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Reindeer and reindeer herders in the circumpolar North are exposed to harsh and often hard-to-predict weather conditions. Herding communities have previously adapted to these external disturbances by flexible pasture use, seasonal mobility, changing herding practices, diversifying livelihoods and continuously developing traditional or experience-based knowledge. However, few places in the world experience ongoing climate change as clearly and rapidly as the high northern latitudes. The effects of climate change and increased frequency of extreme weather events are transforming the biophysical environment of reindeer husbandry. These changes challenge the adaptive capacity of herders who operate in a landscape they share with, and which is highly impacted by, other forms of land use. Thus, sociopolitical factors play a major role in developing adaptation strategies that are perceived as desirable and possible. This chapter summarizes the observed and expected changes in climate and impacts thereof within the reindeer herding area (RHA) of northern Fennoscandia. The chapter further presents a range of strategies adopted by herders to cope with adverse, seasonal weather conditions and indirect impacts of climate change. Finally, it situates these strategies in the context of more proactive and institutional adaptation.

The new EU strategy on adaptation to climate change highlights the urgency of adaptation measures while bringing forth adaptation as vitally important as a response to climate change as mitigation. In order to provide information on how adaptation to climate change has been promoted in Finland and what calls for attention next, we have compiled a comprehensive information package focusing on the following themes: adaptation policy, impacts of climate change including economic impacts, regional adaptation strategies, climate and flood risks in regions and sea areas, and the availability of scientific data. This report consists of two parts. Part 1 of the report examines the work carried out on adaptation in Finland and internationally since 2005, emphasising the directions and priorities of recent research results. The possibilities of adaptation governance are examined through examples, such as how adaptations steering is organised in of the United Kingdom. We also examine other examples and describe the Canadian Climate Change Adaptation Platform (CCAP) model. We apply current information to describe the economic impacts of climate change and highlight the related needs for further information. With regard to regional climate strategy work, we examine the status of adaptation plans by region and the status of the Sámi in national adaptation work. In part 2 of the report, we have collected information on the temporal and local impacts of climate change and compiled extensive tables on changes in weather, climate and marine factors for each of Finland's current regions, the autonomous Åland Islands and five sea areas, the eastern Gulf of Finland, the western Gulf of Finland, the Archipelago Sea, the Bothnian Sea and the Bay of Bothnia. As regards changes in weather and climate factors, the changes already observed in 1991-2020 are examined compared to 1981-2010 and future changes until 2050 are described. For weather and climate factors, we examine average temperature, precipitation, thermal season duration, highest and lowest temperatures per day, the number of frost days, the depth and prevalence of snow, the intensity of heavy rainfall, relative humidity, wind speed, and the amount of frost per season (winter, spring, summer, autumn). Flood risks, i.e. water system floods, run-off water floods and sea water floods, are discussed from the perspective of catchment areas by region. The impacts of floods on the sea in terms of pollution are also assessed by sea area, especially for coastal areas. With regard to marine change factors, we examine surface temperature, salinity, medium water level, sea flood risk, waves, and sea ice. We also describe combined risks towards sea areas. With this report, we demonstrate what is known about climate change adaptation, what is not, and what calls for particular attention. The results can be utilised to strengthen Finland's climate policy so that the implementation of climate change adaptation is strengthened alongside climate change mitigation efforts. In practice, the report serves the reform of the National Climate Change Adaptation Plan and the development of steering measures for adaptation to climate change both nationally and regionally. Due to its scale, the report also serves e.g. the United Nations’ aim of protecting marine life in the Baltic Sea and the national implementation of the EU strategy for adaptation to climate change. As a whole, the implementation of adaptation policy in Finland must be speeded up swiftly in order to achieve the objectives set and ensure sufficient progress in adaptation in different sectors. The development of binding regulation and the systematic evaluation, monitoring and support of voluntary measures play a key role.

We studied interannual variability and changes over time in selected climate indices in the reindeer management area (RMA) in northern Finland. We present together the knowledge possessed by reindeer herders with information from meteorological measurements over three decades. The practitioner knowledge was gathered via a survey questionnaire addressing herder observations of long-term changes (approximately during the past 30 years) in climatic conditions and their impacts on herding during the four seasons. A set of temperature-, precipitation- and snow-related indices relevant for herding within the RMA was derived from spatially interpolated daily meteorological data (1981–2010). Climatic changes detected based on the measurement data were mainly consistent with earlier studies, and practitioner knowledge was generally in line with the meteorological data. The herders had experienced the largest number of changes during the winter, and the smallest number of changes during the summer. The herders reported various impacts of changing seasonal weather on reindeer condition and behavior, and on herding practices. Adaptation to the changing conditions requires adoption of various coping strategies by the herders in their everyday work, continuous development of professional techniques and practices, as well as support received from the governance of reindeer management. We conclude that holistic understanding of the impacts of climate change and adaptation to changes in the future requires simultaneous analyses of data from different sources, more research co-defined with local practitioners, and co-planned governance solutions. The approach presented in this work can ease the dialogue between the local practitioners, researchers and policy makers. peerReviewed

Basal ice formation in the terrestrial snow cover is a common phenomenon in northern circumpolar areas, one having significant impacts on ecosystems, vegetation, animals and human activities. There is limited knowledge on the spatial and temporal occurrence of basal ice formation because of the sparse observation network and challenges involved in detecting formation events. We present a unique dataset on the annual extent of ice formation events in northern Finland between 1948 and 2016 based on reindeer herders’ descriptions of the cold season in their management reports. In extreme years, basal ice can form over wide geographical extents. In approximately half of the herding districts studied, it occurred more frequently in the period 1983–2016 than in the period 1948–1982. Furthermore, five out of seven of the most extensive basal ice formation events (90th percentile) occurred between 1991 and 2016. The most commonly reported processes related to ice formation were thaw or rain-on-snow events followed by freezing of the snow cover. Years with extensive basal ice formation were often characterized by above-average October–December air temperatures, air temperature variations around 0 °C and relatively high precipitation. However, basal ice did not occur during all warm and wet early winters, and formation events were generally weakly linked to the large-scale atmospheric teleconnections. Another risk factor for reindeer grazing associated with warm and rainy early winters is the growth of mycotoxin-producing molds below the snow. Approximately 24% of all reported mold formation events co-occurred with basal ice formation. The prevalence and frequency of basal ice formation events can be assessed based on our results. Our work contributes to understanding long-term fluctuations and changes in snow and ice conditions and the impacts of this variability in circumpolar areas.

nonPeerReviewed