Riches Await as Earth's Icy North Melts

The crew of Danish warship Vedderen perform a flag raising ceremony on the uninhabitated Hans Island off northwestern Greenland, in this Aug. 13, 2002 file photo. The crew was set ashore to erect a new cairn and change the flag and the flag pole. This ritual is performed when the ice situation in the area renders such a mission possible. Midway between Canada and Greenland, both Canada and Denmark claim sovereignty over the island but both sides are down-playing media reports that the issue is raising any tensions. (AP Photo/Polfoto, Vedderen, File) (Vedderen - AP)

The dispute erupted again two years ago when Canadian Defense Minister Bill Graham set foot on the rock while Canadian troops hoisted the Maple Leaf flag.

Denmark sent a letter of protest to Ottawa, while Canadians and Danes took out competing Google ads, each proclaiming sovereignty over the rock 680 miles south of the North Pole.

Some Canadians even called for a boycott of Danish pastries.

Although both countries have repeatedly sent warships to the island to make their presence felt, there's no risk of a shooting war _ both sides are resolved to settle the problem peacefully. But the prospect of a warmer planet opening up the icy waters has helped push the issue up the agenda.

"We all realize that because of global warming it will suddenly be an area that will become more accessible," said Peter Taksoe-Jensen, head of the Danish Foreign Ministry's legal department.

Shortcuts through Arctic waters are no longer the stuff of science fiction.

In August 2005, the Akademik Fyodorov of Russia was the first ship to reach the North Pole without icebreaker help. The Norwegian shipyard Aker Yards is building innovative vessels that sail forward in clear waters, and then turn around to plow with their sterns through heavier ice.

Global warming is also bringing an unexpected bonus to American transportation company OmniTrax Inc., which a decade ago bought the small underutilized Northwest Passage port of Churchill, Manitoba, for a token fee of 10 Canadian dollars (about $8).

The company, which is private, won't say how much money it is making in Churchill, but it was estimated to have moved more than 500,000 tons of grain through the port in 2007.

Managing director Michael Ogborn said climate change was not something the company thought about in 1997.

"But over the last 10 years we saw a lengthening of the season, which appears to be related to global warming," Ogborn said. "We see the trend continuing."

Just a few years ago, reports said it would take 100 years for the ice to melt, but recent studies say it could happen in 10-15 years, and the United States, Canada, Russia, Denmark and Norway have been rushing to stake their claims in the Arctic.