Climate-Ecological Observatory for Arctic Tundra (COAT) — Adaptive system for long-term terrestrial monitoring

This is chapter 2 of the State of Environmental Science in Svalbard (SESS) report 2021.

Predicted temperature increases in the Arctic are expected to fundamentally alter tundra ecosystem dynamics. The Arctic’s extreme year-to-year and place-to-place variability make long-term monitoring challenging, yet essential for environmental conservation, management and policy making. COAT has developed a framework that addresses these complex issues using a holistic, ecosystem-based adaptive approach. This is achieved by integrating data on the state of various characteristics of the ecosystem measured at relevant sites and relevant times to reach clearly defined goals and targets for monitoring the terrestrial food web. For this reason, COAT Svalbard is an essential component of the Svalbard Integrated Arctic Earth Observing System (SIOS).

COAT Svalbard contains six monitoring modules, with study sites in two contrasting regions in Svalbard, Nordenskiöld Land (inland) and Brøggerhalvøya (coastal). Five of the modules focus on the Svalbard food web — vegetation, Arctic fox, geese, ptarmigan and reindeer. The sixth module, a climate-monitoring network with full-scale operational weather stations and associated infrastructure, has now been fully implemented.

Svalbard’s tundra ecosystems have undergone rapid and substantial changes in climatic conditions — manifested particularly as rising surface temperatures, longer and warmer growing seasons, shortening of the snow-covered season and rising permafrost temperatures. Currently, monitored vertebrate populations appear to be stable or increasing in these regions. Long-term monitoring of vegetation communities is being implemented and will enhance understanding of bottom-up processes in the terrestrial food web.