In the Arctic, climate change may create infrastructure challenges due to:

• A. Permafrost thaw compromising foundations.
• B. Increased sea ice improving harbor conditions
• C. No change
• D. Decrease in shipping routes

Answer: (A)

Warming in the Arctic thaws permafrost, which is the ground that stays frozen year after year. When permafrost thaws, the soil loses its stiffness and becomes water-saturated, so it can’t support buildings, roads, and pipelines as well as before. This leads to uneven settling, tilting, cracks, and even failures in foundations. Infrastructure that relied on a solid frozen base can shift or collapse, and utility lines can bend or rupture. Because permafrost underlies much Arctic development, thawing there directly creates the most significant infrastructure challenges.

The other ideas don’t fit as well. More sea ice would generally hinder harbor and shipping conditions rather than create easier infrastructure, and climate change is associated with less, not more, ice in most Arctic areas. Saying there’s no change ignores the widespread thawing and its impact, and predicting a decrease in shipping routes contradicts the growing interest in Arctic routes and the engineering challenges that come with changing ice and weather patterns.