Could Some Benefit From Global Warming?

Greenland's ice sheet, composed of vast expanses of glaciers (on average, 1.6 miles deep), contains enough water to raise sea level worldwide by 23 feet. If they were to melt, they would flood many coastal capitals and cause a mass diffusion of fresh water that could throw Europe into climatic chaos.

Despite these indefinitely negative consequences for places elsewhere on the globe, Greenland stands to benefit substantially from the melting glaciers. Greenland's economy, largely dependent on ties to its colonizer, owes over 40 percent of its gross product to Denmark.Having been colonized in 1721, Greenland has never been able to break from Denmark due to environmental constraints on industry.

Climate change could possibly improve Greenland's geopolitical situation and finally make independence a reality. The climate shift would make more crops a possibility, as well as uncover lead and zinc, among other precious stones and valuable minerals, deposits known to be frozen under thick layers of glaciers.

In November, Greenlanders will vote on a referendum that would leverage global warming into a path to independence. The proposed plan for self-rule, drafted in partnership with Copenhagen, is expected to pass overwhelmingly.