INUVIK - Coastal communities in the Beaufort Delta region are trying to rely less on hunting and finding ways to diversify their local economy as a way to combat climate change.

Residents of Paulatuk took photos in February of the effects of climate change on their community. Three months later, the community is experiencing unseasonably warm temperatures and consultants have developed climate adaptation plans for Paulatuk and Ulukhaktok. - photo courtesy of Annie Rose Thrasher

Environmental consultants hired by the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada travelled to the Western Arctic communities of Paulatuk and Ulukhaktok about three months ago to investigate the effects of climate change there.

On May 1, Arctic North Consulting released a climate adaptation report and recommendations based on residents' input. Previous studies have suggested that coastal Arctic communities are among the hardest hit by climate change, and these community adaptation plans aim to help residents mitigate some of those challenges, including shoreline erosion and loss of sea ice.

The report showed, through focus groups looking at topics varying from business and economy to transportation to language and culture, that residents are concerned about their reliance on subsistence harvesting as the climate changes.

"Changing and unpredictable conditions are negatively affecting participation in the subsistence economy creating the need to diversify the economy," Paulatuk's report reads.

In Ulukhaktok, the consultants recommend developing new sport hunting opportunities based on char and trout as well as focusing on eco-tourism.

INAC commissioned the reports under its Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation Program. These reports are the first step to more detailed adaptation plans for each community.

Amanda Caron, one of the report authors, said Arctic North recently received more funding to travel back to these coastal communities to study the feasibility of their many recommendations. Some recommendations are simple, such as wearing sunblock outdoors, while others, such as negotiating travel deals to improve tourism, would require co-operation from airlines and, in some cases, government funding.

"This next year, what we'll probably be doing is picking out the most pressing, highest priority actions and really getting nitty gritty about how to make them happen," Caron said, adding that residents' concerns were fairly consistent.

"I don't think there were too many surprises," she said.

While a diversified economy to cope with shorter winter hunting seasons is among some residents' most pressing concerns, so is the feared loss of trapping traditions. Both community reports emphasize the need for more trapper education as well as safety and environmental monitor training.