The amount and duration of shore ice around Prince Edward Island has been changing in recent years, and researchers say shorter seasons are a concern because the ice provides a protective shield against winter storms and erosion.
The last two winters saw lighter ice conditions than historic normal levels. This winter, the ice was thicker, but it didn’t form until February, almost six weeks later than it used to.
“The past five years in particular have been very low on sea ice around Prince Edward Island… That’s definitely unusual compared to our historical record,” said Genevieve Keefe, a PhD candidate at UPEI’s School for Climate Change and Adaptation.
Keefe studies coastal erosion and sea ice. She said P.E.I.’s ice season has decreased from between 10 and 15 weeks to an average of just nine weeks in recent years.
“One thing that we’re concerned about is coastal erosion,” Keefe said. “The sea ice provides kind of a barrier to the wind and the waves during the winter.
If we don’t have any sea ice during the winter, then our coast is essentially exposed for an additional three months during the year.— Genevieve Keefe, UPEI School of Climate Change and Adaptation
“Whenever we have winter storms that come in, that sea ice kind of can protect the shore from that wind and that waves if it’s there during the winter. But if we don’t have any sea ice during the winter, then our coast is essentially exposed for an additional three months during the year.”
‘Thermal blanket’
Parks Canada is also keeping a close eye on the changing ice conditions along P.E.I.’s North Shore, where the coastline has taken a hit from winter storms.
“Over the last few winters, we have noticed a decreasing trend in the formation of near-shore ice within the park,” said Lindsey Burke. “We are starting to notice that it’s forming later in the season and not lasting as long throughout the winter season.”
Burke said the ice plays an important role along the shoreline in a number of ways.
“It does form a protective barrier for the dune ecosystem, but it also acts as almost like a thermal blanket to the intertidal or the shoreline zone of our beaches,” she said. “The sand underneath the ice foot is actually a little bit warmer than elsewhere.
Then there is the impact on living creatures.
“We have invertebrate or insect communities that live in that intertidal zone that are an important food source, particularly for our shore birds that will be migrating back to the beaches to our area soon. And they need their energy… restored after such a long migration.”
Warmer air and water
A sea ice specialist with Environment and Climate Change Canada says P.E.I.’s ice season is now on average six to eight weeks shorter than it used to be.
George Karaganis said warmer air temperatures and higher water temperatures have delayed the start of the ice season by about three weeks, meaning more risk to the shoreline.
“It’s exposure because the ice isn’t there. It’s delayed a month, month and a half,” Karaganis said.
“Then the intensity of the waves is stronger because of the intensification of the storm caused by the warmer waters.”
Karaganis said this February was cold, and for that month, the amount of ice was close to normal. But because it formed so late, it also melted sooner.
He said he expects this will be the new normal.
My gut reaction, had you asked me this question four or five years ago, would be things would tend to average out. But no.— George Karaganis, Environment and Climate Change Canada
“My gut reaction, had you asked me this question four or five years ago, would be things would tend to average out. But no… the sea surface temperatures just on their own, not talking about ice, have been hot,” Karaganis said.
“They’ve been consistently warmer for the last four or five, six years.”
The ice that forms around Prince Edward Island shores has been changing in recent winters. The last two years had lighter ice conditions than historic norms. The ice was thicker this winter but didn’t form until February, almost six weeks later than it used to. Researchers say ice provides a protective shield against winter storms and erosion, so a shorter season is a concern. CBC’s Nancy Russell and drone pilot Aaron Adetuyi headed to the shore for more on the story.
The Canadian Coast Guard said ice conditions are “relatively light” this year. However, it has still been busy with ice-breaking activities, helping commercial vessels reach ports that include Charlottetown and Summerside.
The Coast Guard said it anticipates assisting tankers into and out of the Port of Charlottetown on a weekly basis until there is less ice coverage.
It said fishing vessels may also require icebreaker assistance as the snow crab and lobster fisheries start to open across Eastern Canada.
