Most of the terrain in Greenland is threatened by the degradation of permafrost. Even the smallest changes in the permafrost can have dramatic consequences.
Many locals live in permafrost areas, and their homes and other key infrastructures, such as roads and bridges, are built on frozen ground. As the permafrost thaws, the ground becomes less able to support these structures and this can cause buildings to collapse, and roads and pipelines to fail. Sorting out these problems is usually possible — yet very expensive. People are being pushed away from their housing, and this problem is further isolating these remote communities.
Permafrost affects not only the population with the soil collapsing, but it also changes the physical landscape, creating new space in which people and animals have to adapt.
