Environment, Tourism, Legacy all on the Agenda at Antarctic Treaty Meeting

June 2, 2021 by Kate Michael
Environment, Tourism, Legacy all on the Agenda at Antarctic Treaty Meeting
Antarctica

WASHINGTON — Competing claims and diplomatic disputes over Antarctica resulted in 12 countries coming together to create an Antarctic Treaty that came into force in 1961. Now 60 years later, 54 countries are involved, and policies and management of the southern pole are as complicated as ever. 

Brief, but effective, the Antarctic Treaty forms the basis for all policies and management in Antarctica, including demilitarizing the area and establishing Antarctica as a zone free of nuclear tests and nuclear waste disposal. It ensures that Antarctica will be used for peaceful purposes only, including scientific investigation and cooperation, and it sets aside disputes over territorial sovereignty.

The Treaty also requires signatories to come together — originally every two years, but now annually since 1994 — to discuss any renewals or supplements to the Treaty and assess its efficiency and relevance. As parties take turns hosting these key Antarctic policy meetings, the 

Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting to be held from June 14-24, 2021, the Treaty’s 60th anniversary meeting, will be hosted (virtually) by France. 

“This is our chance to exchange views on what is at stake in Antarctica in the 21st century,” Ambassador Olivier Poivre d’Arvor, French ambassador for the Poles and Maritime Issues, told the Wilson Center, a non-partisan policy forum, as select signatories came together to describe what to expect at the upcoming ATCM.

“[This is about] what our ancestors created 60 years ago, while [also] addressing the challenges of this century in Antarctica,” said d’Arvor. He predicted that ATCM topics will include a recommitment to preserving the legacy of the Treaty as well as understanding how present work in Antarctica may be relevant to the whole world, including mineral and marine resource efforts, the Ice Memory program, and even the impact of Arctic tourism.

“Antarctic diplomacy is about much more than Antarctic issues,” he said. 

“The environmental protection aspect of [our] Antarctic activities is certainly of grave concern,” agreed Maximo Gowland, Argentina’s national director for Antarctic Foreign Policy. From the retreat of the ice covering to the impact on krill and wildlife that inhabit the area, “we see very directly the impacts of human activity in the peninsula.”

And that impact is also coming as a result of tourism. 

“This is a huge issue because it is a powerful force that is very difficult to stop or control,” said Gowland, seeking tourism manuals and observer mechanisms from the ATCM as well as a general regulatory framework to reduce the environmental impact of Arctic tourism as much as possible.

Chile’s acting director of the Antarctic Division and Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Rodrigo Waghorn echoed Gowland’s concern around the potential risk of increased tourism activities in the area, warning especially that there will undoubtedly be a dramatic spark in tourism around the solar eclipse on December 4th, 2021, which can only be seen from Antarctica.

Waghorn also called for the upcoming ATCM to discuss a plan for natural disasters as increased seismic activity is being recorded in the area.

“We need to protect this unique place… for the future of humankind,” he said.

After the global COVID-19 experience and the cancellation of the ATCM in 2020, signatories are also looking for the upcoming ATCM, which will take place virtually for the first time, to establish rules and guidelines for virtual operation of the Antarctic Treaty system. 

“We believe the Treaty has been extremely successful [and] effective… in addressing these very concerning issues as they’ve evolved,” said Gowland. But while he said that, for now, the Treaty was “in a very good place,” all parties will definitely need to recommit at the June ATCM and agree to look ahead at an array of important current and upcoming challenges. 

A+
a-
  • environment
  • legacy
  • Tourism
  • In The News

    Health

    Voting

    Foreign Affairs

    At Paris Gathering, Western Leaders to Show Unity for Ukraine and Signal 'Russia Cannot Win'

    PARIS (AP) — More than 20 European heads of state and government and other Western officials are gathering in a... Read More

    PARIS (AP) — More than 20 European heads of state and government and other Western officials are gathering in a show of unity for Ukraine, signaling to Russia that their support for Kyiv isn't wavering as the full-scale invasion grinds into a third year. French President Emmanuel Macron,... Read More

    Unlikely Challenger to Putin Brings Rare Show of Defiance, Creating Dilemma for Kremlin

    They have lined up by the thousands across Russia in recent days, standing in the bitter cold for a chance... Read More

    They have lined up by the thousands across Russia in recent days, standing in the bitter cold for a chance to sign petitions to support an unlikely challenger to President Vladimir Putin. Boris Nadezhdin has become a dilemma for the Kremlin as he seeks to run... Read More

    The UK and France Reiterate Russia's Invasion of Ukraine Must End in Failure as US Aid Falters

    PARIS (AP) — Britain and France reiterated their determination Tuesday that Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine ends in failure, with the U.K.... Read More

    PARIS (AP) — Britain and France reiterated their determination Tuesday that Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine ends in failure, with the U.K. foreign minister saying that Ukraine's allies must better leverage their economic might to vastly outmatch Moscow's war machine. The renewed insistence from U.K. Foreign Secretary David... Read More

    China's State Media Take a New Tone Toward US Ahead of Meeting Between Leaders

    Ahead of the highly anticipated meeting on Wednesday between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, Chinese state media have... Read More

    Ahead of the highly anticipated meeting on Wednesday between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, Chinese state media have taken a new tone toward the U.S. with less negative coverage, calls for a return to warmer ties and stories of Americans with positive connections to... Read More

    Albanese Arrives at White House to Start Day of Meetings and Celebrations

    WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden pressed forward with this week's state visit from Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, carving out time... Read More

    WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden pressed forward with this week's state visit from Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, carving out time to nurture the relationship with a critical U.S. ally in the Pacific against the backdrop of escalating fighting between Israel and Hamas. The state visit, only the... Read More

    Live Updates | Cease-Fire Pleas and Israel-Hamas Recriminations Rise in Wake of Gaza Hospital Blast

    President Joe Biden is in Israel on an urgent mission to keep the Israel-Hamas war from spiraling into a broader... Read More

    President Joe Biden is in Israel on an urgent mission to keep the Israel-Hamas war from spiraling into a broader regional conflict and to encourage the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Palestinians. The president's visit on Wednesday came after hundreds of people were reported killed... Read More

    News From The Well
    scroll top