Colored Dissolved Organic Matter (CDOM) is a measurement of the absorption of light in the UV and visible spectrum by the colored components of dissolved organic carbon. It is essentially the yellow substance in water as a result of decaying detritus. It is important to measure because it limits the amount of sunlight penetration, and thus restricts the growth of plankton populations. It is measured in a unit-less CDOM index. Data generated as part of CAFFs Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Program (CAFF) and its Land Cover Change Initiative (LCC) Trends visible in the MODIS dataset show an overall decrease in the mean CDOM from 2003 to 2012, with a percent change of -31.7%. This trend can be seen in Figure 40. This decrease corresponds to the increase in total yearly primary productivity (Figure 30), as a decrease in the CDOM allows for sunlight to penetrate deeper into the water, boosting chlorophyll concentrations and thus primary productivity.

Arctic Biodiversity Assessment (ABA) 2013. Table 9.5. Species numbers of species-rich moss genera and families. Numbers highlighted in grey fields are used in calculating the percentage of the total moss flora. Listed are Splachnum, genera with at least 10 species and families with at least nine species. Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna, CAFF 2013 - Akureyri . Arctic Biodiversity Assessment. Status and Trends in Arctic biodiversity. - Plants(Chapter 9) page 333

The Arctic Ocean and adjacent seas (AOAS) with the approximate delineation of the 16 regions examined for the occurrence of marine fish species. - See Arctic Biodiversity Assessment, Chapter 6: Fishes

Circumpolar distribution of arctic char species complex Salvelinus alpinus, and related species. - <a href="http://www.caff.is/assessment-series/10-arctic-biodiversity-assessment/211-arctic-biodiversity-assessment-2013-chapter-6-fishes" target="_blank"> Arctic Biodiversity Assessment, Chapter 6: Fishes</a>

Figure 4.1. Avian biodiversity in different regions of the Arctic. Charts on the inner circle show species numbers of different bird groups in the high Arctic, on the outer circle in the low Arctic. The size of the charts is scaled to the number of species in each region, which ranges from 32 (Svalbard) to 117 (low Arctic Alaska). CAFF 2013. Arctic Biodiversity Assessment. Status and Trends in Arctic biodiversity. Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna, Akureyri - Birds (Chapter 4) page 145

The distribution of Arctic char species complex, sensu stricto, and the location of introduced populations. Published in the Arctic Biodiversity trends 2010, Indicator #06 Arctic char, page 41 - released in May 2010

Circumpolar map of all polar bear subpopulation as recognized by the IUCN/Polar Bear Specialist Group in 2009 (PBSG 2010a). Total area covered = 24 mill. km(2). Vongraven, D and Peacock, E. Development of a pan-Arctic monitoring plan for polar bears:background paper. Published in the Arctic Biodiversity trends 2010, Indicator #01 - released in May 2010 Updated in feb.2025 with spatial data from 2022

Vegetation indices quantify the concentrations of green leaf vegetation (chlorophyll)around the globe, in an attempt to monitor and correlate vegetation health and stress. The MODIS vegetation products include the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI)and an Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI). Included in the MOD13C1 product is both NDVIand EVI, so both have been provided for the CAFF Dedicated Pan-Arctic Satellite RemoteSensing Products and Distribution System. These indices come in a variety of resolutions,but MTRI has provided a monthly global composite on a 0.05° Climate Model GRID(CMG).

Extensive oil and gas activity has occurred in the Arctic, primarily land-based, with Russia extracting 80% of the oil and 99% of the gas to date (AMAP 2008). Furthermore, the Arctic still contains large petroleum hydrocarbon reserves and potentially holds one fifth of the world’s yet undiscovered resources, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS 2008) (Fig. 14.4). While much of the currently known Arctic oil and gas reserves are in Russia (75% of oil and 90% of gas; AMAP 2008), more than half of the estimated undiscovered Arctic oil reserves are in Alaska (offshore and onshore), the Amerasian Basin (offshore north of the Beaufort Sea) and in W and E Greenland (offshore). More than 70% of the Arctic undiscovered natural gas is estimated to be located in the W Siberian Basin (Yamal Peninsula and offshore in the Kara Sea), the E Barents Basin and in Alaska (offshore and onshore) (AMSA 2009). Associated with future exploration and development, each of these regions would require vastly expanded Arctic marine operations, and several regions such as offshore Greenland would require fully developed Arctic marine transport systems to carry hydrocarbons to global markets. In this context, regions of high interest for economic development face cumulative environmental pressure from anthropogenic activities such as hydrocarbon exploitation locally, together with global changes associated with climatic and oceanographic trends. Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna, CAFF 2013 - Akureyri . Arctic Biodiversity Assessment. Status and Trends in Arctic biodiversity. - Marine ecosystems (Chapter 14 - page 501). Figure adapted from the USGS