There are not enough pups on the ice nursery. You can't pump the amount of carbon dioxide the world is pouring into the atmosphere and not have an effect. There is warming. The question is whether it's a blip or a trend. If it turns out to be a trend, then some models show the effect cascading through the ecosystem, melting ice very rapidly.
Animals here depend on the ice.
If it disappears, so will they. This is scant surprise to the environmentalists. Duchin, who visits the area every year, says each time it gets harder to find the animals. The ice is much further from the shore and it is directly affecting wildlife. As the floes retreat north, animals find it harder to breed and raise their young.