Wildlife … world politics … global commerce … indigenous culture … Global warming is putting the land, the animals and the people of this frontier at risk. What happens when the ice cap over the Arctic Ocean melts, when new shipping lanes are suddenly open and resource companies rush in? Will other countries recognize the current political sovereignty? In this stunningly shot HD documentary, “Thin Ice” explores the many crucial issues surfacing in the face of huge Northern environmental changes.

Could an international showdown over a cold and desolate island lead to a northern Falkland Islands? There are no sheep to fight over or farmers to fight for – just rock and ice. So why is this becoming ground zero in the battle over who owns the north … And why are other countries racing to plant their flags near the polar ice cap?

Hans Island is a 1 km by 3 km deserted wind swept piece of flat rock situated between Greenland (Denmark) and Ellesmere Island (Canada). A Danish warship sailed past Hans Island in 2002 and a group of soldiers disembarked and hoisted the Danish flag, an act Canada claimed was a violation of its sovereignty. In response, Canada launched “Operation Narwhal,” a joint naval, air and land force to the high Arctic.

So why is this remote island so important? The bigger story lies in the waters around Hans Island. Global warming is causing the northern ice to melt. The Northwest Passage could become a reality in our lifetime. This opens up the north to increased shipping, allowing large oil tankers bound for Asia to shave 7,000 kilometers off their journey. Canada claims the passage as an internal waterway while few northern powers recognize Canadian sovereignty.

Denmark has recently laid claim to the North Pole, one of the world’s last untapped sources of oil and gas and other natural resources. This opens up the north to nations exercising mineral rights causing increased exploration and extraction, potential for oil spills, a thriving economy and all of the associated industrial and social activity.

So what will this mean for the local indigenous people whose lives will be altered, to the fragile ecosystem so vital to the planet’s survival and to nation states looking to expand their global reach into the into the last uncontested frontier?