TUKTOYAKTUK, NT – With the completion of a permanent road connecting Inuvik to Tuktoyaktuk, endangered and at-risk species can finally flee the the effects of climate change by hitchhiking southwards year-round.
The 137 km addition to the Dempster Highway will give an opportunity for any adventurous polar bears, caribou, and walruses to hitch a free escape from the warming climate in an attempt to save their species from extinction.
“The Porcupine caribou herd will not have to take that exhausting 2,400 km annual migration and instead hitch a ride with a mining truck,” explained a Martin Krusch, a resource development officer for the territorial government. “And just the other day, I saw a polar bear and her cubs along the road trying to flag down motorist while holding a sign that said ‘Toronto Zoo.’”
If the federal government’s moratorium on arctic oil and gas development is lifted, the road may open up employment opportunities for narwhals and fin whales to work on offshore rigs.
The $300 million route is also expected to be a boon for tourists who want to admire the melting permafrost and watch in awe at the breathtaking damage humanity has caused to a sensitive ecosystem.
