Coast Guard Academy kicks off Arctic conference

NEW LONDON, Conn. (AP) — The Coast Guard Academy is kicking off a two-day conference focused on challenges posed by climate change in the Arctic.

The Coast Guard commandant, Adm. Robert J. Papp Jr. is among the panelists expected in New London for the conference beginning Thursday.

Warming temperatures have opened new waterways during summer months through the Northwest Passage above Canada and Russia. The conference will focus on issues raised by the growing number of boats plying once-frozen seas for oil exploration, shipping and tourism.

The conference on "Leadership for the Arctic" is sponsored by the Coast Guard Academy and the Law of the Sea Institute at the University of California's Berkeley School of Law.