Permafrost Thaw—A Case Study from Northern Canada

Abstract

Climate warming in Arctic Canada, e.g., permafrost thaw, comprehensively impacts biota and the environment, which then affects the lives of people. This study aimed to investigate which perceived environmental and adaptation factors relate to self-rated well-being, quality of life, satisfaction with life (sum variable = life balance), self-rated health, and feeling of empowerment to face the changes related to permafrost thaw. The study sample was collected from one community using a questionnaire (n = 53) and analyzed by cross-tabulation. Results indicated that most participants had at least good well-being, quality of life, satisfaction with life, and a medium level of health, and over 40% assessed being empowered to face the changes related to permafrost thaw. Problems and challenges associated with permafrost thaw, e.g., health, traditional lifeways, and infrastructure, were recognized; these had impacts on life balance, feeling of empowerment, and self-rated health. Traditional knowledge regarding adaptation to face changes was seen as important. More adaptation actions from the individual to global level seemed to be needed. This study provides an overview of the situation in one area, but more research, with a larger study sample, should be conducted to achieve a deeper understanding of climate-related impacts on life and holistic well-being.

Climate Change and Human Health in the Arctic: A Review

“…The remaining 31 papers focus on specific consequences of climate change, including extreme weather events like heat waves or cold spells, or cold climate implications in general (12) [67][68][69][70][71][72][73][74][75][76][77][78][79][80]. Additionally, topics such as wild fires and the associated air pollution (4) [81][82][83][84], permafrost degradation (5) [85][86][87][88][89], and health challenges connected with the impact of climate change on food and water security in the Arctic (10) [90][91][92][93][94][95][96][97][98][99], are explored. Most of the articles were studies from Russia (17) [50,51,58,63,[73][74][75][76]79,[83][84]…”

“…Additionally, topics such as wild fires and the associated air pollution (4) [81][82][83][84], permafrost degradation (5) [85][86][87][88][89], and health challenges connected with the impact of climate change on food and water security in the Arctic (10) [90][91][92][93][94][95][96][97][98][99], are explored. Most of the articles were studies from Russia (17) [50,51,58,63,[73][74][75][76]79,[83][84][85][86][87]90,91,93], Canada (14) [44,46,48,54,57,62,[66][67][68]88,…”

Thawing Permafrost Releases Industrial Contaminants into Arctic Communities

“…“Many things in our lives may challenge our mental health, such as problems related to economic, social, environmental—infrastructure and nature—and cultural issues,” says Ulla Timlin, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Oulu, who has studied these issues in the context of Arctic communities. 50 , 51 “Therefore, it is very important to investigate this area, to understand how climate change and permafrost thaw affect people’s perceived mental wellness and well-being, and which factors may be connected to it when living in a changing environment.” She says it is essential to gather information from both non-Indigenous and Indigenous perspectives in the Arctic.…”

Perspective: Dimensions of Environment and Health in Arctic Communities

“…These environmental changes also affect the environment and health of Indigenous communities and other residents of the Arctic regions in myriad ways . Yet beyond the visible signs of a changing Arctic, Indigenous peoples, residents, and newcomers to the Arctic also have to deal with invisible factors impacting health and well-being.…”

“…9 These environmental changes also affect the environment and health of Indigenous communities and other residents of the Arctic regions in myriad ways. 10 Yet beyond the visible signs of a changing Arctic, Indigenous peoples, residents, and newcomers to the Arctic also have to deal with invisible factors impacting health and well-being. The Arctic environment and food are known to be contaminated by a wide range of synthetic organic contaminants, typically via long-range transport from the industrial and urban regions in the temperate regions (North America, Europe and Russia/ Asia), 11 including polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), 12 perand polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS), 13 mercury (Hg), 14 lead and emerging contaminants.…”