Canadian Inuits living in the Arctic plan to file a human rights claim against the United States, The New York Times reports

The Inuits will seek a ruling from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. They say the U.S., by contributing to global warming, is threatening their very existence.

The Inuits are relying in part on the recent Arctic Climate Impact Assessment, an effort of eight nations to describe the environmental impacts of rising temperatures. The report said indigenous people in the Arctic, including Alaska, face dangers due to global warming.

Other reports have shown that Inuits in the Arctic have a high level of chemicals in their system due to pollution from the U.S. One study showed an extremely high level of toxins in the breast milk of Inuit mothers.

The full climate change report can be found at http://amap.no/acia.

Get the Story:
Eskimos Seek to Recast Global Warming as a Rights Issue (The New York Times 12/15)
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Climate Change Affecting Species, Study Shows (The Washington Post 12/15)
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Relevant Links:
Arctic Council - http://www.arctic-council.org
Arctic Climate Impact Assessment - http://www.acia.uaf.edu

Related Stories:
Senate committee holds hearing on climate change (11/17)
Assessment finds Arctic warming more rapidly (11/09)
Bush blocking endorsement of global warming plan (11/4)