In praise of … polar bears

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/feb/07/in-praise-of-polar-bears

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Twelve scientists from Arctic countries have issued what amounts to a wake-up call about the world's polar bear population. If the record disappearance of the Arctic summer ice last year continues, the feeding platform of polar bears will vanish. We may have to start feeding them ourselves – if only to draw them away from human settlements – relocate them, or cull starving bears to ensure more viable populations. As it is, only one of 19 polar bear subpopulations is increasing. So much of the way we think about the disappearing Arctic ice is stuck in the 19th century. The eight nation Arctic Council cannot even agree on a system of corporate liability for oil spills, let alone declare the Arctic to be off-limits for drilling. Is the Arctic one of the last areas of wilderness in the world which, along with its bears, should be protected, or is its rapid disappearance too good an opportunity to be missed? We had better soon decide which of the two we want.