Opening the northwest passage

 Opening the northwest passage

right now this is a thought experiment but do understand that the Lancaster strait channel is clearing of ice in all years through into its western extreme around Banks Island.  The last fifty miles is however typically blockaded in most years although we have had exceptions.

So the question is obvious.  Can this be fixed?  now i do think that ice blown in from the Beufort sea provides the bulk of this blockage.  However we have at least one nothward channel that drives multiseason ice in as well.  I also mention that we have a total of five channels that are prospective points of intervention.  They are all around 10 kilometers wide which makes running causways a practical proposition.

My point is that we can cut of multiseason ice passing into the Strait from the north.  This should allow the whole straight to clear through the prevailing winds.  It may also allow all the other southertn channels to clear out as well.

What I am saying is that causeway building on at least the western channel betweeen Prince Patrick Island and Melville Island may just be enough to fully open the western reaches of Lancaster Strait every year consistantly.

We do not know just how practical this will be ,but the general loss of multiyear ice from the Arctic means that the strait can likely be flushed annually with just a little help and extending channel blocking to the other channels can keeep multi year ice out of the northern channels and all of lancaster sound..  All this can make the passage consistent for a two month season which folks can plan for.