How the melting sea ice is impacting Inuit communities

Melting sea ice having major impact on Northern Labrador Inuit communities Rex Holwell with SmartICE joins us to explain how sea ice is a major source of the community’s food, safety and culture.

Toronto — The thinning of the sea ice in northern Labrador is taking a major toll on Inuit communities, which have long relied on the sea ice as a critical thoroughfare.

But a new ice safety technology known as SmartICE is helping Inuit track the thickness of the ice and determine when it's safe to travel across via snowmobile.

SmartICE's Northern Production Lead, Rex Holwell, sat down with CTV's Your Morning to discuss the how climate change is impacting his community.

"We always say the sea ice is our highway, and that is the truth for us here in Labrador," said Holwell, speaking from Nain, N.L. "We travel the sea ice when it's safe to go towards traditional hunting grounds… if there's no ice, if it's not safe, people aren't travelling over the sea ice to get their traditional foods."

Growing up, Holwell remembers the sea ice freezing as early as the end of November. But he's seen the sea ice start to freeze later in the winter as climate change continue to worsen.

"This year was an exceptionally late for the sea ice to form. We weren't on it, we didn't feel that it was safe to be on the sea ice until late January," said Holwell.

SmartICE uses multiple ice sensors that can take ice thickness measurements along routes. That information gets delivered over satellite, and community members can read the data using an app.

"We tell (Inuit) to use it to augment their abilities. Use your traditional abilities first, and then use this as a tool in your pocket to help you travel the sea ice safely, and that's the whole point of SmartICE," said Holwell.

If the sea ice isn't safe, Holwell says, a detour could take four or five times as long, which can cut off Inuit from their traditional hunting grounds.

"When you think of Inuit, you think of sea ice. If it's unsafe, then that's a huge part of our culture that's going to be lost," Holwell said.​