That particular recommendation in “Due North” was recognizing that much of the infrastructure that exists in the north right now will not be viable in the future. Much of it is built on permafrost, which will thaw permanently. It will be gone. It will leave unsuitable, unstable soil beneath it. Infrastructure in many ways will have to be a do-over.
It is an opportunity to rethink the infrastructure that northerners need. Much of their existing infrastructure was not designed with them in mind or with their input. This is a chance to design their communities in a way and in places that make sense for them, and to design them so that they are also resilient to the long-term impacts of climate change, whether that be new ways of getting around the north that don't rely on winter roads—which again, will not be viable in much of the north for much longer—or new ways of constructing buildings. New ways of air transport, even, are being discussed in the north.