tag:theconversation.com,2011:/au/topics/antarctic-treaty-29083/articlesAntarctic Treaty – The Conversation2024-02-27T03:59:52Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2233552024-02-27T03:59:52Z2024-02-27T03:59:52ZAntarctica provides at least $276 billion a year in economic benefits to the world, new research finds<p>All humanity benefits from Antarctica and the Southern Ocean that surrounds it. To some, these benefits may seem priceless. But in our market-driven world, calculating the economic value of the environment can be a useful tool in garnering support for its protection.</p>
<p>That was the intention of our <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s43017-024-00523-3.epdf?sharing_token=PpnmQW5bBZoeto6HXuLTmNRgN0jAjWel9jnR3ZoTv0NpXJejaaCEU9Spel0tQ4_D5xytf5GOfKj8MW19s9SeUGZlrMbJxh0GP-z0UqK3wAgOqv5MLY-uK7EKrx2oqMwWQL2LDJCL00_kB-POPezpsKN0Zh4yzFU2skwqzPmOXxk%3D">new research</a>. We crunched the numbers on the value of services Antarctica and the Southern Ocean provide in terms of fisheries, tourism and various natural processes that support Earth’s functioning. </p>
<p>And the result? We calculate the economic value at a whopping US$180 billion (A$276 billion) each year. We hope our findings will help prioritise conservation actions in Antarctica and galvanise international support to protect the region from the ravages of climate change.</p>
<h2>Benefits seen, and unseen</h2>
<p>The many benefits nature provides to humans are known as “ecosystem services”. </p>
<p>Some services provided by Antarctica and the Southern Ocean are invisible to most people. For example, the Southern Ocean absorbs carbon dioxide (CO₂) from the atmosphere, and ice in the region reflects heat. These processes help regulate Earth’s climate</p>
<p>The Southern Ocean also helps transport water around the globe, which helps distribute heat, fresh water, carbon and nutrients. These are known as “regulating” services.</p>
<p>We can think about the value of these services in terms of the cost that would accrue if it was not provided. For example, the Antarctic ice sheet contains <a href="https://www.bas.ac.uk/about/antarctica/geography/ice/">30 million cubic kilometres</a> of ice. If that ice melted as a result of global warming, the effects on coastal communities around the world would be catastrophic. </p>
<p>Other benefits provided by the Antarctic region are more visible. For example, humans rely on toothfish and krill for food, pharmaceuticals and dietary supplements. A warmer and more acidic Southern Ocean would affect fish stocks – both in the region and elsewhere – and some species may become extinct. </p>
<p>The Antarctic region also provides cultural services such as hosting vital scientific research. And in recent years, Antarctica has experienced a surge in tourist numbers.</p>
<p>So how much are these services actually worth to humanity? Our research examined that question.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/antarctica-is-the-only-continent-without-a-permanent-human-population-but-it-has-inspired-a-wealth-of-imaginative-literature-220041">Antarctica is the only continent without a permanent human population, but it has inspired a wealth of imaginative literature</a>
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<h2>Crunching the numbers</h2>
<p>We used various methods to estimate the value of each service. Some, such as the provision of food, can be easily calculated by looking at what the market is willing to pay. Others, such as the avoidance of harm due to CO₂ absorption, are more complicated to ascribe value to.</p>
<p>Let’s start with tourism. Visitor numbers to Antarctica – mostly by ship – have increased markedly in recent decades, from about 8,000 a year in 1993–1994 to 105,000 in 2022–2023. We estimate the annual value of the Antarctic tourism industry at about US$820 million.</p>
<p>And what about the benefits of fisheries? Considering the tonnes of toothfish and krill caught in the region, we estimate the value at about US$370 million per year. </p>
<p>Finally, we estimated the economic value of “regulating services” such as carbon storage, sea level regulation and light reflection. We did this by multiplying estimates of the value of carbon stored in the Southern Ocean by estimates of the social cost of carbon.</p>
<p>This was a complex calculation, which we explain in greater detail in our paper. Overall, we estimate the value of the region’s regulating services at about US$179.3 billion a year.</p>
<p>All up, this brings the total value of Antarctica and the Southern Ocean’s ecosystem services to about US$180 billion a year. This is a conservative estimate which excludes some ecosystem services.</p>
<p>For example, the Antarctic Circumpolar Current and neighbouring ocean gyres – which distribute Antarctic nutrients around the world – are thought to help boost the value of global fisheries by about US$2.8 billion. We did not include this in the calculation above to avoid double-counting with other regulating services.</p>
<p>And due to a lack of data, we could not even roughly estimate the value of scientific work in Antarctica, so this is also excluded. But Antarctic research may have prevented significant damage to livelihoods and infrastructure across the world – for example, by monitoring changes in ice and sea levels – and we can expect this contribution to increase in future. </p>
<p>And the region provides other important services that we don’t have enough information to estimate, such as medicinal ingredients yet to be discovered.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/a-heatwave-in-antarctica-totally-blew-the-minds-of-scientists-they-set-out-to-decipher-it-and-here-are-the-results-220672">A heatwave in Antarctica totally blew the minds of scientists. They set out to decipher it – and here are the results</a>
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<h2>What role for the Antarctic Treaty?</h2>
<p>As the Southern Ocean becomes warmer and more acidic, its natural systems will undergo huge changes. This will reduce the many benefits the Antarctic region provides, at great cost to the world. So how should the global community respond? </p>
<p>The Antarctic and Southern Ocean is governed by the <a href="https://www.ats.aq/index_e.html">Antarctic Treaty</a>, which was adopted in 1959. The threats we’ve outlined were not anticipated at the time, and the treaty does not address them. </p>
<p>Treaty parties have the authority to safeguard some ecosystem services, such as tourism, fishing and science. But are unable to effectively safeguard others, such as regulating services when the threat comes from outside the Antartctic area. </p>
<p>The treaty has evolved over the years. Now it must go further, to safeguard the huge benefits – economic and otherwise – the region provides to the world.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-antarctic-treaty-is-turning-60-years-old-in-a-changed-world-is-it-still-fit-for-purpose-162849">The Antarctic Treaty is turning 60 years old. In a changed world, is it still fit for purpose?</a>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/223355/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Natalie Stoeckl is on the Scientific Expert Panel for Queensland's sustainable fisheries strategy and was a member of the Reef 2050 Expert panel, and the Wet Tropics Scientific Advisory Board.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rachel Baird does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>In our market-driven world, calculating the economic value of the environment can be a useful tool in garnering support for environmental protection.Rachel Baird, Senior Lecturer , University of TasmaniaNatalie Stoeckl, Professor of Economics, University of TasmaniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2116162023-12-11T00:10:55Z2023-12-11T00:10:55ZDoing science in Antarctica has harmed an environment under great pressure. Here’s how we can do better<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/545892/original/file-20230901-29-db42h5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The Argentine research station, Base Primavera, on the Antarctic Peninsula.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shaun Brooks</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Scientific research in Antarctica has played a key role in many important discoveries of the past century. But it has also come at a considerable cost to the environment. </p>
<p>Science in Antarctica is typically based at one of the <a href="https://www.comnap.aq/antarctic-facilities-information">77 research stations</a>. While their role is to support science, their isolation means they need to provide the infrastructure of a town.</p>
<p>As well as the local impacts of these stations, the Antarctic environment is facing massive challenges from external pressures such as climate change. The loss of sea ice could mean some of the continent’s <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/aug/28/emperor-penguin-extinction">most iconic wildlife face extinction</a> this century. For example, the early melting of sea ice recently led to complete <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-023-00927-x">breeding failure</a> at several emperor penguin colonies. </p>
<p>So how can we keep doing research in Antarctica while minimising our impact on the environment? This question led to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.119711">our new research</a> published in the Journal of Environmental Management.</p>
<p>We found little evidence of conservation planning and few limits on permissible activities such as building new stations, despite Antarctica being declared a natural reserve. This has left plenty of room to improve planning, technology and research methods to reduce impacts on the fragile Antarctic environment.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/devastatingly-low-antarctic-sea-ice-may-be-the-new-abnormal-study-warns-212376">Devastatingly low Antarctic sea ice may be the ‘new abnormal', study warns</a>
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<h2>What are the impacts of all these stations?</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-019-0237-y">majority of stations</a> were built before the <a href="https://www.ats.aq/e/protocol.html">Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty</a> took effect in the late 1990s. These older stations were established during an era when environmental protection was a lower priority. </p>
<p>As a result, some stations were located in the most rare and sensitive ice-free areas. They probably would not be built there today, but only <a href="https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-642-84074-6_19">a few have been removed</a>. Most old stations continue to operate. </p>
<p>At the larger stations, in addition to living quarters and laboratories, facilities include sewage and power plants, bulk fuel tanks and handling, roads, workshops, helipads, runways, wharfs, quarries, fire stations and even one short-lived <a href="https://theconversation.com/remembering-antarcticas-nuclear-past-with-nukey-poo-99934">nuclear reactor</a>.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/remembering-antarcticas-nuclear-past-with-nukey-poo-99934">Remembering Antarctica's nuclear past with 'Nukey Poo'</a>
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<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/545895/original/file-20230901-23-qww3zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/545895/original/file-20230901-23-qww3zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/545895/original/file-20230901-23-qww3zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/545895/original/file-20230901-23-qww3zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/545895/original/file-20230901-23-qww3zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/545895/original/file-20230901-23-qww3zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/545895/original/file-20230901-23-qww3zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Russia’s Bellingshausen Station was established in 1968.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shaun Brooks</span></span>
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<p>Adding to the impacts are <a href="https://www.antarctica.gov.au/antarctic-operations/airp/">ongoing demands</a> to expand stations. This might be to provide new scientific apparatus to answer new questions, house more people, improve logistical capacity, or increase the safety of ageing infrastructure. </p>
<p>This background means research stations are often industrial-looking sites, with <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/aug/10/pollution-at-australias-largest-antarctic-research-station-exceeded-guidelines-for-almost-20-years">industrial-scale environmental impacts</a>. It’s a stark contrast to the near-pristine natural reserve they are situated in. </p>
<p>The stations that support science to help understand Antarctica have created the most intense human impacts on the place. These impacts include:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>a growing disturbance footprint on rare but vital ice-free areas</p></li>
<li><p>marine contamination that rivals the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/0025326X92906894">most polluted harbours</a> in the world</p></li>
<li><p><a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0301479718301257">fuel spills</a></p></li>
<li><p><a href="https://theconversation.com/invasive-species-are-threatening-antarcticas-fragile-ecosystems-as-human-activity-grows-and-the-world-warms-172058">non-native species introductions</a>, including weeds and invertebrates</p></li>
<li><p><a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/antarctic-science/article/impacts-of-local-human-activities-on-the-antarctic-environment/7115297BBC0C028462C20110F7F3B36C">disturbance to wildlife</a>. </p></li>
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<p>Many stations have displaced some of the best areas of habitat for plants and animals. </p>
<p>Environmental management and impact assessments are now routine practice in Antarctica, and do curtail impacts. However, these practices do not stop the footprint of stations from continuing to spread. </p>
<p>In a case study of a long-established Antarctic station, Australia’s Casey, we found the area of heavy disturbance expanded by 18% and the area of medium disturbance by 42% over a 16-year period. This growth has encroached on one of the <a href="https://theconversation.com/antarcticas-moss-forests-are-drying-and-dying-103751">most important areas</a> of vegetation in Antarctica.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/for-the-first-time-we-can-measure-the-human-footprint-on-antarctica-112856">For the first time, we can measure the human footprint on Antarctica</a>
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<h2>So what are the answers?</h2>
<p>Using better technology is one option. This can include installing cleaner sewage treatment to reduce contamination of the <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1751-8369.2008.00056.x">marine environment</a>. And using passive design and <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960148109004467">renewable energy</a> can reduce fuel handling and storage. </p>
<p>Similarly, substituting harmful research practices with techniques that have fewer impacts is another option. Researchers have, for example, determined the prey species of penguins <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0082227">from poo</a>, rather than handling the birds. </p>
<p>As well as better technology and different research methods, a systematic approach to conservation planning, which identifies the best ways to protect the environment, will help.</p>
<p>Our international team looked into best-practice conservation planning for reserves elsewhere in the world. We adapted these approaches to the unique characteristics of each region of Antarctica and to the various ways in which stations operate. </p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/545896/original/file-20230901-23-par0qb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/545896/original/file-20230901-23-par0qb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/545896/original/file-20230901-23-par0qb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/545896/original/file-20230901-23-par0qb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/545896/original/file-20230901-23-par0qb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/545896/original/file-20230901-23-par0qb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/545896/original/file-20230901-23-par0qb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">The Chilean base Presidente Eduardo Frei Montalva alongside the Teniente Rodolfo Marsh Martin Airport and Russian Bellingshausen Station on King George Island.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shaun Brooks</span></span>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/ive-spent-40-years-studying-antarctica-the-frozen-continent-has-never-needed-our-help-more-211520">I've spent 40 years studying Antarctica. The frozen continent has never needed our help more</a>
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<p>We deliberately designed our conservation planning approach to support station operators to continue to provide new science capabilities. However, we did it in a way that minimises long-term environmental impacts.</p>
<p>For conservation planning to work properly, we need more environmental monitoring data. And data collection must be sustained over a long time.</p>
<p>In the absence of legal limits, we also encourage station operators to set their own self-imposed limits on their footprint and restore degraded areas no longer used. The less area we impact, the more room it gives Antarctic species to shift and adapt to a changing climate.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/211616/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>This work was funded and supported by the Australian Antarctic Division, Australian Antarctic Science project 4565.</span></em></p>The proliferation of Antarctic research stations – 77 in all – is increasing knowledge of the continent but also the human impacts. A new study has identified the best ways to limit these impacts.Shaun Brooks, Fieldwork Coordinator/Research Technician, CSIROLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2155292023-10-17T19:08:11Z2023-10-17T19:08:11ZMore than 200 scientists from 19 countries want to tell us the Southern Ocean is in trouble<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554159/original/file-20231017-15-ht1j0s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=28%2C4%2C3155%2C2110&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Pat James, Australian Antarctic Division</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>While the Southern Ocean around Antarctica has been <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-southern-ocean-absorbs-more-heat-than-any-other-ocean-on-earth-and-the-impacts-will-be-felt-for-generations-189561">warming for decades</a>, the annual extent of winter sea ice seemed relatively stable – compared to the Arctic. In some areas Antarctic sea ice was even increasing. </p>
<p>That was until 2016, when <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-023-00961-9">everything changed</a>. The annual extent of winter sea ice stopped increasing. Now we have had <a href="https://theconversation.com/devastatingly-low-antarctic-sea-ice-may-be-the-new-abnormal-study-warns-212376">two years of record lows</a>.</p>
<p>In 2018 the international scientific community agreed to produce the first marine ecosystem assessment for the Southern Ocean. We modelled the assessment process on a working group of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). So the resulting “<a href="https://zenodo.org/records/8359585">summary for policymakers</a>” being released today is like an IPCC report for the Southern Ocean. </p>
<p>This report can now be used to guide decision-making for the protection and conservation of this vital region and the diversity of life it contains. </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554187/original/file-20231017-2786-gzvb0u.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Map showing the number of authors from different regions, illustrating the international nature of the assessment process." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554187/original/file-20231017-2786-gzvb0u.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554187/original/file-20231017-2786-gzvb0u.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=271&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554187/original/file-20231017-2786-gzvb0u.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=271&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554187/original/file-20231017-2786-gzvb0u.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=271&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554187/original/file-20231017-2786-gzvb0u.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=341&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554187/original/file-20231017-2786-gzvb0u.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=341&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554187/original/file-20231017-2786-gzvb0u.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=341&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Global participation (numbers of authors from different regions) in the assessment.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://zenodo.org/records/8359585">Constable, A.J. et al (2023) Marine Ecosystem Assessment for the Southern Ocean.</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/">CC BY-NC</a></span>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/fractured-foundations-how-antarcticas-landfast-ice-is-dwindling-and-why-thats-bad-news-207814">Fractured foundations: how Antarctica's 'landfast' ice is dwindling and why that's bad news</a>
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<h2>Why should we care about sea ice?</h2>
<p>Sea ice is to life in the Southern Ocean as soil is to a forest. It is the foundation for Antarctic marine ecosystems.</p>
<p>Less sea ice is a danger to all wildlife – from krill to emperor penguins and whales.</p>
<p>The sea ice zone provides essential food and safe-keeping to young Antarctic krill and small fish, and seeds the expansive growth of phytoplankton in spring, nourishing the entire food web. It is a platform upon which penguins breed, seals rest, and around which whales feed. </p>
<p>The international bodies that manage Antarctica and the Southern Ocean under the <a href="https://www.ats.aq/index_e.html">Antarctic Treaty System</a> urgently need better information on marine ecosystems. Our report helps fill this gap by systematically identifying options for managers to maximise the resilience of Southern Ocean ecosystems in a changing world.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/emperor-penguins-face-a-bleak-future-but-some-colonies-will-do-better-than-others-in-diverse-sea-ice-conditions-214625">Emperor penguins face a bleak future – but some colonies will do better than others in diverse sea-ice conditions</a>
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<h2>An open and collaborative process</h2>
<p>We sought input from a wide range of people across the entire Southern Ocean science community. </p>
<p>We sought to answer questions about the state of the whole Southern Ocean system - with an eye on the past, present and future.</p>
<p>Our team comprised 205 authors from 19 countries. They authored <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/10606/marine-ecosystem-assessment-for-the-southern-ocean-meeting-the-challenge-for-conserving-earth-ecosystems-in-the-long-term#overview">24 peer-reviewed papers</a>. We then distilled the findings from these papers into our summmary for policymakers. </p>
<p>We deliberately modelled the multi-disciplinary assessment process on a working group of the IPCC to distill the science into an easy-to-read and concise narrative for politicians and the general public alike. It provides a community assessment of levels of certainty around what we know.</p>
<p>We hope this “sea change” summary sets a new benchmark for translating marine research into policy responses. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554169/original/file-20231017-15-6w52ns.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A graphic illustrating how the system-level assessment of marine ecosystems came together, showing a group of people at a table with concentric circles in the background including observations, drivers of change and ecosystem services" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554169/original/file-20231017-15-6w52ns.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554169/original/file-20231017-15-6w52ns.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=749&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554169/original/file-20231017-15-6w52ns.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=749&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554169/original/file-20231017-15-6w52ns.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=749&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554169/original/file-20231017-15-6w52ns.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=942&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554169/original/file-20231017-15-6w52ns.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=942&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554169/original/file-20231017-15-6w52ns.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=942&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Our system-level assessment addressed the multiple drivers of ecosystem change in the Southern Ocean.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://zenodo.org/records/8359585">Constable, A.J. et al (2023) Marine Ecosystem Assessment for the Southern Ocean.</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/">CC BY-NC</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>So what’s in the report?</h2>
<p>Southern Ocean habitats, from the ice at the surface to the bottom of the deep sea, are changing. The warming of the ocean, decline in sea ice, melting of glaciers, collapse of ice shelves, changes in acidity, and direct human activities such as fishing, are all impacting different parts of the ocean and their inhabitants.</p>
<p>These organisms, <a href="https://theconversation.com/an-ocean-like-no-other-the-southern-oceans-ecological-richness-and-significance-for-global-climate-151084">from microscopic plants to whales</a>, face a changing and challenging future. Important foundation species such as Antarctic krill are likely to decline with consequences for the whole ecosystem.</p>
<p>The assessment stresses climate change is the most significant driver of species and ecosystem change in the Southern Ocean and coastal Antarctica. It calls for urgent action to curb global heating and ocean acidification.</p>
<p>It reveals an urgent need for international investment in <a href="https://theconversation.com/we-landed-a-camera-on-venus-before-seeing-parts-of-our-own-oceans-its-time-to-ramp-up-observations-closer-to-home-212970">sustained, year-round and ocean-wide</a> scientific assessment and observations of the health of the ocean. </p>
<p>We also need to develop better integrated models of how individual changes in species along with human impacts will translate to system-level change in the different food webs, communities and species.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/antarcticas-heart-of-ice-has-skipped-a-beat-time-to-take-our-medicine-202729">Antarctica's heart of ice has skipped a beat. Time to take our medicine</a>
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<h2>What’s next?</h2>
<p>Our report will be tabled at <a href="https://meetings.ccamlr.org/en">this week’s international meeting</a> of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources in Hobart.</p>
<p>The commission is the international body responsible for the conservation of marine ecosystems in the Southern Ocean, with membership of 26 nations and the European Union.</p>
<p>It is but one of the bodies our new report can assist. Currently assessments of change in habitats, species and food webs in the Southern Ocean are compiled separately for at least ten different international organisations or processes.</p>
<p>The Southern Ocean is a crucial life-support system, not just for Antarctica but for the entire planet. So many other bodies will need the information we produced for decision-making in this critical decade for action on climate, including the IPCC itself.</p>
<p>Beyond the science, the assessment team has delivered important lessons about how coordinated, collaborative and consultative approaches can deliver ecosystem information into policymaking. Our first assessment has taken five years, but this is just the beginning. Now we’re up and running, we can continue to support evidence-based conservation of Southern Ocean ecosystems into the future. </p>
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<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/record-low-antarctic-sea-ice-is-another-alarming-sign-the-oceans-role-as-climate-regulator-is-changing-204680">Record low Antarctic sea ice is another alarming sign the ocean's role as climate regulator is changing</a>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/215529/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Andrew J Constable has worked for the Australian Public Service in the Australian Antarctic Division, received funding from Pew Charitable Trusts, and, for the marine ecosystem assessment for the Southern Ocean, he received funding from environmental and fisheries non-government organisations (details are identified in the Summary for Policy Makers).</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jess Melbourne-Thomas receives funding from the Climate Systems Hub of the Australian Government’s National Environmental Science Program, and the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation.</span></em></p>The first comprehensive assessment of trends in Southern Ocean ecosystems reveals an urgent need to address climate change. The summary for policymakers can guide decision-makers.Andrew J Constable, Adviser, Antarctica and Marine Systems, Science & Policy, University of TasmaniaJess Melbourne-Thomas, Transdisciplinary Researcher & Knowledge Broker, CSIROLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2065312023-06-13T20:06:04Z2023-06-13T20:06:04ZCan next week’s special meeting in Chile break the deadlock over East Antarctica’s marine park proposal?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531542/original/file-20230613-21-xm2j5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=26%2C0%2C2968%2C1998&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/underwater-world-antarctica-1188050665">Ivan Hoermann, Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Amid the challenges of climate change, resource extraction and pollution, the survival of species and ecosystems depends on setting aside protected areas. But plans to establish marine protected areas in East Antarctica have stalled. </p>
<p>Next week, the 27-member <a href="https://www.ccamlr.org/">Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources</a> will gather at a <a href="https://meetings.ccamlr.org/en/ccamlr-sm-iii">special meeting</a> in Santiago, Chile, to try to break the deadlock. There’s much at stake, given the seemingly implacable opposition from China and Russia. China appears more concerned about fishing for krill than conservation, while Russia’s objections are less clear.</p>
<p>The need for Antarctic marine protected areas was first discussed in response to the <a href="https://www.un.org/en/conferences/environment/johannesburg2002">2002 United Nations World Summit on Sustainable Development</a>. The formal plan was adopted three years later, in 2005. While China had not yet joined the commission at that time, it was a member when the commission reaffirmed this commitment in 2011. </p>
<p>These areas were meant to protect a representative suite of Antarctic marine environments, such as unique seafloor communities, deepwater canyons, and highly productive coastal and oceanic food webs. They were to be developed, assessed and agreed on the basis of the best available science. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/a-krill-aquarium-climate-research-and-geopolitics-how-australias-800-million-antarctic-funding-will-be-spent-177609">A krill aquarium, climate research, and geopolitics: how Australia's $800 million Antarctic funding will be spent</a>
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<h2>Slow progress on Antarctica’s marine parks</h2>
<p>So far, two marine protected areas have been agreed by the commission: South Orkney Islands Southern Shelf in 2009; and the Ross Sea Region in 2016. Since then, the commission has been unable to agree on any further proposals, including the <a href="https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/law-and-treaty/ccamlr/marine-protected-areas/eampa/">East Antarctic Region marine protected area</a>. This was first proposed by Australia in 2011. It’s the oldest of those proposed but not yet agreed. The commission has also been unable to adopt the research and monitoring plans or the reviews of the existing marine protected areas.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531537/original/file-20230613-25-xm2j5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A map showing the proposed East Antarctica Marine Protected Area zones" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531537/original/file-20230613-25-xm2j5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531537/original/file-20230613-25-xm2j5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=317&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531537/original/file-20230613-25-xm2j5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=317&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531537/original/file-20230613-25-xm2j5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=317&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531537/original/file-20230613-25-xm2j5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531537/original/file-20230613-25-xm2j5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531537/original/file-20230613-25-xm2j5w.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A map showing the proposed East Antarctica Marine Protected Area zones.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/law-and-treaty/ccamlr/marine-protected-areas/eampa/">Australian Antarctic Division</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This year, the United Nations agreed to a treaty on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity in areas <a href="https://press.un.org/en/highlights/BBNJ">beyond national jurisdiction</a>. This treaty will be up for adoption at a final conference session on June 19-20, 2023. </p>
<p>This treaty sets a global target of 30% of the global oceans to be in marine protected areas by 2030. This will be the likely yardstick against which the Commission’s future performance will be measured. So far, the commission’s marine protected area achievement is just 4.7% of the area of Southern Ocean that it is responsible for.</p>
<p>Of the 27 member countries of the commission, 21 have formally committed their support for the East Antarctic Region marine protected area. Only China and Russia have repeatedly opposed this and other proposals. They are now challenging the commission’s consensus agreement to establish the marine protected area network in Antarctica.</p>
<h2>The shrinking East Antarctic Region Marine Protected Area</h2>
<p>The proposed East Antarctic Region marine protected area initially consisted of seven distinct areas designed to protect the diversity of environments in the region. Since then, Australia and its partners, now numbering 17, have granted many compromises in the quest for consensus. The number of distinct areas has been reduced to three and fishing is allowed unless explicitly excluded. </p>
<p>To specifically accommodate China’s concerns about future krill fishing, Australia sacrificed the unique and special Prydz Bay region. That’s despite the fact China’s krill fishing aspirations could be more than adequately met from the rest of the region. Nonetheless, Russia and China continue to withhold consensus on this proposal. </p>
<p>Increasingly, the rhetoric opposing marine protected areas is centred around an argument that invokes a “balance” between “conservation” (in this case, the establishment of marine protected areas), and “rational use” (in this case the right to fish). On both legal and practical grounds, the conservation versus rational use argument centres on the very core of the international agreement that covers the oceans of the region, the <a href="https://www.ccamlr.org/en/document/publications/text-convention-conservation-antarctic-marine-living-resources">Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources</a>. </p>
<p>The convention was agreed in 1980 to protect all Antarctic species from potential over exploitation. Its objective was – and remains – clearly centred on conservation in the region. Fishing is allowed, as long as the species and ecosystems of the region are conserved. The convention states that its objective “is the conservation of Antarctic marine living resources”. It identifies those resources as “populations of fin fish, molluscs, crustaceans and all other species of living organisms, including birds” and clarifies that “conservation” includes “rational use”, if such rational use can be conducted with minimal impact on the ecosystem. </p>
<p>In recent years, Russia and China have both argued that there is too much emphasis on conservation. They state that there needs to be a <a href="https://www.wilsoncenter.org/blog-post/no-20-marine-protected-areas-antarctica-has-chinas-hand-been-revealed">re-balancing between fishing and conservation</a>. In constructing this argument, they are engaging in a wilful reinterpretation of the convention – and ignoring the significant time dedicated by the commission to fisheries management. </p>
<h2>A reliance on consensus</h2>
<p>The commission, like the rest of the <a href="https://www.ats.aq/index_e.html">Antarctic Treaty System</a>, makes decisions on the basis of consensus. This means that some decisions may take quite some time to be agreed, but the strength of consensus is that all parties are then committed to the final result. </p>
<p>Consensus is built on trust and good faith. But consensus will be undermined when agreement is withheld in bad faith, or used as a means to achieve other objectives. The actions of one or a few that withhold consensus, or who negotiate in bad faith, could, if not confronted, undermine all decision-making in the commission, including decisions on sustainable fisheries. </p>
<h2>Now is not the time for endless compromise</h2>
<p>We must not continue compromising for an apparent “quick win”. The East Antarctic Region marine protected area has been evaluated by the commission’s scientific committee, and the commission has repeatedly reached the point where only Russia and China withhold agreement. It is this behaviour that needs to be explicitly challenged, not the marine protected area proposal itself. </p>
<p>These nations need to explain their specific concerns, and in the spirit of consensus, provide workable alternatives that meet their obligations under the conventions and accommodate the aspirations of all members. </p>
<p>Australia has held many discussions with China and Russia over the years to help resolve their issues. With China, these discussions have been thorough and cordial, and it is clear this nation has a deep and comprehensive understanding of the marine protected area proposal. Several bilateral meetings have also been held with Russia; however, it remains unclear what their specific objections are, particularly as they are no longer fishing. </p>
<p>There are no obstacles to China agreeing to the East Antarctic Region marine protected area proposal now. They have agreed to two large Antarctic marine protected areas in the past. The East Antarctic marine protected area poses no substantive obstacle to China’s aspirations in the region, including their stated desire to harvest krill.</p>
<p>There is much at stake at this upcoming special meeting, including the reputation of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources. The protection of the Antarctic requires that a way forward on marine protected areas be found.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/australia-wants-to-install-military-technology-in-antarctica-heres-why-thats-allowed-122122">Australia wants to install military technology in Antarctica – here's why that's allowed</a>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/206531/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Marcus Haward receives funding from the Australian Research Council and the Blue Economy Cooperative Research Centre.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Lynda Goldsworthy and Tony Press do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>China and Russia have been blocking international plans to protect marine life in East Antarctica. Will next week’s special meeting in Chile break the deadlock? Australia hopes so.Lynda Goldsworthy, Research Associate, University of TasmaniaMarcus Haward, ProfessorTony Press, Adjunct Professor, Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of TasmaniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1797522022-03-29T01:24:25Z2022-03-29T01:24:25ZNow Shackleton’s Endurance has been found, who determines what happens to the famous shipwreck?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/454609/original/file-20220328-23-lbd07s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A view of the bow of the Endurance.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust/National Geographic</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Tonight’s federal budget will include more than <a href="https://theconversation.com/scott-morrison-commits-804-million-over-a-decade-for-the-antarctic-177548">A$800 million over ten years</a> to provide a “clear marker” of Australia’s “scientific leadership” in Antarctica. </p>
<p>The funds will go towards drones and helicopters amid mounting (<a href="https://www.aspi.org.au/report/eyes-wide-open-managing-australia-china-antarctic-relationship">although somewhat exaggerated</a>) concerns over Chinese activity in the region. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/a-krill-aquarium-climate-research-and-geopolitics-how-australias-800-million-antarctic-funding-will-be-spent-177609">A krill aquarium, climate research, and geopolitics: how Australia's $800 million Antarctic funding will be spent</a>
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<p>But political assets in the polar region include more than expensive state of the art toys. Earlier this month, one of the most famous shipwrecks in history, Sir Ernest Shackleton’s Endurance, was <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-60654016">discovered</a> in the Weddell Sea – a part of Antarctica claimed by multiple nations. </p>
<h2>The Endurance</h2>
<p>There is enormous excitement around the discovery of the Endurance.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="Sir Ernest Shackleton." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/454843/original/file-20220328-17-1lk9t16.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/454843/original/file-20220328-17-1lk9t16.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=828&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/454843/original/file-20220328-17-1lk9t16.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=828&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/454843/original/file-20220328-17-1lk9t16.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=828&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/454843/original/file-20220328-17-1lk9t16.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1040&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/454843/original/file-20220328-17-1lk9t16.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1040&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/454843/original/file-20220328-17-1lk9t16.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1040&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Sir Ernest Shackleton.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikimedia Commons</span></span>
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</figure>
<p>The wreck provides a physical connection to a great tale of human survival, as it was the vessel used during the British explorer’s 1914-1916 Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition. </p>
<p>It became stuck in the ice and eventually sunk. Remarkably, none of the men died during the ordeal, despite having to camp on the ice for months during an austral winter.</p>
<p>But now the Endurance has been found, who owns it and who should look after it?</p>
<h2>The Antarctic Treaty</h2>
<p>Antarctica is governed differently from other parts of the world. The <a href="https://www.ats.aq/index_e.html">Antarctic Treaty</a> was signed in 1959, with its first provision stating “Antarctica shall be used for peaceful purposes only”. It also provides for free and cooperative scientific investigation on and around the frozen continent.</p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/finding-shackletons-ship-why-our-fascination-with-antarctica-endures-179354">Finding Shackleton's ship: why our fascination with Antarctica endures</a>
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<p>At the time of signing, seven countries – Argentina, Australia, Chile, France, New Zealand, Norway and the United Kingdom – had territorial claims in the region. But under the treaty, no country can assert (or deny) a claim to territorial sovereignty in Antarctica.</p>
<p>Despite this strong legal foundation, cultural heritage provides an opportunity for nations – in this case Britain – to assert their past, as well as their intended future, presence in the region. </p>
<h2>Historic sites in Antarctica</h2>
<p>The Antarctic is governed via annual meetings, attended by signatories to the treaty. At these meetings, countries can designate historic remains as official <a href="https://www.ats.aq/devAS/Meetings/Measure/444?s=1&from=1/1/1958&to=1/1/2158&cat=0&top=0&type=0&stat=0&txt=Historic%20Sites%20and%20Monuments&curr=0&page=2">historic sites or monuments</a>. </p>
<p>At the 2019 meeting, the UK successfully proposed the Endurance wreck as an official historic site, despite not knowing its location or state at the time. After learning of plans by NGOs to search for the wreck, the UK said it wanted to “confirm the protection status of the vessel in the event that it is located”. </p>
<p>The “<a href="https://www.ats.aq/devph/en/apa-database/187">historic site</a>” status protects:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>all artefacts contained within or formerly contained within the ship, which may be lying on the seabed in or near the wreck within a 150-metre radius.</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>Who is responsible for the sunken ship?</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://endurance22.org/endurance-is-found">Endurance22</a> expedition, backed by the Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust, located the wreck in remarkable condition just over three weeks ago. This expedition had set itself the task of searching for and surveying the shipwreck. </p>
<p>Since 2019, the UK has effectively designated itself as manager of the site – which includes the personal possessions within and all artefacts lying on the seabed nearby. The UK has also stated the wreck should not be not moved or disturbed and only photographed according to strict <a href="https://www.iphc-icomos.org/polar-heritage-resources/iphc-antarctic-underwater-material-culture-guidelines">heritage guidelines</a>. </p>
<p>This is also in line with comments from Shackleton’s granddaughter Alexandra Shackleton, who <a href="https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/shackletons-endurance-should-keep-its-secrets-insist-family-xv2t0nh55">says</a> there should be no “rummaging” and “whatever there is will stay there.” </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A view of the stern of the wreck of Endurance." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/454492/original/file-20220327-27-inbnco.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/454492/original/file-20220327-27-inbnco.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/454492/original/file-20220327-27-inbnco.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/454492/original/file-20220327-27-inbnco.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/454492/original/file-20220327-27-inbnco.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/454492/original/file-20220327-27-inbnco.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/454492/original/file-20220327-27-inbnco.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A view of the stern of the wreck of the <em>Endurance</em>.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust/National Geographic/AP/AAP</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>These preemptive steps are somewhat controversial because the seabed on which the Endurance rests is an area contested between the UK and Argentina. </p>
<p>Although, by definition, a seabed is not within claimed territory, it rests below waters belonging to claimed territory – meaning the wreck could be interpreted by the wider international community as lying outside of the UK’s jurisdiction. </p>
<p>Also worth noting is that the very heritage trust in charge of the expedition originates from <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/brief-history-falklands-war-180976349/">hotly contested territory</a> between the two countries – the Falkland Islands/Islas Malvinas. </p>
<h2>Other complications</h2>
<p>Another challenge is posed by the <a href="https://www.un.org/depts/los/convention_agreements/convention_overview_convention.htm">United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea</a>. This sets out that archaeological and historical objects found at sea should be protected. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-wreck-of-endurance-is-a-bridge-to-a-bygone-age-and-a-reminder-of-antarcticas-uncertain-future-179021">The wreck of Endurance is a bridge to a bygone age, and a reminder of Antarctica's uncertain future</a>
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<p>The ship used to search for the wreck was provided by South Africa, while funding was provided primarily by UK private and commercial sources. South Africa has signed the convention, while the UK has agreed to abide by its rules, but is <a href="https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/bCPIC0YZ4yFGYZwzLswBKRf?domain=unesco.org.uk">not a signatory</a>. </p>
<p>This has created a feeling of unease among the expert community, who understand that even though the wreck is not currently easy to access (for one, it is more than 3 kilometres below the surface), with technological developments, this situation may change.</p>
<h2>What happens now?</h2>
<p>Ultimately, the management of the site will set a precedent for the treatment of underwater cultural heritage in the region more widely.</p>
<p>The big question policymakers and diplomats now face is whether a line will be drawn when it comes to having not-yet-found shipwrecks internationally recognised as heritage sites.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="The Endurance stuck in the Weddell Sea." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/454493/original/file-20220327-21-17ff8ce.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/454493/original/file-20220327-21-17ff8ce.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=448&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/454493/original/file-20220327-21-17ff8ce.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=448&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/454493/original/file-20220327-21-17ff8ce.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=448&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/454493/original/file-20220327-21-17ff8ce.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=563&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/454493/original/file-20220327-21-17ff8ce.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=563&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/454493/original/file-20220327-21-17ff8ce.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=563&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Antarctic photographer Frank Hurley captured the Endurance stuck in the Weddell Sea.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Frank Hurley/ Wikimedia Commons</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Two more sites will likely test this question: the San Telmo and the SS Hampson. Spain proposed the San Telmo – a Spanish naval ship that sunk in the Drake Passage in 1819 supposedly carrying the first “humans to live and die” in Antarctica – as an official historic site at the 2021 meeting. </p>
<p>The SS Hampson is expected to be the large unidentified wooden sailing boat wrecked at Hampson Cove, Elephant Island. The UK is again the manager of the site, given it established the cove’s official heritage status back in 1998. </p>
<p>Like the recent discoveries of other wrecks, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/sep/12/hms-terror-wreck-found-arctic-nearly-170-years-northwest-passage-attempt">the Erebus and Terror</a> in the high Arctic, these sunken ships represent more than just deteriorating artefacts. </p>
<p>They provide a way for countries to demonstrate their historical occupation of a region where traditional displays of territorial sovereignty are banned.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/179752/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rebecca Hingley is affiliated with the International Polar Heritage Committee. </span></em></p>Earlier this month, one of the most famous shipwrecks in history was discovered in a part of Antarctica claimed by multiple nations.Rebecca Hingley, Research associate, University of TasmaniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1776092022-02-23T00:16:37Z2022-02-23T00:16:37ZA krill aquarium, climate research, and geopolitics: how Australia’s $800 million Antarctic funding will be spent<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/447936/original/file-20220222-23-13fxzz3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C6858%2C3695&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The federal government’s <a href="https://www.pm.gov.au/media/800-million-strengthen-our-leadership-antarctica">major package of new funding</a> for Australia’s Antarctic program, announced on Tuesday, promises an additional A$804.4 million over the next decade. </p>
<p>The government has also released an update to its <a href="https://www.antarctica.gov.au/site/assets/files/53156/2022_update_20yearstrategy.pdf">2016 Australian Antarctic Strategy and 20-Year Action Plan</a>, which effectively confirmed the existing strategy and outlined specific activities for the next five years.</p>
<p>The funds will allow Australia’s Antarctic scientists to continue undertaking significant, world-class research. They also promise to bring new streams of environmental data into the management of the fragile Antarctic environment.</p>
<p>But the announcement has also immediately been framed as a robust response to supposed Chinese and Russian expansion in Antarctica. </p>
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Read more:
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<h2>How the new funds will be spent</h2>
<p>Australia has a long connection with Antarctica. </p>
<p>It has continuously operated a scientific program on the continent since 1954, when the Australian Antarctic Division established Mawson Station, which is now the oldest continuously operating station south of the Antarctic Circle. </p>
<p>Australia was also an original signatory of the <a href="https://www.ats.aq/e/antarctictreaty.html">Antarctic Treaty in 1959</a>, an international agreement which continues to govern Antarctica. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/law-and-treaty/australia-and-antarctic-treaty-system/">Antarctic Treaty System</a> promotes scientific research and cooperation, prevents military and nuclear activities, manages environmental impacts and human activities, governs resources such as fisheries, bans mining, and in general aims to maintain regional peace.</p>
<p>Today, Australia operates three year-round scientific stations on the continent and one on sub-Antarctic Macquarie Island. </p>
<p>The new icebreaker <a href="https://www.antarctica.gov.au/nuyina/">Nuyina</a> is crucial to the Antarctic program. It both supplies the stations and conducts essential marine scientific work in the Southern Ocean.</p>
<p>Scientists also conduct their research at the Antarctic Division’s Hobart headquarters. The krill biologists are being promised a new $17.4 million krill aquarium.</p>
<p>Although the government’s announcement is light on specifics, the $804.4 million is divided into diverse areas.</p>
<p>The biggest ticket items are concerned with transport and observational capacity across East Antarctica. These include:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>$136.6 million for inland traverse capability, charting and mapping, and “mobile stations”</p></li>
<li><p>$60.6 million for “drone fleets and other autonomous vehicles” and a sensor and camera network called the “Antarctic eye”</p></li>
<li><p>$35 million for longer-range helicopters; and </p></li>
<li><p>$14.6 million for air transport within Antarctica. </p></li>
</ul>
<p>Other funds will go to the icebreaker <a href="https://www.antarctica.gov.au/nuyina/">Nuyina</a>, removal of old waste from Australia’s stations and more funding for glaciology and ice sheet research.</p>
<p>The funds will therefore continue well-established scientific activities, as well increase the use of newer technologies to advance the Antarctic program.</p>
<h2>Antarctic science isn’t cheap</h2>
<p>Most of the new funds will support science. Australia is a scientific leader in Antarctica. But science down south costs big money. </p>
<p>Antarctica is enormous and the conditions are harsh.</p>
<p>The inland traverse capability will support the <a href="https://www.antarctica.gov.au/science/climate-processes-and-change/antarctic-palaeoclimate/inland-traverse/">million-year ice core</a> project, crucial for reconstructing Earth’s climate history.</p>
<p>Modern studies of the ice sheet are predominantly done through remote sensing, and the drones and autonomous vehicles might be useful for that. </p>
<p>Massive inland traverses of the ice sheet – which Australia <a href="https://researchnow.flinders.edu.au/en/publications/glaciological-bodies-australian-visions-of-the-antarctic-ice-shee">conducted from the 1960s to 1980s</a> — have been less necessary since the advent of <a href="https://www.antarcticglaciers.org/glaciers-and-climate/glacier-recession/observing-glacier-change-space/">sophisticated satellites in the 1990s</a>. But traverses are still necessary for logistics.</p>
<p>Remote monitoring of bird and animal populations might also increase.</p>
<h2>Geopolitics and Antarctica</h2>
<p>The Antarctic Treaty System allows for any signatory to inspect, unannounced, the Antarctic bases and installations of other signatories. </p>
<p>Until now, this has seen teams of people visit bases, but the innovative use of drones could perhaps make inspections more frequent.</p>
<p>In the context of rising tensions between the West, China and Russia, geopolitics is hard to avoid. But such tensions aren’t new, and the Antarctic Treaty System has operated amid such tensions since its enactment.</p>
<p>Australia has claimed much of East Antarctica as the Australian Antarctic Territory since 1933. Almost no other country ever recognised that claim. And the Antarctic Treaty put all territorial claims in Antarctica into legal limbo.</p>
<p>At the height of the Cold War, Australia was worried about the Soviet Union’s bases. Today, Russia, China, India, Romania, France and Italy all have bases in Australia’s area of interest.</p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-antarctic-treaty-is-turning-60-years-old-in-a-changed-world-is-it-still-fit-for-purpose-162849">The Antarctic Treaty is turning 60 years old. In a changed world, is it still fit for purpose?</a>
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</p>
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<p>Prime Minister Scott Morrison <a href="https://www.pm.gov.au/media/press-conference-triabunna-tas">implicitly called out China</a> as not being as committed to protecting the Antarctic environment as Australia and its allies. </p>
<p>Treasurer Josh Frydenburg has <a href="https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/the-key-to-protecting-the-future-of-our-planet-governments-800m-antarctic-investment/l88qjo0oq">said</a> some countries (meaning China and Russia) are “increasingly active” in Antarctica. </p>
<p>Are their capacities dramatically increasing? Russia appears to be renewing several of its bases, including Vostok, but there’s no clear evidence they’re dramatically expanding their presence.</p>
<p>China <a href="https://www.comnap.aq/s/China_Antarctic_Station_Catalogue_Aug2017.pdf">has four operational bases</a> (only two are year-round), and a fifth one in the final stages of commissioning. They now have two icebreakers which they deploy at both poles. </p>
<p>But China’s Antarctic capacities are not currently greater than Australia’s or the US. It’s also unclear how much larger the Chinese effort and footprint will get. We need quality, up-to-date information to supplement <a href="https://www.aspi.org.au/report/chinas-expanding-interests-antarctica">older</a> <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/18366503.2019.1589897">analyses</a>.</p>
<p>More concerning than any apparent military buildup in Antarctica is the increase in potential exploitation of fish, including krill. China and Russia appear to be <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/11/countries-fail-to-agree-on-antarctic-conservation-measures-for-fifth-straight-year/">investing heavily</a> to exploit krill stocks.</p>
<p>Another frustration is because the Antarctic Treaty System uses consensus decision-making, China and Russia have successfully prevented major environmental protection decisions over the past decade. </p>
<p>Both continue to <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2021/11/countries-fail-to-agree-on-antarctic-conservation-measures-for-fifth-straight-year/">prevent the creation of large marine protected areas</a> around Antarctica. And recently they’ve been thwarting new fishing regulations and restrictions.</p>
<h2>Domestic politics also plays a role</h2>
<p>There’s also basic domestic politics at play. Federal Antarctic funds are important to Tasmania and the prime minister has <a href="https://www.pm.gov.au/media/press-conference-triabunna-tas">stressed job creation</a>.</p>
<p>Ever since the Australian Antarctic division moved from Melbourne to Hobart in 1981, the Hobart community and economy has <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/353171357_Antarctic_Cities_From_Gateways_to_Custodial_Cities_Report">benefited</a> from Antarctic research.</p>
<p>The multi-government <a href="https://www.infrastructure.gov.au/territories-regions-cities/cities/city-deals/hobart">Hobart City Deal</a>, which began in 2019, had already committed at least $450 million to the creating an Antarctic and science precinct at the city’s waterfront.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/447942/original/file-20220222-17-1blgz1g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/447942/original/file-20220222-17-1blgz1g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/447942/original/file-20220222-17-1blgz1g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=355&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/447942/original/file-20220222-17-1blgz1g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=355&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/447942/original/file-20220222-17-1blgz1g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=355&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/447942/original/file-20220222-17-1blgz1g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=446&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/447942/original/file-20220222-17-1blgz1g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=446&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/447942/original/file-20220222-17-1blgz1g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=446&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Will Antarctica be a central arena of competition, or can it remain peripheral, as it has during previous moments of geopolitical heat?</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We will have to wait to see what parts of this announcement really turn into. Will surveillance drones be regularly moving through Antarctic skies and seas? What exactly are “mobile stations” and what they will do? Much is unclear. </p>
<p>The funding also continues a go-it-alone approach, without mention of science diplomacy or major international research projects. Recent <a href="https://www.transparency.gov.au/annual-reports/department-agriculture-water-and-environment/reporting-year/2020-21-16">government documents suggest</a> Australia’s international Antarctic collaborations and scientific publications are trending downwards.</p>
<p>Sadly, Australian-Chinese scientific cooperation, including in the Southern Ocean, is <a href="https://www.aspi.org.au/opinion/csiro-and-china-we-cant-just-go-floe-antarctica">being axed</a> because of “national security concerns”.</p>
<p>Strategic tensions with Russia and China are obviously hardening globally and Antarctica won’t be immune from them. </p>
<p>The question is: will Antarctica be a central arena of competition, or can it remain peripheral, as it has during previous moments of geopolitical heat?</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/invasive-species-are-threatening-antarcticas-fragile-ecosystems-as-human-activity-grows-and-the-world-warms-172058">Invasive species are threatening Antarctica's fragile ecosystems as human activity grows and the world warms</a>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/177609/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alessandro Antonello receives funding from the Australian Research Council.</span></em></p>Strategic tensions with Russia and China are hardening globally and Antarctica won’t be immune from them. Can Antarctica stay peripheral, as it has in previous moments of geopolitical heat?Alessandro Antonello, Senior Research Fellow in History, Flinders UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1628492021-06-23T00:32:06Z2021-06-23T00:32:06ZThe Antarctic Treaty is turning 60 years old. In a changed world, is it still fit for purpose?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/407787/original/file-20210622-16-1fo78ho.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=718%2C294%2C6991%2C4932&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">AUSTRALIAN ANTARCTIC DIVISION/PR Handout</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The 1959 <a href="http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/other/dfat/treaties/1961/12.html">Antarctic Treaty</a> celebrates its 60th anniversary this week. Negotiated during the middle of the Cold War by 12 countries with Antarctic interests, it remains the only example of a single treaty that governs a whole continent. </p>
<p>It is also the foundation of a rules-based international order for a continent without a permanent population.</p>
<p>The treaty is remarkably short and contains only 14 articles. Principal provisions include promoting the freedom of scientific research, the use of the continent only for peaceful purposes, and the prohibition of military activities, nuclear tests and the disposal of radioactive waste. </p>
<p>However, since the treaty was negotiated in a very different era and there have been a number of environmental, resource and geopolitical disputes related to Antarctica in recent decades, it begs the question: is it still fit for purpose?</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/407788/original/file-20210622-17-1kxg3di.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/407788/original/file-20210622-17-1kxg3di.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407788/original/file-20210622-17-1kxg3di.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407788/original/file-20210622-17-1kxg3di.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407788/original/file-20210622-17-1kxg3di.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407788/original/file-20210622-17-1kxg3di.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407788/original/file-20210622-17-1kxg3di.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies (left) at the first Antarctic Treaty consultative meeting in Canberra in 1961.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">National Archives of Australia</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What the treaty says about territorial claims</h2>
<p>The most important provision of the treaty is <a href="http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/other/dfat/treaties/1961/12.html">Article IV</a>, which effectively seeks to neutralise territorial sovereignty in Antarctica. </p>
<p>For the Antarctic territorial claimants, this meant a limit was placed on making any new claim or enlargement of an existing claim. </p>
<p>Likewise, no formal recognition was given to any of the <a href="https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/law-and-treaty/history/antarctic-territorial-claims/">seven territorial claims</a> on the continent, by Argentina, Australia, Chile, France, New Zealand, Norway and the United Kingdom. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1407016714345369607"}"></div></p>
<p>Russia, the United States and China — signatories with significant Antarctic interests who have not formally made territorial claims — are also bound by the limitations of Article IV. </p>
<p>And one sector of Antarctica is <a href="https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/law-and-treaty/history/antarctic-territorial-claims/">not subject to the claim of any country</a>, which effectively makes it the last unclaimed land on earth.</p>
<p>The treaty also put a freeze on any disputes between claimants over their territories on the continent. Claimants agreed to abide by the rules and obligations of the treaty, which meant countries that don’t recognise claims (such as China and Russia) are free to go about scientific research and peaceful activities. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
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<h2>How the treaty has expanded</h2>
<p>Though the compact has held for 60 years, there have been tensions from time to time. Argentina and the UK, for instance, have <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2007/oct/19/climatechange.fossilfuels">overlapping claims</a> to territory on the continent. When combined with their ongoing dispute over the nearby Falkland (Malvinas) Islands, their Antarctic relationship remains frosty. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/407610/original/file-20210622-19-mp22fn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4489%2C3059&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/407610/original/file-20210622-19-mp22fn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407610/original/file-20210622-19-mp22fn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407610/original/file-20210622-19-mp22fn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407610/original/file-20210622-19-mp22fn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407610/original/file-20210622-19-mp22fn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407610/original/file-20210622-19-mp22fn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Argentina’s Base Orcadas Research Station on Laurie Island in Antarctica. It is the oldest research station on the continent.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>A key reason why the treaty has been able to survive has been its ability to evolve through a number of additional conventions and other legal protocols. These have dealt with the <a href="http://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/sinodisp/au/other/dfat/treaties/ATS/1982/9.html?stem=0&synonyms=0&query=Antarctic%20Marine%20Living">conservation of marine living resources</a>, <a href="http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/other/dfat/treaties/1998/6.html">prohibitions on mining</a>, and the <a href="http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/other/dfat/treaties/1998/6.html">adoption of comprehensive environmental protection mechanisms</a>. </p>
<p>As disputes have arisen over the years, many have been addressed through the expansion of the treaty framework with these agreements. This framework is now referred to as the “<a href="https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/law-and-treaty/australia-and-antarctic-treaty-system/">Antarctic Treaty System</a>”. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1404448311784902658"}"></div></p>
<p>These measures have been a great success, but tensions have arisen in recent years over the promotion of Southern Ocean marine reserves. Agreement was reached in 2016 on a <a href="https://www.mfat.govt.nz/tr/environment/antarctica-and-the-southern-ocean/ross-sea-region-marine-protected-area/">Ross Sea Marine Protected Area</a>, and momentum is building for a broader network of <a href="https://www.antarctica.gov.au/news/2021/momentum-builds-for-southern-ocean-protection/">Southern Ocean marine protected areas</a>. China and Russia have resisted these initiatives. </p>
<p>Membership of the treaty has grown in the intervening years, with <a href="https://www.ats.aq/devAS/Parties?lang=e">54 signatories</a> today.</p>
<p>Scientific engagement in Antarctica is considered critical to exercising influence under the treaty. New treaty parties have to meet certain criteria relating to active scientific programs before they are able to participate in meetings as “<a href="https://www.ats.aq/devAS/Parties?lang=e">consultative parties</a>”. A total of 29 treaty parties, including Australia, meet these scientific engagement thresholds.</p>
<p>Building, operating and conducting scientific research programs are key to the success not only of the treaty, but also to the claimants’ credibility in Antarctica. Australia, for instance, has permitted Belarus, China, France, India, Italy, Russia, and the US to conduct scientific programs at their own research bases within its Antarctic territory, which covers 42% of the continent. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/is-there-about-to-be-a-dash-for-antarcticas-resources-24457">Is there about to be a dash for Antarctica's resources?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Where to from here?</h2>
<p>While the Antarctic Treaty has been able to successfully respond to a range of challenges, circumstances are radically different in the 2020s compared to the 1950s. Antarctica is much more accessible, partly due to technology but also climate change. More countries now have substantive interests in the continent than the original 12. Some global resources are becoming scarce, especially oil. </p>
<p>This will inevitably result in increased attention being given to the potential for Antarctic mining to take place sometime in the future. Calls to revisit the prohibition on Antarctic mining would seem inevitable. </p>
<p>There is also uncertainty as to China’s intentions in Antarctica. China joined the treaty in 1983, became a consultative party in 1985, and in 2017 hosted a <a href="https://www.ats.aq/devAS/Meetings/Past/82">consultative party meeting in Beijing</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/407789/original/file-20210623-17-7twmte.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/407789/original/file-20210623-17-7twmte.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407789/original/file-20210623-17-7twmte.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407789/original/file-20210623-17-7twmte.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407789/original/file-20210623-17-7twmte.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407789/original/file-20210623-17-7twmte.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/407789/original/file-20210623-17-7twmte.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Xue Long, a Chinese icebreaker, en route back to Shanghai after a visit to Antarctica in 2016.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikimedia Commons</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>China has a developing scientific program on the continent, with four research stations (three of which are in Australia’s Antarctic Territory), and a fifth planned. While Australia and China cooperate on a number of Antarctic scientific and logistics programs, the direction of <a href="https://www.lowyinstitute.org/publications/eyes-on-prize-australia-china-and-antarctic-treaty-system">China’s Antarctic engagement</a> and long-term support for treaty is not clear. </p>
<p>There is considerable speculation as to China’s interests in Antarctic resources, especially <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/05/antarctica-great-power-competition-australia-united-states-britain-russia-china-arctic/611674/">fisheries</a> and <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-01-20/chinas-desire-for-antarctic-mining-despite-international-ban/6029414?nw=0">minerals</a>, and whether China may seek to exploit weaknesses in the treaty system to secure access to those resources.</p>
<p>All of the treaty signatories, but especially those with significant stakes in the continent, need to give the future of the treaty more attention. </p>
<p>The Australian parliament, for instance, last conducted an <a href="https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Joint/National_Capital_and_External_Territories/AntarcticTerritory/Report">inquiry</a> into the Australian Antarctic Territory in 2018. None of the 22 recommendations, however, had a precise focus on the Antarctic Treaty.</p>
<p>The mining ban under the Madrid Protocol to the treaty could be subject to review in 2048. If the treaty’s signatories wish to ensure it remains fit for purpose in 2048 and beyond, more strategic thinking needs to be given to Antarctica’s future.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/162849/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Donald Rothwell has previously received funding from the Australian Research Council, and was previously a member of the Antarctic Science Advisory Council</span></em></p>Complex questions over environmental protection and resource extraction require the signatories to give the future of the treaty much more serious attention.Donald Rothwell, Professor of International Law, Australian National UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1480062020-11-30T19:08:25Z2020-11-30T19:08:25ZCustodians of Antarctica: how 5 gateway cities are embracing the icy continent<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/365124/original/file-20201022-17-h1v50y.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C12%2C2820%2C1827&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Image: Elizabeth Leane</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://ourspaces.org.uk/antartica-day-2/">Antarctica Day</a> celebrates the icy continent and its unique governance system. It’s the anniversary of the Antarctic Treaty’s adoption on December 1 1959. Framed in a spirit of global co-operation, the treaty acknowledges Antarctica does not belong to any one country. Article IV states:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>No acts or activities taking place while the present Treaty is in force shall constitute a basis for asserting, supporting or denying a claim to territorial sovereignty in Antarctica or create any rights of sovereignty in Antarctica.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>In practice the region is the subject of <a href="https://theconversation.com/is-australias-claim-to-antarctica-at-risk-33074">intense commercial and geopolitical interest</a>. Our work over the past four years has made clear the benefits of developing strategies to foster international co-operation among the five so-called Antarctic “gateway” cities rather than <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-07-05/international-competition-to-be-gateway-to-antarctica/8679924">international competition</a>.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/five-cities-that-could-change-the-future-of-antarctica-66259">Five cities that could change the future of Antarctica</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>These five cities on the Southern Ocean rim — Cape Town, Christchurch, Hobart, Punta Arenas and Ushuaia — share a unique interest in Antarctica and an opportunity to <a href="https://theconversation.com/five-cities-that-could-change-the-future-of-antarctica-66259">shape its future</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/365116/original/file-20201022-21-1061cyn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/365116/original/file-20201022-21-1061cyn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/365116/original/file-20201022-21-1061cyn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=589&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/365116/original/file-20201022-21-1061cyn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=589&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/365116/original/file-20201022-21-1061cyn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=589&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/365116/original/file-20201022-21-1061cyn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=741&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/365116/original/file-20201022-21-1061cyn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=741&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/365116/original/file-20201022-21-1061cyn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=741&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The five Antarctic gateway cities.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>How do their residents feel about Antarctica?</h2>
<p>Our survey of 1,659 residents of these cities in July this year found they care deeply about the icy continent. Overall, and for many particular groups, environmental care greatly outweighs economic interests. Many residents express hope that this care might translate into more protective policies and action.</p>
<p>However, emotions were mixed, with pessimism and sadness also common responses. When we asked people how they feel about “the future of Antarctica in the next 20 years”, “hope” took first place, followed closely by “pessimism” and “sadness”.</p>
<p>The survey is part of the <a href="https://antarctic-cities.org/">Antarctic Cities Project</a>, which finishes this month. For the past four years an international team of researchers, city officials, national Antarctic programs and youth groups have worked together to develop a framework to strengthen Antarctic connections and a sense of guardianship for the continent. The framework encompasses the cities’ own urban sustainability strategies within a wider concern for the planet. </p>
<p>Our work focuses on shifting from the limited idea of “gateway” to this broader sense of becoming Antarctic “custodial cities”. </p>
<p>Our online survey of the cities’ residents over the age of 18 asked: </p>
<ul>
<li><p>how informed they felt about the relationship between their city and Antarctica</p></li>
<li><p>their opinion on how important Antarctica is to their city’s identity</p></li>
<li><p>how responsible they, their families and friends think they are for the future of Antarctica. </p></li>
</ul>
<iframe title="Responses to questions on Antarctica by city and sex" aria-label="chart" id="datawrapper-chart-Nc9Ut" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/Nc9Ut/2/" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="border: none;" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p>We posed the question: “Why is it important for your city to develop an identity in relation to Antarctica?” The response “it drives us to take care of the environment” was most common (57%) across all five cities. Other responses included: </p>
<ul>
<li>“it creates a unique brand for our cities” (36%)</li>
<li>“it creates more jobs” (32%)</li>
<li>“it attracts more tourists” (31%)</li>
<li>“it reinforces residents’ attachment to place” (29%). </li>
</ul>
<p>Caring for the environment was the most selected option for all ages. Women felt this particularly strongly. Men favoured the more economically oriented options, “it generates more jobs” and “it attracts more tourists”. </p>
<p>Women and people between the ages of 31 and 40 reported higher levels of “hope” and lower levels of “indifference”. Indifference was higher among people between 18 and 30, reaching 16.42%. In this age group, and with men overall, “pessimism” significantly outweighed “hope”. Punta Arenas and Ushuaia residents expressed more “hope” than in other cities. </p>
<p>Young people’s expressions of pessimism and indifference bear witness to the urgent work of reforming our relationship to the Antarctic region. They will be the beneficiaries, and increasingly the drivers, of this reform. </p>
<h2>A decade of co-operative custodianship</h2>
<p>The cities first came together with the 2009 signing in Christchurch of a statement of intent to promote peaceful co-operation. Though it expired 18 months later, various city and national government policies have reinforced the five cities’ “Antarctic gateway” status. They have put forward visions for enhancing and capitalising on their Antarctic identities, a key part of their relationship to the world. </p>
<p>In an example of action at a local level, the City of Christchurch is moving towards a custodianship model by basing its 2018 Antarctic strategy on two key principles:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>embracing the Maori principle of <a href="https://teara.govt.nz/en/kaitiakitanga-guardianship-and-conservation"><em>Kaitiakitanga</em></a> –
meaning guardianship, protection, preservation or sheltering –
and a customary way of caring for the environment based on traditional Māori world view to guide the city’s involvement in the region</p></li>
<li><p>taking a leadership role in sustainable actions for the benefit of the Antarctic region and the city. </p></li>
</ul>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/non-human-democracy-in-the-anthropocene-it-cannot-be-all-about-us-51404">Non-human Democracy: in the Anthropocene, it cannot be all about us</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>In coming together, the five cities are showing they can play an important role in defining how Antarctica is imagined, how discourse is framed and how the continent is vicariously experienced. </p>
<p>The Antarctic Cities Project has created an interlinked network of organisations that can learn from and benefit each other. This network of local government, national Antarctic programs, youth groups and polar organisations has produced <a href="https://antarctic-cities.org/game/">Antarctic Futures</a>, an educational online <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/top-10-serious-games-all-time-juliette-denny/">serious game</a>. </p>
<p>The network also founded the <a href="https://antarctic-cities.org/ayc/">Antarctic Youth Coalition</a>. It was launched in February 2020 during an expedition to Antarctica with the <a href="http://www.inach.cl">Chilean Antarctic Institute</a>. </p>
<p><a href="https://antarctic-cities.org/the-expeditioners/">Five young leaders</a> from each of the cities steer the coalition. This year they put together an online <a href="https://www.hobartcity.com.au/Community/Events-and-activities/Antarctic-Day">Antarctica Day Festival</a> to celebrate and learn more about the ongoing importance of this polar region.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/365115/original/file-20201022-13-1k7ahcn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/365115/original/file-20201022-13-1k7ahcn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/365115/original/file-20201022-13-1k7ahcn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/365115/original/file-20201022-13-1k7ahcn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/365115/original/file-20201022-13-1k7ahcn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/365115/original/file-20201022-13-1k7ahcn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/365115/original/file-20201022-13-1k7ahcn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/365115/original/file-20201022-13-1k7ahcn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Antarctic Youth Coalition team with Juan Salazar at Collins Glacier, King George Island, Antarctic Peninsula, February 2020.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Image: Elizabeth Leane</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Principles for Antarctic cities</h2>
<p>During 2020 we began work on a Charter of Principles for Antarctic Cities in collaboration with the Hobart and Christchurch city councils. It draws from Christchurch’s 2018 <a href="https://www.christchurchnz.com/media/3o1dd2ca/antarctic_strategy.pdf">Antarctic Gateway Strategy</a> and the 2017 <a href="https://www.antarctic.tas.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/164749/Tasmanian_Antarctic_Gateway_Strategy_12_Dec_2017.pdf">Tasmanian Antarctic Gateway Strategy</a>. This charter will guide sustainable urban practice and embrace Antarctica’s significance to the economies of these cities while charting ways forward for sustainable development. </p>
<p>The charter aims to celebrate the unique polar heritage of these cities and emphasises the crucial role of youth organisations for engaging with the future of Antarctica. And it acknowledges that human connections with Antarctica extend well beyond the last two centuries, embracing Indigenous conceptions of caring for Country, both land and water.</p>
<p>In the <a href="https://theconversation.com/an-official-welcome-to-the-anthropocene-epoch-but-who-gets-to-decide-its-here-57113">Anthropocene</a>, global public consciousness of, and responsibility for, the icy continent in a time of climate change is increasing. These cities’ relationship with the region to their south and to each other is a valuable part of their urban identity and Antarctica’s future – something worth celebrating on Antarctica Day.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/new-research-shows-the-south-pole-is-warming-faster-than-the-rest-of-the-world-141536">New research shows the South Pole is warming faster than the rest of the world</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/148006/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Juan Francisco Salazar receives funding from the Australian Research Council Project LP160100210. He is affiliated with Future Earth Australia. He is an ARC Future Fellow (2020-2023). </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Elizabeth Leane receives funding from the Australian Research Council. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Liam Magee receives funding from the Australian Research Council. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Paul James receives funding from the Australian Research Council.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Katie Marx and Marina Khan do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>‘Antarctic cities’ residents care deeply about the continent, with environmental concerns outweighing economic priorities. Asked about its future, they feel a mix of hope, pessimism and sadness.Juan Francisco Salazar, Professor, School of Humanities and Communication Arts & Institute for Culture and Society, Western Sydney UniversityElizabeth Leane, Associate Professor of English and ARC Future Fellow, University of TasmaniaKatie Marx, PhD Candidate, Centre for Marine Socioecology, University of TasmaniaLiam Magee, Senior Research Fellow, Digital Media, Western Sydney UniversityMarina Khan, PhD Candidate, Institute for Culture and Society, Western Sydney UniversityPaul James, Professor of Globalization and Cultural Diversity, Western Sydney UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1426482020-07-15T20:00:11Z2020-07-15T20:00:11ZHumans are encroaching on Antarctica’s last wild places, threatening its fragile biodiversity<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347477/original/file-20200714-139992-14vm71s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=15%2C0%2C5018%2C3252&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">SL Chown</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/">CC BY-NC</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Since Western explorers discovered Antarctica 200 years ago, human activity has been increasing. Now, more than <a href="https://www.comnap.aq/">30 countries</a> operate scientific stations in Antarctica, more than <a href="https://iaato.org/information-resources/data-statistics/">50,000 tourists</a> visit each year, and new infrastructure continues to be developed to meet this rising demand. </p>
<p>Determining if our activities have compromised Antarctica’s wilderness has, however, remained difficult.</p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-020-2506-3">Our study</a>, published today in Nature, seeks to change that. Using a new “ecological informatics” approach, we’ve drawn together every available recorded visit by humans to the continent, over its 200 year history.</p>
<p>We found human activity across Antarctica has been extensive, especially in the ice-free and coastal areas, but that’s where most biodiversity is found. This means wilderness areas – parts of the continent largely untouched by human activity – do not capture many of the continent’s important biodiversity sites.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347480/original/file-20200714-37-1lzoq01.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347480/original/file-20200714-37-1lzoq01.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347480/original/file-20200714-37-1lzoq01.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347480/original/file-20200714-37-1lzoq01.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347480/original/file-20200714-37-1lzoq01.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347480/original/file-20200714-37-1lzoq01.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347480/original/file-20200714-37-1lzoq01.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Historical and contemporary human activity on Deception Island.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">SL Chown</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>One of the world’s largest intact wildernesses</h2>
<p>So just how large is the Antarctic wilderness? For the first time, our study calculated this area and how much biodiversity it captures. And, like all good questions, the answer is “that depends”. </p>
<p>If we think of Antarctica in the same way as every other continent, then the whole of Antarctica is a wilderness. It has no farms, no cities, no suburbs, no malls, no factories. And for a continent so large, it has very few people.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347536/original/file-20200715-33-60i8q.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347536/original/file-20200715-33-60i8q.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347536/original/file-20200715-33-60i8q.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347536/original/file-20200715-33-60i8q.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347536/original/file-20200715-33-60i8q.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347536/original/file-20200715-33-60i8q.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347536/original/file-20200715-33-60i8q.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Antarctica’s wilderness should be held to a higher standard.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">SL Chown</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But Antarctica is too different to compare to other continents – it should be held to a higher standard. And so we define “wilderness” as the areas that aren’t highly impacted by people. This would exclude, for example, tourist areas and scientific stations. And under this definition, the wilderness area is still large. </p>
<p>It’s about 13,598,148 square kilometres, or more than 99% of the continent. Only the wilderness in the vast forested areas of the far Northern Hemisphere is larger. Roughly, this area is nearly twice the size of Australia. </p>
<hr>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/marine-life-found-in-ancient-antarctica-ice-helps-solve-a-carbon-dioxide-puzzle-from-the-ice-age-141973">Marine life found in ancient Antarctica ice helps solve a carbon dioxide puzzle from the ice age</a>
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<p>On the other hand, the inviolate areas (places free from human interference) that the Antarctic Treaty Parties are <a href="https://www.ats.aq/e/protocol.html">obliged to identify and protect</a> are dwindling rapidly.</p>
<p>Our analyses suggest less than 32% of the continent includes large, unvisited areas. And even that’s an overestimate. Not all visits have been recorded, and several new traverses – crossing large tracts of unvisited areas – are being planned.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347475/original/file-20200714-139969-x1tfuj.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347475/original/file-20200714-139969-x1tfuj.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=528&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347475/original/file-20200714-139969-x1tfuj.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=528&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347475/original/file-20200714-139969-x1tfuj.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=528&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347475/original/file-20200714-139969-x1tfuj.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=663&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347475/original/file-20200714-139969-x1tfuj.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=663&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347475/original/file-20200714-139969-x1tfuj.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=663&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Human activity has been extensive across Antarctica, but large areas with no visitation record might still exist across central parts of the continent.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Leihy et al. 2020 Nature</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Wilderness areas have poor biodiversity value</h2>
<p>If so much of the continent remains “wild”, how much of Antarctica’s biodiversity lives within these areas?</p>
<p>Surprisingly few sites considered really important for Antarctic biodiversity are represented in the “un-impacted” wilderness area. </p>
<p>For example, only 16% of the continent’s <a href="https://www.birdlife.org/worldwide/programme-additional-info/important-bird-and-biodiversity-areas-ibas">Important Bird Areas</a> (areas identified internationally as critical for bird conservation) are located in wilderness areas. And only 25% of protected areas established for their species or ecosystem value, and less than 7% of sites with recorded species, are in wilderness areas.</p>
<p>This outcome is surprising because wilderness areas elsewhere, like the Amazon rainforest, are typically valued as crucial habitat for biodiversity.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347537/original/file-20200715-33-kddy9s.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347537/original/file-20200715-33-kddy9s.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347537/original/file-20200715-33-kddy9s.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347537/original/file-20200715-33-kddy9s.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347537/original/file-20200715-33-kddy9s.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347537/original/file-20200715-33-kddy9s.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347537/original/file-20200715-33-kddy9s.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Ice-free areas are critical habitat for Antarctic biodiversity, like Adélie penguins, and frequently visited by people as well.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">SL Chown</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Inviolate areas have seemingly even less biodiversity value. This is because people have mostly had to visit Antarctic sites to collect species data. </p>
<p>In the future, remote sensing technologies might allow us to investigate and monitor pristine areas without setting foot in them. But for now, most of our knowledge of Antarctic species comes from places that have been impacted to some extent by people.</p>
<h2>How does human activity threaten Antarctic biodiversity?</h2>
<p>Antarctica’s remaining wilderness areas need urgent protection from increasing human activity. </p>
<p>Even passing human disturbance can impact the biodiversity and wilderness value of sites. For example, sensitive vegetation and soil communities can take years to recover from trampling.</p>
<p>Increasing movement around the continent also increases the risk people will transfer species between isolated regions, or introduce new alien species to Antarctica.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347481/original/file-20200714-17-jtasar.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347481/original/file-20200714-17-jtasar.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=386&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347481/original/file-20200714-17-jtasar.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=386&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347481/original/file-20200714-17-jtasar.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=386&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347481/original/file-20200714-17-jtasar.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=486&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347481/original/file-20200714-17-jtasar.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=486&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347481/original/file-20200714-17-jtasar.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=486&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Expanding the existing network of Antarctic protected areas can secure remaining wilderness areas into the future.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">SL Chown</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>So how can we protect it?</h2>
<p>Protecting the Antarctic wilderness could be achieved by expanding the existing <a href="https://www.ats.aq/e/protected.html">Antarctic Specially Protected Areas</a> network to include more wilderness and inviolate areas where policymakers would limit human activity.</p>
<p>When planning how we’ll use Antarctica in the future, we could also consider the trade off between the benefits of science and tourism activities, and the value of retaining pristine wilderness and inviolate areas. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/microscopic-animals-are-busy-distributing-microplastics-throughout-the-worlds-soil-141353">Microscopic animals are busy distributing microplastics throughout the world's soil</a>
</strong>
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</p>
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<p>This could be done explicitly through the environmental impact assessments required for activities in the region. Currently, impacts on the wilderness value of sites are rarely considered.</p>
<p>We have an opportunity in Antarctica to protect some of the world’s most intact and undisturbed environments, and prevent further erosion of Antarctica’s remarkable wilderness value.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347539/original/file-20200715-33-1dyr13v.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/347539/original/file-20200715-33-1dyr13v.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347539/original/file-20200715-33-1dyr13v.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347539/original/file-20200715-33-1dyr13v.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347539/original/file-20200715-33-1dyr13v.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347539/original/file-20200715-33-1dyr13v.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/347539/original/file-20200715-33-1dyr13v.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Ross Sea Region, Antarctica. Few sites considered really important for Antarctic biodiversity are represented in the wilderness area.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">SL Chown</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/142648/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rachel Leihy receives funding from the Sir James McNeill Foundation. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Steven Chown is President of the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR). He receives funding and/or has received funding from the Australian Antarctic Science Program, the Australian Research Council and SCAR.</span></em></p>Protecting the continent’s remaining pristine wilderness areas is urgent, but achievable.Rachel Leihy, PhD candidate, Monash UniversitySteven Chown, Professor of Biological Sciences, Monash UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1366652020-05-19T12:16:32Z2020-05-19T12:16:32ZUS seeks to change the rules for mining the Moon<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/335463/original/file-20200515-138615-ay2p3z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5607%2C3421&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Who owns the Moon?</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/full-moon-karwendel-bavaria-germany-royalty-free-image/1140111522">Henglein and Steets/Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Private industries have <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-spacex-lowered-costs-and-reduced-barriers-to-space-112586">helped drop the cost of launching</a> rockets, satellites and other equipment into space to historic lows. That has boosted interest in developing space – both for <a href="http://www.spacedaily.com/news/china-02f.html">mining raw materials</a> such as silicon for solar panels and oxygen for <a href="https://www.popularmechanics.com/space/moon-mars/a32253706/history-moon-mining/">rocket fuel</a>, as well as potentially <a href="http://blogs.kqed.org/science/video/silicon-valley-goes-to-space/">relocating polluting industries</a> <a href="https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/07/20/space-research-can-save-the-planet-again-climate-change-environment/">off the Earth</a>. But the rules are not clear about who would profit if, for instance, a U.S. company like SpaceX colonized Mars or established a Moon base.</p>
<p>At the moment, no company – or nation – is yet ready to claim or take advantage of private property in space. But the <a href="https://www.industry.gov.au/sites/default/files/2019-03/global_space_industry_dynamics_-_research_paper.pdf">US$350 billion</a> space industry could change quickly. <a href="https://thehustle.co/11182019-moon-mining-startups/">Several companies</a> are already planning to <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/innovations/wp/2015/03/19/an-audacious-plan-to-mine-the-surface-of-the-moon/">explore the Moon</a> to find raw materials like water; Helium-3, which is potentially useful in fusion nuclear reactors; and <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-are-rare-earths-crucial-elements-in-modern-technology-4-questions-answered-101364">rare earth elements</a>, which are <a href="https://www.americangeosciences.org/critical-issues/faq/how-do-we-use-rare-earth-elements">invaluable for manufacturing</a> electronics. What they might find, and how easy the material is to bring back to Earth, remains to be seen.</p>
<p>Anticipating additional commercial interest, the Trump administration has <a href="https://www.space.com/trump-moon-mining-space-resources-executive-order.html">created new rules</a> through <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/executive-order-encouraging-international-support-recovery-use-space-resources/">an executive order</a> following a 2015 law change for how those companies might profit from operations on the Moon, asteroids and other planets. Those rules conflict with a <a href="https://www.thespacereview.com/article/1954/1">longstanding international treaty</a> the U.S. has generally followed but never formally joined. The administration also is planning to encourage other nations to adopt this new U.S. perspective on space mining.</p>
<p>As a <a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1972308">scholar of space law and policy</a> – and a proud <a href="https://thisibelieve.org/essay/29333/">sci-fi nerd</a> – <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=YtgRGx0AAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">I</a> believe the international community could find new ways to peacefully govern space from examples here on our planet, including deep seabed mining and Antarctica.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/335465/original/file-20200515-138644-9cfhm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/335465/original/file-20200515-138644-9cfhm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/335465/original/file-20200515-138644-9cfhm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335465/original/file-20200515-138644-9cfhm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335465/original/file-20200515-138644-9cfhm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335465/original/file-20200515-138644-9cfhm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335465/original/file-20200515-138644-9cfhm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335465/original/file-20200515-138644-9cfhm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A 2015 meeting of the International Seabed Authority.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Jamaica-Deep-Seabed-Mining/6ebb32d2413d4b4f80b2ee58103bc057/2/0">AP Photo/David McFadden</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Who owns space?</h2>
<p>In general, regions of Earth beyond any one nation’s control – like the high seas, the atmosphere and Antarctica – have been viewed by the international community as <a href="https://iasc-commons.org/about-commons/">globally shared resources</a>. That principle applied to space, too, until President Donald Trump’s executive order <a href="https://spacenews.com/white-house-looks-for-international-support-for-space-resource-rights/">specifically rejected the idea</a> that space was any sort of “global commons” shared among all nations and peoples of the Earth.</p>
<p>This step is the latest in a series of decisions by U.S. presidents over the last 40 years that have signaled <a href="https://www.fastcompany.com/90290871/outer-space-new-space-race-competition-cooperation">the country’s decreasing willingness to share</a> these types of resources, especially through an international body like the United Nations. </p>
<p>That is one reason why the U.S. has not ratified the <a href="https://www.un.org/Depts/los/convention_agreements/convention_historical_perspective.htm">U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea</a>, for example, which was agreed to in 1982 and took effect in 1994.</p>
<p>A similar story played out regarding the Moon.</p>
<h2>Moon Treaty and international space law</h2>
<p>Over the decades, the U.S. has sought to use its <a href="https://www.space.com/11751-nasa-american-presidential-visions-space-exploration.html">space policy</a> in various ways. President John F. Kennedy, for example, considered turning the Apollo Moon-landing program into a <a href="http://history.nasa.gov/SP-4407/vol2/v2intro.pdf">joint U.S.-Soviet mission</a> to promote peace between the superpowers.</p>
<p>Lyndon Johnson’s administration similarly saw space as a shared region, and in 1967 signed the <a href="https://www.unoosa.org/oosa/en/ourwork/spacelaw/treaties/introouterspacetreaty.html">Outer Space Treaty</a>, which proclaimed that space was the “province of all mankind.” However, that treaty didn’t say anything about mining on the Moon – so when the U.S. landed there in 1969, the international community called for regulations.</p>
<p>The U.N.’s eventual <a href="https://www.unoosa.org/oosa/en/ourwork/spacelaw/treaties/intromoon-agreement.html">Moon Treaty</a> declared the Moon the “<a href="https://moontreaty.org/">common heritage of mankind</a>,” and sought shared international control over resources found there.</p>
<p>However, that plan wasn’t very popular among advocates for a more commercial final frontier. In the U.S., a nonprofit group in favor of space colonization <a href="http://www.nss.org/settlement/L5news/L5history.htm">opposed the treaty</a>, fearing it would discourage private investment. The treaty failed ratification in the U.S. Senate. Only <a href="https://www.unoosa.org/oosa/en/ourwork/spacelaw/treaties/status/index.html">18 nations</a> have, in fact, ratified the Moon Treaty among them Mexico and Australia, none of them major space-faring powers. But even though many countries seem to agree that the Moon Treaty isn’t the right way to handle lunar property rights, that doesn’t mean they agree on what they actually should do.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/_vX6SpYhXqk?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">This movie was captured on July 11, 2019, when Hayabusa-2 touched down on asteroid Ryugu, using the onboard small monitor camera. The video playback speed is 10 times faster than actual time.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Finding profit in space</h2>
<p>As space launches got cheaper, the <a href="https://www.wired.com/2015/11/congress-says-yes-to-space-mining-no-to-rocket-regulations/">U.S. SPACE Act</a>, passed in 2015, gave U.S. companies the right to mine materials from <a href="https://theconversation.com/touching-the-asteroid-ryugu-revealed-secrets-of-its-surface-and-changing-orbit-137852">asteroids</a> for profit. That conflicts with the shared-resources view of the <a href="http://adsabs.harvard.edu/full/1992lbsa.conf..691G">1967 Outer Space Treaty</a>.</p>
<p>Since then, there have been further political efforts to remove perceived legal hurtles to space mining. In 2017, a Republican congressman sought to formalize the U.S. rejection of space as any sort of common property, <a href="https://lawless.tech/claiming-that-space-is-not-a-commons-is-a-bad-strategy/">proposing a bill</a> that said, “<a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/2809/text#toc-H031D6DABEAC04942A835BDD8E49A903B">outer space shall not be considered a global commons</a>.” That bill died, but it was <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/3610">reintroduced in 2019</a> and is currently awaiting action in the House.</p>
<h2>A new space race?</h2>
<p>Allowing private control of space resources could launch a <a href="https://theconversation.com/renewed-space-rivalry-between-nations-ignores-a-tradition-of-cooperation-108810">new space race</a>, in which wealthy companies, likely from developed countries, could take control of crucial resources – like <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/feature/ames/ice-confirmed-at-the-moon-s-poles/">ice on the Moon</a>, which could supply water for people or <a href="https://theconversation.com/mining-the-moon-for-rocket-fuel-to-get-us-to-mars-76123">to fuel rockets</a> – and profit handsomely.</p>
<p>That, in turn, would increase the likelihood of a military arms race, with the <a href="https://www.spaceforce.mil/">U.S.</a>, <a href="https://www.spacecom.mil/MEDIA/NEWS-ARTICLES/Article/2151611/russia-tests-direct-ascent-anti-satellite-missile/">Russia</a> and <a href="https://spacenews.com/defense-intelligence-report-china-on-steady-pursuit-of-space-capabilities-to-outmatch-u-s/">China</a> developing weapons to defend their citizens’ space assets. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/335749/original/file-20200518-83393-1jyr2mb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/335749/original/file-20200518-83393-1jyr2mb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/335749/original/file-20200518-83393-1jyr2mb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335749/original/file-20200518-83393-1jyr2mb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335749/original/file-20200518-83393-1jyr2mb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335749/original/file-20200518-83393-1jyr2mb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=677&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335749/original/file-20200518-83393-1jyr2mb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=677&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/335749/original/file-20200518-83393-1jyr2mb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=677&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Antarctica, a continent that by international agreement is has no armed military activity and is dedicated to scientific inquiry.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/spaceimages/details.php?id=PIA00117">NASA/JPL</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Applying lessons from the deep, and Antarctica</h2>
<p>In finding common ground, and charting a path forward, it is useful to consider lessons from other frontiers. The Moon Treaty tried to set up a system for sharing the benefits of Moon mining similar to how an existing system handled mining the deep sea. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.isa.org.jm/">International Seabed Authority</a> is a U.N. body that lets nations and private firms develop resources from the deep seabed so long as they share the proceeds, particularly with landlocked developing nations. It is recognized by more than 160 nations, though the U.S. is a <a href="https://www.voanews.com/usa/why-hasnt-us-signed-law-sea-treaty">notable holdout</a>. </p>
<p>Environmental groups have criticized the Authority for not doing enough to <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mining-deepsea/u-n-deep-sea-mining-body-rejects-greenpeace-criticism-idUSKCN1U016E">safeguard fragile marine environments</a>, but the overall model of sharing the wealth from a collective resource could still be useful. For instance, the Authority’s participants are working on a <a href="https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/projects/seabed-mining-project">new code of ethics for deep-sea mining</a> that would emphasize environmental sustainability. Those provisions could be mirrored on other worlds.</p>
<p>Similarly, the global management of Antarctica has useful parallels with the Moon. The entire continent is governed by a <a href="https://2009-2017.state.gov/t/avc/trty/193967.htm">treaty that has avoided conflict</a> since 1959 by freezing national territorial claims and barring military and commercial activities. Instead, the continent is reserved for <a href="https://2009-2017.state.gov/t/avc/trty/193967.htm#treaty">“peaceful purposes” and “scientific investigation.”</a></p>
<p>A similar approach could become the core of a second attempt at a Moon Treaty, and could even accommodate a provision for commercial activity along the lines of the deep-sea mining rules. In so doing, we must also learn what has <em>not</em> worked in the past, such as ignoring the interests of the private sector and the developing world. Advocates are correct that defining property rights is an important precursor, but it is not a binary choice between a “global commons” or private property, rather there are a universe of <a href="https://www.thecommonsjournal.org/articles/10.18352/ijc.252/">rights</a> that deserve consideration and that could provide a proper foundation for sustainable development.</p>
<p>But coming to an international agreement would take time, energy and a widespread willingness to view resources as common assets that should be collectively governed. All those ingredients are in short supply in a world where many countries are becoming more <a href="https://www.history.com/news/american-isolationism">isolationist</a>.</p>
<p>For the immediate future, other countries may or may not follow the U.S. lead, and its influence, toward privatizing space. <a href="https://www.nippon.com/en/currents/d00294/">Japan</a> seems interested, as does <a href="http://www.loc.gov/law/foreign-news/article/luxembourg-law-on-use-of-resources-in-space-adopted/">Luxembourg</a>, but China and Russia are concerned about their national security, and the European Space Agency is <a href="http://www.spacedaily.com/news/esa-general-04g.html">more inclined toward working collectively</a>. Without better coordination, it seems likely that eventually peaceful, sustainable development of off-world resources will give way to competing claims, despite readily available examples of how to avoid conflict.</p>
<p>[<em>Like what you’ve read? Want more?</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=likethis">Sign up for The Conversation’s daily newsletter</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/136665/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Scott Shackelford is a principal investigator on grants from the Hewlett Foundation, Indiana Economic Development Corporation, and the Microsoft Corporation supporting both the Ostrom Workshop Program on Cybersecurity and Internet Governance and the Indiana University Cybersecurity Clinic. He is also the co-recipient of funding from the Canadian Academy of Social Sciences related to managing orbital debris. </span></em></p>US and international law conflicts about who would be in charge if a private company established a Moon base or colonized Mars.Scott Shackelford, Associate Professor of Business Law and Ethics; Executive Director, Ostrom Workshop; Cybersecurity Program Chair, IU-Bloomington, Indiana UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1296072020-01-24T13:37:47Z2020-01-24T13:37:47Z200 years of exploring Antarctica – the world’s coldest, most forbidding and most peaceful continent<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/311478/original/file-20200122-32136-14li66.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5355%2C3186&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Aerial view of a glacier in the Antarctic peninsula region.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/glacier-flows-as-seen-from-nasas-operation-icebridge-news-photo/870893786?adppopup=true">Getty Images/Mario Tama</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Antarctica is the remotest part of the world, but it is a hub of scientific discovery, international diplomacy and environmental change. It was officially discovered 200 years ago, on Jan. 27, 1820, when members of a Russian expedition sighted land in what is now known as the Fimbul Ice Shelf on the continent’s east side. </p>
<p>Early explorers were drawn there by the mythology of <a href="https://lib-dbserver.princeton.edu/visual_materials/maps/websites/pacific/pacific-ocean/terra-australis.html">Terra Australis</a>, a vast southern continent that scholars imagined for centuries as a counterweight to the Northern Hemisphere. Others sought economic bounty from <a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/S0032247416000644">hunting whales and seals</a>, or the glory of conquering the planet’s last wilderness. Still others wanted to <a href="https://www.bgs.ac.uk/research/highlights/2012/terraNova.html">understand Earth’s magnetic fields</a> in order to better navigate the seas. </p>
<p>I am a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=2atjAwMAAAAJ&hl=en">geologist</a> who specializes in understanding the timing and extent of past ice ages. Much of my work focuses on the glacial history of Antarctica, and I’ve been privileged to conduct five field seasons of research there. </p>
<p>For the next two years I’ll be working with a field team made up entirely of undergraduate students from Vanderbilt University to determine whether the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_Antarctic_Ice_Sheet">East Antarctic Ice Sheet</a> changes flow patterns as it changes shape. All of the research these budding scientists conduct will be done under the auspices of the <a href="https://www.ats.aq/index_e.html">Antarctic Treaty</a>, a global agreement that promotes scientific cooperation and environmental protection.</p>
<h2>Frozen but abundant</h2>
<p>Antarctica separated from South America 35 million years ago, and its climate started to change. It began to grow <a href="https://nsidc.org/cryosphere/quickfacts/icesheets.html">ice sheets</a> – masses of glacial land ice covering thousands of square miles. As plate tectonics shifted other continents, Antarctica became colder and drier. For the past 14 million years, it has been the frigid continent that persists today. </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/311477/original/file-20200122-117962-1knrm08.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/311477/original/file-20200122-117962-1knrm08.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/311477/original/file-20200122-117962-1knrm08.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/311477/original/file-20200122-117962-1knrm08.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/311477/original/file-20200122-117962-1knrm08.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/311477/original/file-20200122-117962-1knrm08.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/311477/original/file-20200122-117962-1knrm08.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/311477/original/file-20200122-117962-1knrm08.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Antarctica is mostly covered by ice sheets on land and fringed by floating ice shelves.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.climate.gov/news-features/features/antarctica-colder-arctic-it%E2%80%99s-still-losing-ice">NOAA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Antarctica is the only continent that was literally discovered, because it has no native human population. British explorer Sir James Cook circumnavigated the continent in 1772-1775, but saw only some outlying islands. Cook <a href="https://cudl.lib.cam.ac.uk/view/MS-JOD-00020/1">concluded</a> that if there were any land, it would be “condemned to everlasting regidity by Nature, never to yield to the warmth of the sun.” </p>
<p>Cook also reported that Antarctic waters were rich with nutrients and wildlife. This drew sealers and whalers, mainly from England and the United States, who hunted the region’s fur seals and elephant seals to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/S0032247416000644">near-extinction</a> in the following decades. This hunting spree led to the discovery of the Antarctic mainland and its ice sheets, the largest in the world.</p>
<h2>Reading the ice</h2>
<p>Today the combined East and West Antarctic ice sheets hold 90% of the world’s ice, enough to raise global sea levels by <a href="https://nsidc.org/cryosphere/quickfacts/icesheets.html">roughly 200 feet (60 meters) if it all melted</a>. Antarctica is the coldest, highest, driest, windiest, brightest, and yes, iciest continent on Earth. And 200 years of research has shown that it is a key component of Earth’s climate system.</p>
<p>Despite the appearance that it is an unchanging, freeze-dried landscape, my research and work by many others has shown that the East Antarctica Ice Sheet does slowly <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.2039">thin and thicken over millions of years</a>. Interestingly, my data also suggest that as the ice advances and retreats, it moves in <a href="https://gsa.confex.com/gsa/2016AM/webprogram/Paper285013.html">the same patterns each time</a>. Put another way, the ice flows over the same land each time it advances.</p>
<p>While East Antarctica adds and loses ice slowly, it is so large that it is a <a href="https://www.pnas.org/content/116/4/1095">major contributor to sea level rise</a>. Understanding how the ice has changed in the past is key to predicting how much and how fast it will melt in the coming years. </p>
<p>These questions are especially important in West Antarctica, where the bottom of the ice sheet is below sea level, making it very susceptible to changes in sea level and ocean temperature. By itself, the West Antarctic ice sheet has the potential to raise sea level by <a href="https://www.the-cryosphere.net/7/375/2013/">16 feet (5 meters) if it collapses</a>.</p>
<p>As climate change raises global sea levels, parts of the West Antarctica Ice Sheet, such as the <a href="https://thwaitesglacier.org/">Thwaites</a> and <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/features/pine-island">Pine Island Glaciers</a>, are particularly vulnerable to collapse. At the end of the last ice age, parts of West Antarctica thinned by an average of <a href="https://science.sciencemag.org/content/299/5603/99">1.5 to 3 feet (0.5 - 1 meters) per year</a>. Today with GPS, satellite and airborne measurements, scientists are seeing parts of West Antarctica thin by <a href="https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/2014GL060111">3 to 20 feet (1 to 6 meters) per year</a>. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/YRe1ymYR45k?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Antarctica is losing ice at an accelerating rate, partly due to climate change.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We also know from the geological record that this ice sheet is capable of rapid collapses, and has sometimes thinned at rates in excess of <a href="https://science.sciencemag.org/content/343/6174/999.abstract">30 feet (10 meters) per year</a>. Recent models show sea level could rise by <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/nature17145">1 meter by 2100 and 15 meters by 2500</a> if greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise at current rates and the ice sheet experiences a rapid collapse, as it has in the past. </p>
<h2>Finding inspiration in scientific diplomacy</h2>
<p>Despite the potential for environmental disaster in Antarctica, the continent also offers evidence that nations can collaborate to find solutions. The <a href="https://www.scar.org/policy/antarctic-treaty-system/">Antarctic Treaty System</a> is the world’s premier example of peaceful and scientific international cooperation. </p>
<p>This landmark accord, signed in 1961, sets aside Antarctica for peaceful and scientific purposes and recognizes no land claims on the continent. It also was the first non-nuclear accord ever signed, barring use of Antarctica for nuclear weapons testing or disposal of radioactive waste.</p>
<p>The great Antarctic explorer <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/shackleton_ernest.shtml">Sir Ernest Shackleton</a> said that “optimism is true moral courage,” and the authors of the Antarctic Treaty were certainly courageous optimists. They were encouraged by the success of the 1957-1958 <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/International-Geophysical-Year">International Geophysical Year</a>, a worldwide program of scientific research during which 12 countries built over 50 bases in Antarctica, including <a href="https://www.nsf.gov/geo/opp/support/mcmurdo.jsp">McMurdo Station</a> and the <a href="https://www.nsf.gov/geo/opp/support/southp.jsp">Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/311481/original/file-20200122-32188-wqqhfn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/311481/original/file-20200122-32188-wqqhfn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/311481/original/file-20200122-32188-wqqhfn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=359&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/311481/original/file-20200122-32188-wqqhfn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=359&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/311481/original/file-20200122-32188-wqqhfn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=359&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/311481/original/file-20200122-32188-wqqhfn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=451&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/311481/original/file-20200122-32188-wqqhfn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=451&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/311481/original/file-20200122-32188-wqqhfn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=451&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Flags of the 12 original Antarctic Treaty member countries at McMurdo Station, Antarctica.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://antarcticsun.usap.gov/features/4410/">U.S. Antarctic Program/Rob Jones</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Under the treaty, scientists from North Korea, Russia and China can freely visit U.S. research stations in Antarctica. Researchers from India and Pakistan willingly share their data about Antarctic glaciers. </p>
<p>Thanks to the Antarctic Treaty, 10% of Earth’s land surface is protected as a wildlife and wilderness refuge. I have set foot in places in Antarctica where I know no one has ever been before, and the treaty sets areas aside that no one will ever visit. Antarctica’s landscapes are unlike anywhere else on Earth. The best comparison may be the Moon. </p>
<p>Yet in these stark environments, <a href="https://www.bas.ac.uk/about/antarctica/wildlife/">life finds a way to persist</a> – showing that there are solutions to even the most daunting challenges. If Antarctica has taught us anything in 200 years, it’s that we can cooperate and collaborate to overcome problems. As <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/profiles/WTfFSJCJ5jkqnGPm4fqHyy/ernest-shackleton">Ernest Shackleton once said</a>, “Difficulties are just things to overcome, after all.” </p>
<p>[ <em><a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=thanksforreading">Thanks for reading! We can send you The Conversation’s stories every day in an informative email. Sign up today.</a></em> ]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/129607/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dan Morgan receives funding from the National Science Foundation.</span></em></p>Two centuries after it was first sighted by Russian explorers, Antarctica is a key site for studying the future of Earth’s climate – and for global scientific cooperation.Dan Morgan, Associate Dean and Principal Senior Lecturer in Earth and Environmental Sciences, Vanderbilt UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1221222019-08-23T00:44:50Z2019-08-23T00:44:50ZAustralia wants to install military technology in Antarctica – here’s why that’s allowed<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/289008/original/file-20190822-170906-6mdnj1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C9%2C3249%2C1822&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Technology, such as satellite systems, can be used for both military and scientific purposes. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>This week, the ABC <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-08-19/australia-antarctica-military-dual-use-technology/11427226">revealed</a> that the Australian Defence Force wants to roll out military technology in Antarctica. </p>
<p>The article raises the issue of what is, or is not, legitimate use of technology under the <a href="https://www.ats.aq/e/ats.htm">Antarctic Treaty</a>. And it has a lot to do with how technology is used and provisions in the treaty.</p>
<p>The Antarctic Treaty was negotiated in the late 1950s, during the Cold War. Its purpose was to keep Antarctica separate from any Cold War conflict, and any arguments over sovereignty claims.</p>
<hr>
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<em>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/as-china-flexes-its-muscles-in-antarctica-science-is-the-best-diplomatic-tool-on-the-frozen-continent-86059">As China flexes its muscles in Antarctica, science is the best diplomatic tool on the frozen continent</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
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<p>The words used in the treaty reflect the global politics and technologies back then, before there were satellites and GPS systems. But its provisions and prohibitions are still relevant today.</p>
<p>The opening provision of the <a href="https://documents.ats.aq/keydocs/vol_1/vol1_2_AT_Antarctic_Treaty_e.pdf">Antarctic Treaty</a>, which came into force in 1961, says:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Antarctica shall be used for peaceful purposes only. There shall be prohibited, [among other things], any measures of a military nature, such as the establishment of military bases and fortifications, the carrying out of military manoeuvres, as well as the testing of any type of weapons.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The treaty also prohibits “any nuclear explosions in Antarctica” and disposal of radioactive waste. What the treaty does not do, however, is prohibit countries from using military support in their peaceful Antarctic activities. </p>
<p>Many Antarctic treaty parties, including Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, the US, Chile and Argentina, rely on military support for their research. This includes the use of ships, aircraft, personnel and specialised services like aircraft ground support.</p>
<p>In fact, the opening provision of the treaty is clarified by the words: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>the present Treaty shall not prevent the use of military personnel or equipment for scientific research or for any other peaceful purpose.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>It would be a breach of the treaty if “military exercises” were being conducted in Antarctica, or if military equipment was being used for belligerent purposes. But the treaty does not deal specifically with technology. It deals with acts or actions. The closest it gets to technology is the term “equipment” as used above.</p>
<h2>Dual use technology</h2>
<p>So-called “dual use” technology – which that can be used for both peaceful and military purposes – is allowed in Antarctica in support of science.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/for-the-first-time-we-can-measure-the-human-footprint-on-antarctica-112856">For the first time, we can measure the human footprint on Antarctica</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>The term is often used to describe technology such as the widely-used GPS, which relies on satellites and a worldwide system of ground-based receiving stations. Norway’s “<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troll_Satellite_Station">Trollsat</a>”, China’s “<a href="https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/FlagPost/2015/February/Beidou_China_new_satellite_navigation_system">Beidou</a>”, and Russia’s “<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GLONASS">GLONASS</a>” systems are similar, relying on satellites and ground stations for their accuracy. </p>
<p>What’s more, modern science heavily relies on satellite technology and the use of Antarctic ground stations for data gathering and transmission.</p>
<p>And scientific equipment, like ice-penetrating radars, carried on aircraft, drones, and autonomous airborne vehicles are being used extensively to understand the Antarctic continent itself and how it’s changing. </p>
<p>Much, if not all, of this technology could have “dual use”. But its use is not contrary to the Antarctic Treaty. </p>
<p>In fact, the use of this equipment for “scientific research” or a “peaceful purpose” is not only legitimate, it’s also essential for Antarctic research, and global understanding of the health of our planet.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-benefits-and-pitfalls-of-working-in-isolation-105350">The benefits – and pitfalls – of working in isolation</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>The technologies Australia deploys in Antarctica all relate to its legitimate Antarctic operations and to science. </p>
<p>There are also facilities in Antarctica used to monitor potential military-related activities elsewhere in the world, such as the monitoring stations <a href="http://www.antarctica.gov.au/news/2018/nuclear-monitoring-facility-certified">used under</a> the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty.</p>
<p>The circumstances under which modern technology would, or could be, used against the provisions of the Antarctic Treaty have not been tested. But the activity would have to go beyond “dual purpose” and not be for science or peaceful purposes. </p>
<h2>Science in Antarctica is open to scrutiny</h2>
<p>Science in Antarctica is very diverse, from space sciences to ecosystem science, and 29 countries have active <a href="https://www.ats.aq/devAS/ats_parties.aspx?lang=e">research programs</a> there. </p>
<p>And since Antarctica plays a significant role in the global climate system, much modern Antarctic <a href="https://www.scar.org/">research</a> focuses on climate science and climate change.</p>
<p>But there has been speculation about whether Antarctica is crucial to the development of alternatives to GPS (for example, by Russia and China) that could also be used in warfare as well as for peaceful purposes. It’s unclear whether using ground stations in Antarctica is essential for such a purpose.</p>
<p>For instance, Claire Young, a security analyst writing for the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, <a href="https://www.aspistrategist.org.au/whats-china-up-to-in-antarctica/">said</a> the accuracy of China’s Beidou satellite has already been improved by international testing, so testing in Antarctica will make very little difference. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/remembering-antarcticas-nuclear-past-with-nukey-poo-99934">Remembering Antarctica's nuclear past with 'Nukey Poo'</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>This leads to another important provision of the Antarctic Treaty.</p>
<p>The treaty foreshadowed compliance problems in the remote and hostile continent by including an open ended provision for any Antarctic Treaty Party to inspect any Antarctic facility. </p>
<p>In other words, any party has complete freedom to access all parts of Antarctica at any time to inspect ships, aircraft, equipment, or any other facility, and even use “aerial observations” for inspection. This means the activities of all parties, and all actions in Antarctica, are available for open scrutiny.</p>
<p>This inspection regime is important because inspections can be used to determine if modern technology on the continent is, in fact, being used for scientific or peaceful purposes, in line with the provisions of the treaty.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/122122/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tony Press receives funding from the Australian Research Council. </span></em></p>‘Dual use’ technology – technology used for both peaceful and military purposes – is allowed in Antarctica, according to the treaty.Tony Press, Adjunct Professor, Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of TasmaniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1060722018-11-01T04:29:53Z2018-11-01T04:29:53ZEarth’s wilderness is vanishing, and just a handful of nations can save it<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/243404/original/file-20181101-173911-3wtxox.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C2048%2C1360&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Brazil, home to the Amazon, is one of just five 'mega-wilderness' countries.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">CIFOR</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Just 20 countries are home to 94% of the world’s remaining wilderness, excluding the high seas and Antarctica, according to our new global wilderness map, <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-018-07183-6">published today in Nature</a>. </p>
<p>A century ago, wilderness extended over most of the planet. Today, only 23% of land – excluding Antarctica – and 13% of the ocean remains free from the harmful impacts of human activities.</p>
<p>More than 70% of remaining wilderness is in just five countries: Australia, Russia, Canada, the United States (Alaska), and Brazil.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/243402/original/file-20181101-173902-1xqqmg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/243402/original/file-20181101-173902-1xqqmg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/243402/original/file-20181101-173902-1xqqmg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=298&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/243402/original/file-20181101-173902-1xqqmg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=298&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/243402/original/file-20181101-173902-1xqqmg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=298&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/243402/original/file-20181101-173902-1xqqmg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/243402/original/file-20181101-173902-1xqqmg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/243402/original/file-20181101-173902-1xqqmg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=375&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The last of the wild. Remaining marine wilderness is shown in blue; terrestrial wilderness in green.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Watson et al. 2018</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We argue that wilderness can still be saved. But success will depend on the steps these “mega-wilderness nations” take, or fail to take, to secure the future of Earth’s last remaining wild places.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/243401/original/file-20181101-173884-1ai76gk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/243401/original/file-20181101-173884-1ai76gk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/243401/original/file-20181101-173884-1ai76gk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=455&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/243401/original/file-20181101-173884-1ai76gk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=455&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/243401/original/file-20181101-173884-1ai76gk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=455&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/243401/original/file-20181101-173884-1ai76gk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=571&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/243401/original/file-20181101-173884-1ai76gk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=571&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/243401/original/file-20181101-173884-1ai76gk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=571&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Mega-wilderness countries.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">James Allan</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Wilderness areas are vast tracts of untamed and unmodified land and sea. Regardless of where they are – from the lowland rainforests of Papua New Guinea, to the high taiga forests of Russia’s Arctic, to the vast deserts of inland Australia, to the great mixing zones of the Pacific, Antarctic and Indian Oceans – these areas are the last strongholds for endangered species, and perform vital functions such as storing carbon, and buffering us against the effects of climate change. In many wilderness areas, indigenous peoples, who are often the most politically and economically marginalised of all peoples, depend on them for their livelihoods and cultures.</p>
<p>Yet despite being important and highly threatened, wilderness areas and their values are completely overlooked in international environmental policy. In most countries, wilderness is not formally defined, mapped or protected. This means there is nothing to hold nations, industry, society and community to account for wilderness conservation.</p>
<h2>Beyond boundaries</h2>
<p>Almost two-thirds of marine wilderness is in the high seas, beyond nations’ immediate control. This effectively makes it a marine wild west, where fishing fleets have a free-for-all. There are some laws to manage high-seas fishing, but there is no legally binding agreement governing high-seas conservation, although the <a href="https://www.un.org/press/en/2018/sea2086.doc.htm">United Nations is currently negotiating such a treaty</a>. Ensuring marine wilderness is off-limits to exploitation will be crucial.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/new-map-shows-that-only-13-of-the-oceans-are-still-truly-wild-100820">New map shows that only 13% of the oceans are still truly wild</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>And we cannot forget Antarctica, arguably Earth’s greatest remaining wilderness and one of the last places on the planet where vast regions have never experienced a human footfall. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/243408/original/file-20181101-173887-31cpf9.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/243408/original/file-20181101-173887-31cpf9.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/243408/original/file-20181101-173887-31cpf9.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/243408/original/file-20181101-173887-31cpf9.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/243408/original/file-20181101-173887-31cpf9.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/243408/original/file-20181101-173887-31cpf9.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/243408/original/file-20181101-173887-31cpf9.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/243408/original/file-20181101-173887-31cpf9.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Antarctica, the (almost) untouched continent.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>While Antarctica’s isolation and extreme climate have helped protect it from the degradation experienced elsewhere, climate change, human activity, pollution, and invasive species increasingly threaten the continent’s wildlife and wilderness. </p>
<p>Parties to the <a href="https://ats.aq/e/ats_keydocs.htm">Antarctic Treaty</a> must act on their commitments to help reduce human impacts, and we need to urgently curb global carbon emissions before it is too late to save Antarctica.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/earths-wildernesses-are-disappearing-and-not-enough-of-them-are-world-heritage-listed-80325">Earth's wildernesses are disappearing, and not enough of them are World Heritage-listed</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Our maps show how little wilderness is left, and how much has been lost in the past few decades. It is hard to believe, but between 1993 and 2009 a staggering 3.3 million square kilometres of terrestrial wilderness – an area larger than India – was lost to human settlement, farming, mining and other pressures. In the ocean, the only regions free of industrial fishing, pollution and shipping are confined to the poles or remote Pacific island nations.</p>
<h2>Saving wilderness</h2>
<p>Almost every nation has signed international environmental agreements that aim to end the biodiversity crisis, halt dangerous climate change, and achieve global
sustainable development goals. We believe Earth’s remaining wilderness can only be
secured if its importance is immediately recognised within these agreements.</p>
<p>At a <a href="https://www.cbd.int/conferences/2018">summit in Egypt</a> later this month, the 196 signatory nations to the <a href="https://www.cbd.int/">Convention on Biological Diversity</a> will work alongside scientists on developing a strategic plan for conservation beyond 2020. This is a unique opportunity for all nations to recognise that Earth’s wilderness are dwindling, and to mandate a global target for wilderness conservation.</p>
<p>A global target of retaining 100% of all remaining wilderness is achievable, although it would require stopping industrial activities like mining, logging, and fishing from expanding to new places. But committing explicitly to such a target would make it easier for governments and non-governmental organisations to leverage funding and mobilise action on the ground in nations that are still developing economically.</p>
<p>Similarly, the role of wilderness in guarding against climate change – such as by storing huge amounts of carbon – could also be formally documented in the <a href="https://unfccc.int/">UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)</a>, which holds its <a href="https://unfccc.int/katowice">annual conference</a> in Poland next month. This would incentivise nations to make wilderness protection central to their climate strategies. </p>
<p>Mechanisms such as <a href="https://redd.unfccc.int/">REDD+</a>, which allows developing nations to claim compensation for conserving tropical forests they had planned to clear, could be extended to other carbon-rich wilderness areas such as intact seagrasses, and even to wildernesses in rich countries that do not receive climate aid, such as the Canadian tundra.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/243394/original/file-20181101-173890-ksm1n1.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/243394/original/file-20181101-173890-ksm1n1.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/243394/original/file-20181101-173890-ksm1n1.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/243394/original/file-20181101-173890-ksm1n1.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/243394/original/file-20181101-173890-ksm1n1.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/243394/original/file-20181101-173890-ksm1n1.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=504&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/243394/original/file-20181101-173890-ksm1n1.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=504&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/243394/original/file-20181101-173890-ksm1n1.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=504&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Boreal/Taiga Forest holds one third of the world’s terrestrial carbon.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Keith Williams</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Nations have ample opportunities, through legislation and rewarding good behaviour, to prevent road and shipping lane expansion, and enforcing limits on large-scale developments and industrial fishing in their wilderness areas. They can also establish protected areas to slow the spread of industrial activity into wilderness. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-moral-value-of-wilderness-90090">The moral value of wilderness</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>A diverse set of approaches must be embraced, and the private sector must work with governments so that industry protects, rather than harms, wilderness areas. Key to this will be lenders’ investment and performance standards, particularly for organisations such as the World Bank, the International Finance Corporation, and the regional development banks.</p>
<p>Our planet faces not just a species extinction crisis, but also a wilderness extinction crisis. Once lost, our wild places are gone forever. This may be our last opportunity to save the last of the wild, we cannot afford to miss it.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/106072/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>James Watson receives funding from the Australian Research Council and the National Environmental Science Program. He is Director of the Science and Research Initiative at the Wildlife Conservation Society. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kendall Jones is affiliated with the Wildlife Conservation Society.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>James Allan and Jasmine Lee do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>More than two-thirds of Earth’s remaining wilderness is in the hands of just five countries, according to a new global map. A concerted conservation effort is needed to save our last wild places.James Allan, Postdoctoral research fellow, School of Biological Sciences, The University of QueenslandJames Watson, Professor, The University of QueenslandJasmine Lee, PhD candidate, biodiversity conservation and climate change, The University of QueenslandKendall Jones, PhD candidate, Geography, Planning and Environmental Management, The University of QueenslandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1058582018-10-31T05:13:44Z2018-10-31T05:13:44ZExplainer: what any country can and can’t do in Antarctica, in the name of science<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/243158/original/file-20181031-76405-1rep8f4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">In Antarctica, many countries want a piece of the action.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/cmichel67/26459153968/">Flickr/Christopher Michel</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Antarctica is owned by no one, but there are plenty of countries interested in this frozen island continent at the bottom of the Earth.</p>
<p>While there are some regulations on who can do what there, scientific research has no definition in Antarctic law. So any research by a country conducted in or about Antarctica can be interpreted as legitimate Antarctic science.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-a-near-perfect-rectangular-iceberg-formed-105655">How a near-perfect rectangular iceberg formed</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>There are 30 <a href="https://comnap.aq/Members/Shared%20Documents/COMNAP_Antarctic_Station_Catalogue.pdf">countries</a> – including Australia – operating bases and ships, and flying aircraft to and from runways across the continent. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-10-28/china-and-russia-are-eyeing-up-antarctica/10433024">Russia and China</a> have increased their presence in Antarctica over the past decade, with China now <a href="https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/2170735/china-begin-building-first-permanent-airfield-antarctica">reportedly interested</a> in building its first permanent airfield.</p>
<p>It is not surprising there is significant interest in who is doing what, where – especially if countries ramp up their investment in Antarctic infrastructure with new stations, ships or runways.</p>
<p>Their actions might raise eyebrows and fuel speculation. But the freedom of countries to behave autonomously is guided by the laws that apply to this sovereign-neutral continent.</p>
<h2>Treaties and signatories</h2>
<p>There are 12 original signatories to the 1959 <a href="https://ats.aq/e/ats_keydocs.htm">Antarctic Treaty</a>, including Australia, and they do not have to prove their commitment to the treaty since they wrote the rules.</p>
<p>Another <a href="https://ats.aq/devAS/ats_parties.aspx?lang=e">41 countries</a> have signed on since 1959, and they do need to prove commitment. </p>
<p>Non-signatory countries, such as Iran or Indonesia, are freed from many of these legal obligations. </p>
<p>Until such time as the Antarctic Treaty has been designated customary international law applicable to all states by a high authority (such as the International Court of Justice), non-signatories can essentially do what they like in Antarctica. </p>
<h2>The appliance of science</h2>
<p>Autonomous freedom of activity by signatory countries is legitimised through the fact that science is the currency of credibility in Antarctica. This is important for two reasons:</p>
<ol>
<li>scientific research has legal priority</li>
<li>new signatories can become decision-makers when they do science.</li>
</ol>
<p>The “<a href="https://www.ats.aq/e/ats_science.htm">freedom of scientific investigation</a>” is preserved in Article II of the Antarctic Treaty. It directs that signatories to the treaty can conduct scientific research of any kind anywhere in the Antarctic, without anybody else’s permission.</p>
<p>The Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (<a href="https://www.scar.org/">SCAR</a>) coordinates Antarctic research, but being a <a href="https://www.scar.org/about-us/members/overview/">member</a> is not a prerequisite for doing Antarctic science. </p>
<p>Further, the treaty outlines the process for new signatories (that is, other than the <a href="https://www.ats.aq/devAS/ats_parties.aspx?lang=e">original 12</a>) to achieve Consultative Party (decision-making) status. </p>
<p>Decisions are made by consensus (that is, everyone agrees or there is no formal objection). So every country’s “vote” counts and new countries aspire to gain a seat at the table to further their national agendas. </p>
<p>They become Consultative Parties by conducting “substantial scientific research activity” (Article IX.2) and when this has been accomplished to the satisfaction of the other decision-makers, they will be accepted. </p>
<h2>Piggy backing</h2>
<p>Demonstrating interest in Antarctic science was initially interpreted as building a base or dispatching an expedition (Article IX.2). But after the adoption of the <a href="https://www.ats.aq/e/ats_keydocs.htm">environmental protocol</a> to the treaty in 1991, this was re-interpreted.</p>
<p>Parties were encouraged (but not legally bound) to consider piggy-backing on existing national scientific expeditions of other countries, and to share stations and other resources such as ships and aircraft where possible. </p>
<p>Currently there is only one jointly operated scientific base - <a href="http://www.institut-polaire.fr/ipev-en/infrastructures-2/stations/concordia/">Concordia</a>, occupied by both France and Italy. The Novolazarevskaya airfield is a joint operation coordinated by Russia. </p>
<p>This encouragement was designed to reduce the potential for expansion of the footprint of human activities. </p>
<p>In 2017 the Consultative Parties adopted <a href="https://ats.aq/devAS/ats_meetings_meeting_measure.aspx?lang=e">revised guidelines</a> for how to become a decision maker. These outline new rules on a concept that has never been articulated publicly in an Antarctic forum before – evaluating the quality of scientific research. </p>
<p>This could put the brakes on the rapid addition of new signatories to the table.</p>
<h2>There are limits</h2>
<p>Although there is freedom to conduct science anywhere in Antarctica, what any country cannot do is lay claim to territory on the basis of its research efforts.</p>
<p>The treaty expressly excludes new claims or the extension of existing claims. Signatories that conduct research, and support those endeavours by building a base and infrastructure such as an airstrip, cannot use those actions as a basis of a claim while the treaty is in force. </p>
<p>Seven countries claim Antarctic territory: Argentina, Australia, Chile, France, New Zealand, Norway and the United Kingdom. Two others – the United States and the Russian Federation – have reserved their rights to claim any or all of Antarctica in the future.</p>
<p>These paper claims are acknowledged by Article IV of the treaty. But its artful craftsmanship prevents conflict over the claims and reservations during the life of the Treaty – which incidentally has neither an expiry nor a future review date. </p>
<p>Because the Article II freedoms permit research to be undertaken anywhere on the continent, the borders delineating claims become irrelevant to all but the claimant. </p>
<p>A party has an option of recognising a claim, or not, and does not need anyone’s permission to build a station or send an expedition. This means that the claimants have very limited capacity to exercise sovereignty in their territory. This effectively reduces their power to that of jurisdiction only over their own nationals.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-a-trip-to-antarctica-became-a-real-life-experiment-in-decision-making-96726">How a trip to Antarctica became a real-life experiment in decision-making</a>
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<p>The sting in the tail is that conducting substantial scientific research activity in Antarctica – including the building of support infrastructure – is the pathway new states must take to achieve decision-making status. </p>
<p>This is only constrained by the legal requirement to undertake an environmental impact assessment of any activity prior to its commencement. </p>
<p>Irrespective of whether the activity’s proponent complies with <a href="https://www.ats.aq/devAS/info_measures_listitem.aspx?lang=e&id=637">best practice environmental evaluation</a>, under the rules, no other party can veto that activity. </p>
<p>Essentially, any country – whether a party to the treaty or not – can do whatever they like in Antarctica.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/105858/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Julia Jabour does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>There are some limits on what countries can do in the Antarctic, but not when it comes to science.Julia Jabour, Leader, Ocean and Antarctic Governance Research Program, University of TasmaniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/986542018-07-12T10:29:48Z2018-07-12T10:29:48ZIn 30 years the Antarctic Treaty becomes modifiable, and the fate of a continent could hang in the balance<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/224495/original/file-20180622-26555-fza45p.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption"></span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/two-penguins-dreaming-sitting-on-rock-87420404?src=yhRfS8Jn-jox2B8WN-2Org-2-62">shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Three decades from now, several crucial elements of the Antarctic Treaty will come up for possible renewal, plunging the future of the continent into uncertainty.</p>
<p>For six decades, the treaty has been the cornerstone of governance for our most southerly, harshest and most pristine continent. It has fostered scientific research, promoted international cooperation, ensured non-militarisation, suspended territorial claims and strengthened environmental protections. Its guardians are the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Parties (ATCPs) – chief among them the US, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Russia, Norway, Germany, Chile and Argentina.</p>
<p>Out in the field, a new generation of robots and drones are peering under ice shelves, probing the ocean depths and monitoring glaciers, ushering in the age of the “Smart Antarctic”. The ice sheets aren’t exactly flourishing – the Antarctic continent has lost <a href="https://theconversation.com/antarctica-has-lost-nearly-3-trillion-tonnes-of-ice-since-1992-98259">three trillion tonnes of the stuff</a> since 1992 – but scientific research is thriving.</p>
<p>For many polar researcher this is a reason for optimism – but in the political arena, the horizon is darkening. As it stands, the Antarctic Treaty acts as a safeguard for Antarctic science: an international bulwark against commercial or political interference. But as the years tick by, the treaty – and the cooperation that accompanies it – could begin to quietly fracture or even disintegrate completely.</p>
<h2>Riches under the ice</h2>
<p>In 1998, seven years after it was first signed into the treaty, the Protocol on Environmental Protection came into effect. Its purpose was to “<a href="https://www.ats.aq/documents/recatt/Att006_e.pdf">enhance protection of the Antarctic environment and dependent and associated ecosytems</a>” – a noble if poorly defined pledge that has proven difficult to uphold. But, tucked away among the acronyms and technical terminology, Article Seven of the Protocol consisted of a single important sentence, easily missed by the careless reader: “any activity relating to mineral resources, other than scientific research, shall be prohibited”. Simple and to the point. Antarctica’s natural resources, <a href="https://pubs.usgs.gov/circ/1974/0705/report.pdf">whatever they may be</a>, are to remain pristine and untouched. At least for now. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/224480/original/file-20180622-26576-b7285c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/224480/original/file-20180622-26576-b7285c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/224480/original/file-20180622-26576-b7285c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/224480/original/file-20180622-26576-b7285c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/224480/original/file-20180622-26576-b7285c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/224480/original/file-20180622-26576-b7285c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/224480/original/file-20180622-26576-b7285c.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Research bases like this one are the closest thing Antarctica has to settlement.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/brown-station-argentine-antarctic-base-scientific-1079293658?src=fAiKvhQGfejFAfctsv517g-1-28">sutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><a href="https://www.ats.aq/documents/recatt/Att006_e.pdf">Article 25</a> carries a caveat: “If, after the expiration of 50 years”, it reads “any of the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Parties so requests, a conference shall be held as soon as practicable to review the operation of this Protocol”. In other words, 30 years from now in 2048, the ATCPs could reject anti-mining regulation and start stripping Antarctica of its mineral resources, diverting the continent towards a radically different future.</p>
<p>Many consider this undesirable, unworkable and unthinkable, but long-time observers know that the uncharted waters of polar politics can constantly surprise.</p>
<h2>A changing climate</h2>
<p>In fact, the “unthinkable” has already been thought – and half-acted upon. In the 1980s, the ATCPs drew up an international mining framework called the Convention on the Regulation of Antarctic Resource Activities, which sought to regulate any possible future resource extraction. It established property rights and gave special privileges to seven claimant states – including the UK. The framework would not function today – China and India would certainly demand far-reaching revisions – but in the 1980s it was only when France and Australia pulled out and started championing the current protocols that the convention was shelved.</p>
<p>Indeed, a number of states might now have issues with the treaty. Much of the governance set down by the Antarctic Treaty still dates from when it was first negotiated <a href="https://www.ats.aq/e/ats.htm">in the late 1950s</a>, in a very different political, technological, legal and environmental climate. It only involved 12 states and was concluded long before China became a polar superpower. The Antarctic ice sheets were considered stable – and there was still a great deal of mystery surrounding what lay beneath them. There was little to no tourism – now it’s the biggest industry operating in Antarctica. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/224481/original/file-20180622-26576-i4qfk2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/224481/original/file-20180622-26576-i4qfk2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/224481/original/file-20180622-26576-i4qfk2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/224481/original/file-20180622-26576-i4qfk2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/224481/original/file-20180622-26576-i4qfk2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=498&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/224481/original/file-20180622-26576-i4qfk2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=498&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/224481/original/file-20180622-26576-i4qfk2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=498&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The first Antarctic Treaty featured 12 countries, and came into effect in 1961.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/usa-circa-1971-stamp-printed-united-133558022?src=qUrU0uQK2RGpDaLQ40F1tg-1-17">shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Fast forward to 2048: the Antarctic is melting, plastics are found in the ice, and foreign species (including yet more humans) dot the continent. Drones and other automated vehicles are routinely used and the polar summer is a hive of activity, with thousands of tourists mobbing every penguin colony. Commercial fishing thrives in the Southern Ocean and permanent settlements spring up on the Antarctic peninsula and surrounding islands. The profits available from biological harvesting have made the extremes of Antarctic living a reality.</p>
<p>Indeed, major polar operators such as China and the US only continue to support the mining ban because their energy needs can be satisfied elsewhere. At present ACTPs are focusing on improving cold weather technology and gaining confidence in Antarctic conditions, but it might not be long until they have the capability and incentive to do more. China is already using underwater vehicles to <a href="https://www.popsci.com/finding-qianlong-iii-chinas-new-underwater-drones">search for gas hydrates and metallic nodules</a> in the South China Sea. Ominously, underwater mining and deep-sea energy prospecting seem set to be growth industries over the coming decades.</p>
<h2>A contested continent</h2>
<p>So what could change between now and 2048? Possibly little: the ATCPs might decide to keep the Protocol and continue to prohibit mining. Or they might not. </p>
<p>The recent announcement of a <a href="https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/10/ross-sea-marine-protected-area-antarctica/">marine protected area in the Ross Sea</a> was a good sign for conservationists, but it required a great deal of tough negotiation. This “general protection zone” forbids fishing completely, and joins an existing “special research zone”, which permits limited fishing of for toothfish and krill. These will come up for review in 2047 and 2052, adding another dimension to what could become a period of unparalled change for polar governance.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/224526/original/file-20180623-26579-1wprkzy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/224526/original/file-20180623-26579-1wprkzy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=320&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/224526/original/file-20180623-26579-1wprkzy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=320&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/224526/original/file-20180623-26579-1wprkzy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=320&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/224526/original/file-20180623-26579-1wprkzy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/224526/original/file-20180623-26579-1wprkzy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/224526/original/file-20180623-26579-1wprkzy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The incumbent lords of the Antarctic.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/two-penguins-dreaming-sitting-on-rock-87420404?src=yhRfS8Jn-jox2B8WN-2Org-2-62">shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>If the ATCPs decide to question the provisions of the Protocol, automated mining could begin soon after. Those in favour might argue that the Antarctic environment is continuing to degrade in a way that no amount of regional management can halt. Or they might put forward the view that the need for new sources of protein outweighs the “restrictive” conservation measures. Either way, the “special” qualities of Antarctica might not carry quite the same emotive weight in the future. </p>
<p>After 2048, Antarctica could be carved up between nations like every other land mass and surrounding ocean, and slowly relieved of its resources. Those who care about the future of Antarctica must keep a close eye on the continent and its surrounding seas, or risk losing them to drones, drills and desperate politicians.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/98654/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Klaus Dodds does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Under the terms of the current treaty all commercial mining is forbidden, but rumblings of discontent are stirring beneath the ice.Klaus Dodds, Professor of Geopolitics, Royal Holloway University of LondonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/817472017-08-13T21:11:42Z2017-08-13T21:11:42ZCows in Antarctica? How one expedition milked them for all their worth<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180123/original/file-20170728-23788-waf3gx.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Celebrity cows: Southern Girl and Iceberg enjoy a 'hay cocktail' at the Commodore Hotel in New York.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center, contact for re-use</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Domestic animals are rarely associated with Antarctica. However, before non-native species (bar humans) <a href="http://www.ats.aq/e/ep_faflo.htm">were excluded</a> from the continent <a href="http://www.ats.aq/e/ep.htm">in the 1990s</a>, <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/polar-record/article/history-of-exotic-terrestrial-mammals-in-antarctic-regions/47695393F95FB8B0BB30475AD8F85054">many travelled to the far south</a>. These animals included not only the obvious sledge dogs, but also ponies, sheep, pigs, hamsters, hedgehogs and a goat. Perhaps the most curious case occurred in 1933, when US Admiral Richard E. Byrd’s second Antarctic expedition took with it three Guernsey cows. </p>
<p>The cows, named Klondike Gay Nira, Deerfoot Guernsey Maid and Foremost Southern Girl, plus a bull calf born en route, spent over a year in a working dairy on the Ross Ice Shelf. They returned home to the US in 1935 to considerable celebrity. </p>
<p>Keeping the animals healthy in Antarctica took a lot of doing – not least, hauling the materials for a barn, a huge amount of feed and a milking machine across the ocean and then the ice. What could have possessed Byrd to take cows to the icy south? </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180126/original/file-20170728-23775-17kh10w.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180126/original/file-20170728-23775-17kh10w.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180126/original/file-20170728-23775-17kh10w.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180126/original/file-20170728-23775-17kh10w.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180126/original/file-20170728-23775-17kh10w.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180126/original/file-20170728-23775-17kh10w.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180126/original/file-20170728-23775-17kh10w.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180126/original/file-20170728-23775-17kh10w.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Klondike the Guernsey cow waits on the dock in Norfolk, Virginia, alongside the alfafa, beet pulp and dairy feed that would keep them alive in the far south.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">with permission of Wisconsin Historical Society, WHS-127998, contact for re-use</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The answer we suggest in our <a href="https://muse.jhu.edu/article/665746">recently published paper</a> is multi-layered and ultimately points to Antarctica’s complex geopolitical history.</p>
<h2>Solving the “milk problem”</h2>
<p>The cows’ ostensible purpose was to solve the expedition’s so-called “milk problem”. By the 1930s, fresh milk had become such an icon of health and vigour that it was easy to claim it was needed for the expeditioners’ well-being. Just as important, however, were the symbolic associations of fresh milk with purity, wholesomeness and US national identity. </p>
<p>Powdered or malted milk could have achieved the same nutritional results. Previous expeditions, including those of Ernest Shackleton and Roald Amundsen, had survived just fine with such products. What’s more, William Horlick of <a href="http://www.horlicks.co.uk/story.html">Horlick’s Malted Milk</a> sponsored Byrd’s second Antarctic expedition; the seaplane Byrd used was named for this benefactor. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180128/original/file-20170728-23754-14nr6cz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180128/original/file-20170728-23754-14nr6cz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180128/original/file-20170728-23754-14nr6cz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=447&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180128/original/file-20170728-23754-14nr6cz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=447&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180128/original/file-20170728-23754-14nr6cz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=447&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180128/original/file-20170728-23754-14nr6cz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=562&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180128/original/file-20170728-23754-14nr6cz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=562&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180128/original/file-20170728-23754-14nr6cz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=562&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Crates of Horlick’s Malted Milk destined for Byrd’s second expedition. With its carefully placed sledge, husky and sign, the shot seems posed for publicity purposes.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">with permission of Wisconsin Historical Society, WHS-23703, contact for re-use</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>So if fresh milk was not actually a health requirement, and other forms were readily available, why go to the trouble of lugging three cows and their accoutrements across the ice?</p>
<h2>Maximising publicity</h2>
<p>The cows represented a first, and Byrd well knew that “firsts” in the polar regions translated into media coverage. The expedition was privately funded, and Byrd was adept at attracting media attention and hence sponsorship. His backers expected a return, whether in the form of photographs of their product on the ice or <a href="https://www.postconsumerbrands.com/brands/grape-nuts/our-story/">mentions in the regular radio updates</a> by the expedition. </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180130/original/file-20170728-23792-kl3cg0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180130/original/file-20170728-23792-kl3cg0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180130/original/file-20170728-23792-kl3cg0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=805&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180130/original/file-20170728-23792-kl3cg0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=805&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180130/original/file-20170728-23792-kl3cg0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=805&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180130/original/file-20170728-23792-kl3cg0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1011&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180130/original/file-20170728-23792-kl3cg0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1011&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180130/original/file-20170728-23792-kl3cg0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1011&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Richard Byrd with Deerfoot in a publicity shot taken before departure.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">with permission of Wisconsin Historical Society WHS-130655, contact for re-use</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The novelty value that the cows brought to the expedition was a valuable asset in its own right, but Byrd hedged his bets by including a pregnant cow – Klondike was due to give birth just as the expedition ship sailed across the Antarctic Circle. The calf, named “Iceberg”, was a media darling and became better known than the expeditioners themselves. </p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/2154896X.2016.1253825">celebrity attached to the cows</a> helped the expedition remain in the headlines throughout its time in Antarctica, and they received an enthusiastic welcome upon its return. Although the unfortunate Klondike, suffering from frostbite, had to be put down mid-expedition, her companions made it home in good condition. They were feted on their return, meeting politicians in Washington, enjoying “hay cocktails” at fancy hotels, and making the front page of The New York Times.</p>
<p>It would be easy, then, to conclude that the real reason Byrd took cows south was for the publicity he knew they would generate, but his interest in the animals may also have had a more politically motivated layer.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>Further reading: <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-winners-and-losers-of-antarcticas-great-thaw-80140">The winners and losers of Antarctica’s great thaw</a></em></p>
<hr>
<h2>Eyeing a territorial claim</h2>
<p>A third reason for taking cows to Antarctica relates to the geopolitics of the period and the resonances the cows had with colonial settlement. By the 1930s several nations had <a href="http://www.ats.aq/documents/publications/brochure_e.pdf">claimed sectors of Antarctica</a>. Byrd wanted the US to make its own claim, but this was not as straightforward as just planting a flag on the ice. </p>
<p>According to the <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/231971605_The_'open_door'_into_Antarctica_An_explanation_of_the_Hughes_doctrine">Hughes Doctrine</a>, a claim had to be based on settlement, not just discovery. But how do you show settlement of a continent covered in ice? In this context, symbolic gestures such as running a post office – or farming livestock – are useful. </p>
<p>Domestic animals have long been used as colonial agents, and cattle in particular were a key component of settler colonialism in frontier America. The image of the explorer-hero Byrd, descended from one of the First Families of Virginia, bringing cows to a new land and successfully farming them evoked this history. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180131/original/file-20170728-23754-6cklxk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180131/original/file-20170728-23754-6cklxk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/180131/original/file-20170728-23754-6cklxk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180131/original/file-20170728-23754-6cklxk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180131/original/file-20170728-23754-6cklxk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180131/original/file-20170728-23754-6cklxk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180131/original/file-20170728-23754-6cklxk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/180131/original/file-20170728-23754-6cklxk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Antarctic dairy.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Guernsey Breeders Journal, November 1 1935</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The cows’ presence in Antarctica helped symbolically to turn the expedition base – not coincidentally named “Little America” – into a frontier town. While the US did not end up <a href="http://www.antarctica.gov.au/law-and-treaty/history/antarctic-territorial-claims">making a claim</a> to any sector of Antarctica, the polar dairy represented a novel way of demonstrating national interest in the frozen continent.</p>
<p>The Antarctic cows are not just a quirky story from the depths of history. As well as producing milk, they had promotional and geopolitical functions. On an ice continent, settlement is performed rather than enacted, and even Guernsey cows can be more than they first seem.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/81747/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Hanne Nielsen receives funding from the Australian Government Research Training Program, and undertook research for this article with assistance from a McColl Fellowship to visit the American Geographical Society Library. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Elizabeth Leane receives funding from the Australian Research Council.</span></em></p>What would possess an Antarctic expedition to take dairy cows to the icy continent? Back in 1933, Admiral Byrd did so for reasons of image-making, publicity and territorial ambition.Hanne E F Nielsen, PhD Candidate in Antarctic Representations, University of TasmaniaElizabeth Leane, Associate Professor of English and ARC Future Fellow, University of TasmaniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/714022017-01-17T19:07:25Z2017-01-17T19:07:25ZMurky waters: why is Japan still whaling in the Southern Ocean?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152963/original/image-20170117-22302-9udc28.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A photo from Sea Shepherd allegedly shows a Japanese whaling vessel with a dead minke whale on board. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">EPA/GLENN LOCKITCH / SEA SHEPHERD HANDOUT </span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Photographs allegedly showing <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-australia-38606557">Japanese whaling operations in the Southern Ocean</a> emerged this week. Coinciding with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s visit to Australia, critics have called for <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-01-16/japanese-whaling-criticised-by-government-sea-shepherd-footage/8184640">greater action from the Australian government</a> on the issue.</p>
<p>Japan has stated that, despite various resolutions at the <a href="https://iwc.int/home">International Whaling Commission</a> and criticism from many governments about its so-called “scientific” activity, it abides by its own interpretation of the <a href="https://iwc.int/convention">Whaling Convention</a> – the international agreement that governs whaling. This interpretation focuses on Article VIII of the convention, which allows a country to issue its own permits to kill whales for research. </p>
<p>The same issues are raised each summer when Japanese whaling fleets head south. But the apparently obvious questions have complex answers.</p>
<h2>Didn’t the International Court of Justice ban Japanese whaling in the Southern Ocean?</h2>
<p>The 2014 International Court of Justice (ICJ) <a href="http://www.icj-cij.org/docket/index.php?p1=3&p2=3&k=64&case=148&code=aj&p3=4">whaling decision</a> was quite narrow. It ruled that the old JARPA II scientific program was not for the purposes of scientific research. </p>
<p>Therefore, the court deemed that Japanese whaling was a commercial operation, something that had been <a href="https://iwc.int/commercial">banned under the Whaling Convention</a> since 1985. </p>
<p><a href="http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/breakfast/japanese-whaling-ruled-unlawful/5358114">Labor’s former attorney-general, Mark Dreyfus</a>, noted that the court had not completely ordered cessation of whaling for all time. And this is correct. </p>
<p>While the judgment gave guidance on what is and what isn’t “for the purposes of scientific research”, it did not ban Japan from conducting further scientific research activity under the convention.</p>
<p>In response to the judgment, the Japanese government abandoned the JARPA II program. The current and very similar NEWREP-A program took its place. This program, in all likelihood, is “not for the purposes of scientific research” either.</p>
<h2>Should Australia take Japan back to court?</h2>
<p>Following the ICJ case, <a href="http://www.icj-cij.org/jurisdiction/?p1=5&p2=1&p3=3&code=JP">Japan ruled out</a> the jurisdiction of the ICJ in “any dispute arising out of, concerning, or relating to research on, or conservation, management or exploitation of, living resources of the sea”.</p>
<p>Therefore, Australia could not take Japan back to the ICJ on this issue.</p>
<h2>Is the whaling fleet operating in Australian waters?</h2>
<p>The waters below 60 degrees south fall under the <a href="http://www.ats.aq/index_e.htm">Antarctic Treaty</a>, to which Australia and Japan are both parties. The treaty was a peaceful territorial compromise between countries (like Australia) that claim parts of the Antarctic continent, and other countries (like Japan) that do not recognise those claims. </p>
<p>Australia claims about 5.9 million square kilometres of the Antarctic continent, and the adjacent ocean out to 200 nautical miles.</p>
<p>However, the treaty “freezes” any arguments over the sovereign claims by Australia, New Zealand, France, UK, Chile, Argentina and Norway, and has developed a complex web of instruments that protect the Antarctic environment and maintain the continent as a place of peace and science.</p>
<p>While Australia does not relinquish its claim to Antarctica under the treaty, it agrees to comply fully with the treaty’s rules and obligations. In turn, this means countries that don’t recognise claims are free to go about scientific research and peaceful activities.</p>
<p>Japan does not recognise Australia’s claim to the Antarctic continent. As such, it views the waters off the Australian Antarctic Territory as the high seas, which are governed by the United Nations Convention on the <a href="http://www.un.org/depts/los/">Law of the Sea</a>. </p>
<p>The Antarctic Treaty’s <a href="http://www.ats.aq/e/ep.htm">Environment Protocol</a> also explicitly states that it does not affect the rights of countries under the Whaling Convention. </p>
<p>In almost all cases, only Australian citizens are bound by Australian law in Antarctica. If there are any issues of jurisdiction under the provisions of the treaty, countries must resolve them peacefully, or refer them to the ICJ. </p>
<h2>Didn’t the Australian Federal Court say whaling is illegal?</h2>
<p>In 2008, the Humane Society International took Japanese whaling company <a href="http://www.edonsw.org.au/humane_society_international_inc_v_kyodo_senpaku_kaisha_ltd">Kyodo Senpaku Kaisha to court</a> over whaling in Australia’s Antarctic waters, which Australia calls the <a href="https://www.environment.gov.au/marine/marine-species/cetaceans/australian-whale-sanctuary">Australian Whale Sanctuary</a>. </p>
<p>The Federal Court held that whaling in Australia’s maritime claim was illegal under Australia’s Environment Protection and Biodiversity (EPBC) Act. </p>
<p>It’s not up to the Federal Court to question Australia’s claim to Antarctic waters, so it applied Australian law in a consistent manner. The EPBC Act is also one of the few that extends to non-Australian citizens in Australian-claimed waters in Antarctica. </p>
<p>But remember that Japan does not recognise Australia’s claim to Antarctic waters. Even though the Federal Court recognised this, it held that this was not a reason to withold judgment. In 2015, Kyodo Senpaku Kaisha was held in contempt of court orders by continuing to kill whales, and was fined A$1 million. </p>
<p>The Japanese government responded to the case, stating that “this issue relates to waters and a matter over which Japan does not recognise Australian jurisdiction”. Therefore, the restraining orders and injunction on further whaling are still outstanding and will likely remain so.</p>
<h2>Should we send Australian ships to confront the whalers?</h2>
<p>The Australian and Japanese governments are under an obligation to prevent Antarctica becoming a place of discord. Any confrontation on the high seas would be seen as an incredibly aggressive and potentially illegal act. </p>
<p>The Australian vessel Oceanic Viking was sent to <a href="http://foreignminister.gov.au/releases/2008/fa-s039_08.html">monitor the fleet in 2008</a> to compile evidence for the ICJ case. It did not intervene physically with the whaling fleet, likely due to its potential illegality, aggressiveness, concern for the safety of lives at sea, and environmental reasons. </p>
<p>Japan is transparent about its catches and reports all its activities (including the number of whales it kills) to the Whaling Commission as part of its self-issued scientific whaling permit. Countries that are members of the commission therefore have access to all the information on Japanese activities. </p>
<p><a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-01-16/greens-call-on-govt-to-monitor-japanese-whaling-in/8186184">The Greens are calling</a> for the Australian Border Force to be sent to Australia’s Antarctic waters, but, for the reasons above, this is likely to be futile. </p>
<h2>What now?</h2>
<p>Australia appears to have exhausted most legal options. <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-12-23/sea-shepherd-hunting-japanese-fleet-whaling-season-begins/8145652">Professor Tim Stephens noted</a>, however, that the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea could be a forum where Japan is challenged over its activities. </p>
<p>Obligations under the Law of the Sea Convention include mandatory dispute resolution, the protection and preservation of the marine environment, and duties to cooperate.</p>
<p>Several <a href="https://theconversation.com/could-whale-poo-diplomacy-help-bring-an-end-to-whaling-69154">alternative courses</a> of action have been suggested and <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-new-international-whaling-resolution-will-do-little-to-stop-japan-killing-whales-67854">new resolutions at the Whaling Commission</a> have yet to be implemented. However, the decision to stop Japanese whaling is, in reality, likely to come only from the Japanese people themselves.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/71402/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Indi Hodgson-Johnston receives scholarship funding from the University of Tasmania's Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies and the Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre. </span></em></p>Japan is once again allegedly killing whales in Antarctica. But after taking Japan to international court in 2014, there’s not much Australia can do.Indi Hodgson-Johnston, Antarctic Law Researcher, PhD Candidate, Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies and the Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems CRC, University of TasmaniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/679112016-10-31T19:00:30Z2016-10-31T19:00:30ZHow China came in from the cold to help set up Antarctica’s vast new marine park<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/143864/original/image-20161031-15821-16r5pfm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Next year the Ross Sea will be home to the world's largest marine reserve.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AMt_Herschel%2C_Antarctica%2C_Jan_2006.jpg">Andrew Mandemaker/Wikimedia Commons</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Conservationists have been celebrating the <a href="https://www.ccamlr.org/en/news/2016/ccamlr-create-worlds-largest-marine-protected-area">creation of the world’s largest marine park</a>, covering 1.55 million square kilometres of the Ross Sea off Antarctica.</p>
<p>The agreement, brokered at last week’s annual meeting of the <a href="https://www.ccamlr.org">Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR)</a> in Hobart, will enter into force on December 1, 2017 – thanks in large part to China ending its resistance to the proposal.</p>
<p>For the next 35 years, fishing will be totally banned in a “no-take zone” covering 1.12 million square kilometres (72%) of the marine park, with exceptions for krill and toothfish in specially designated research zones.</p>
<p>The marine park’s creation follows years of often frustrating negotiations. The United States and New Zealand brought the idea to the 2012 CCAMLR meeting, but were met with concerns, particularly from Russia and China.</p>
<p>At the 2014 meeting, China set out the reasons for its opposition. Its delegates argued that the term “conservation” should balance protection and rational use of marine living resources; that marine parks should not be set up in the Southern Ocean without convincing data showing they will work; and that the CCAMLR has already adopted a wide range of successful conservation measures in the seas around Antarctica. </p>
<p>A year later, China once again looked set to block the issue, posing a series of questions about the proposed marine park. How could marine parks allow rational use of marine living resources? How could they facilitate scientific research? How would they be monitored and regulated, and how long would the protections last? </p>
<p>Nevertheless, China surprisingly supported the Ross Sea proposal at the end of the 2015 CCAMLR meeting, paving the way for this month’s decision. </p>
<p>Why the turnaround from China’s previous opposition? And what does this mean for its growing and changing influence on Antarctic diplomacy? </p>
<h2>Global influence</h2>
<p>There are three key reasons that explain China’s shifting position. First, China is a latecomer to the current global ocean governance regime. When the <a href="http://www.ats.aq/e/ats.htm">Antarctic Treaty</a> was signed in 1959, China was still relatively isolated from the international community. It was not until 1978 that it opened its doors to the world and engaged with the current international legal system, and as such it had little influence on the 1982 <a href="http://www.un.org/Depts/los/convention_agreements/convention_overview_convention.htm">United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea</a>. </p>
<p>It has taken time for China to develop the necessary diplomatic and scientific expertise to become comfortable in this space. As a historic rule-taker rather than rule-maker, its government may need to overcome a natural mistrust of many existing regimes. </p>
<p>This issue is not unique to marine parks. Such hesitation was also evident when China <a href="https://www.wto.org/english/thewto_e/countries_e/china_e.htm">joined the World Trade Organization in 2001</a> and when it started engaging with <a href="http://unfccc.int/essential_background/convention/status_of_ratification/items/2631.php">UN climate change negotiations</a> in 1994. But China now uses the WTO dispute settlement body as frequently as other members, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/us-china-ratification-of-paris-agreement-ramps-up-the-pressure-on-australia-64821">ratified the Paris climate agreement</a> at September’s <a href="https://theconversation.com/g20-finance-chiefs-meet-as-china-seeks-to-make-a-show-of-its-presidency-55258">G20 summit</a> which it hosted for the first time – another sign of its increasing diplomatic engagement. </p>
<p>Second, China became a party of the CCAMLR in 2007. As the world’s second-largest economy and largest fishing nation, China has global fishing interests, including off Antarctica. Chinese Krill fishing in Antarctica has <a href="https://www.ccamlr.org/en/fisheries/krill-%E2%80%93-biology-ecology-and-fishing">grown significantly since 2009</a>, reaching 54,300 tonnes in 2014. This partly explains China’s concerns over proposed no-take zones. </p>
<p>There is, however, a deeper philosophical concern, which might be described as “anxiousness for commons”. While China’s Antarctic fishing interests account for only a very small share of its global catch, they are highly symbolic because Antarctic fishing showcases China’s quest for freedom in the “global commons”. </p>
<p>Third, the international community is currently developing a new global ocean governance regime. By coincidence, negotiations on the regulation of fishing in the Central Arctic Ocean and other international areas of the high seas have been going on at the same time as the discussions about the Ross Sea. In the Northeast Atlantic, the OSPAR has already established a network of high sea marine parks. </p>
<p>As a rising power, China would not be happy to face constraints or bans on its activities at a time when its rising status gives it access to places like the high seas, the ocean floor, the poles, and outer space. It would be a shame if China were to remain silent on those issues, and it probably won’t – China’s 13th Five Year Plan (2016-20) clearly says the nation would like to take a more active role in global ocean governance. </p>
<p>In the foreseeable future, we could possibly see China become more comfortable and active within the CCAMLR as well as the Antarctic Treaty System. Although generally being supportive, China would not keep silent. Rather, it would speak up more openly for its Antarctic interests, and have more intensive engagement with the Antarctic Treaty System. </p>
<p>One challenge for China would be how to enhance its capacity and expertise so as to provide high-quality proposals, which could not only pursue its own interests, but as an important global player, also help to make a concrete contribution to achieving sustainability in the Southern Ocean.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/67911/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nengye Liu receives funding from the EU Centre for Global Affairs, University of Adelaide, Australia and is working on a Project "The European Union and Conservation of Marine Living Resources in Antarctica".</span></em></p>After years of stalled negotiations, China has ended its opposition to the world’s largest marine park off Antarctica - part of a wider trend towards increased Chinese involvement in global governance.Nengye Liu, Senior Lecturer in Law, University of New EnglandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/595222016-07-07T20:04:43Z2016-07-07T20:04:43ZWhy Antarctica depends on Australia and China’s alliance<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129640/original/image-20160707-30680-1wh16gi.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The Chinese icebreaker Xue Long sails from Fremantle Harbour on its way home from Antarctica.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AXue_Long%2C_Fremantle%2C_2016_(01).JPG">Bahnfrend/Wikimedia Commons</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Antarctica’s early history was marked by national rivalries – think of Britain and Norway <a href="http://www.rmg.co.uk/discover/explore/race-south-pole-1911">racing to the South Pole in 1911</a>. But since the signing of the <a href="http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/81421.pdf">Antarctic Treaty</a> in 1959, collaboration has become more important than competition. And the relationship between Australia – Antarctica’s biggest territorial claimant – and China, the emerging superpower, is among the most crucial of all.</p>
<p>One of Australia’s key aims, as set out in its <a href="http://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-us/antarctic-strategy-and-action-plan">Antarctic Strategy and 20 Year Action Plan</a>, is to strengthen the existing Antarctic Treaty system, by “building and maintaining strong and effective relationships with other Antarctic Treaty nations through international engagement”. </p>
<p>As Australia’s largest trading partner and a significant player in Antarctica, China is a crucial nation with which to engage if Australia is to meet its objectives. This raises the question of how the two countries might fruitfully cooperate in Antarctica over the next 20 years.</p>
<h2>Existing ties</h2>
<p>China began its first scientific expedition to Antarctica in 1984. It now has four Antarctic bases, two on Australian-claimed territory. </p>
<p>Australia and China’s Antarctic ties have thus been evolving for more than three decades, with a focus on science, logistics and operations. Bilateral relations seem to have strengthened in recent years. </p>
<p>In 2014, President Xi Jinping <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/nov/18/xi-jinpings-tasmania-visit-lacking-congruity-full-of-strategy">visited Hobart</a> and signed a <a href="http://www.antarctica.gov.au/news/2014/australia-and-china-strengthen-antarctic-ties">memorandum of understanding</a> with Australia to collaborate in Antarctica and the Southern Ocean. </p>
<p>Last year, Australia’s <a href="http://acecrc.org.au/">Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre</a> signed an agreement with its Chinese counterpart, the <a href="http://english.nmefc.gov.cn/">National Marine Environmental Forecasting Centre</a>, to develop new forecasting methods to aid the challenging task of navigating Antarctic sea ice. </p>
<p>February 2016 saw the inaugural meeting of the <a href="http://www.antarctica.gov.au/news/2016/australia-hosts-antarctic-talks-with-china">China-Australia Joint Committee on Antarctic and Southern Ocean Collaboration</a>, which arose from the 2014 agreement. </p>
<p>But it has not all been smooth sailing. China has strongly opposed Australia’s <a href="http://www.antarctica.gov.au/law-and-treaty/ccamlr/marine-protected-areas">proposal</a> to establish a network of marine protected areas off East Antarctica. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129512/original/image-20160706-12746-euj3yv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129512/original/image-20160706-12746-euj3yv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129512/original/image-20160706-12746-euj3yv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=437&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129512/original/image-20160706-12746-euj3yv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=437&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129512/original/image-20160706-12746-euj3yv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=437&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129512/original/image-20160706-12746-euj3yv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=550&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129512/original/image-20160706-12746-euj3yv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=550&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129512/original/image-20160706-12746-euj3yv.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=550&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Proposed marine parks off East Antarctica.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Australian Antarctic Division</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Australia is also concerned about China’s presence in Antarctica. For example, a <a href="http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/foreign-affairs/china-poses-threat-to-treaty-in-antarctica/news-story/efcd075cb0412cd8386ad75eafb6ea91">news article</a> at the time of Xi’s 2014 visit suggested that “China may eventually try to overthrow the Antarctic Treaty system underpinning Australia’s claim to 43% of the frozen continent”, while <a href="https://theconversation.com/in-conversation-on-antarctic-sovereignty-full-discussion-28600">questions have been asked</a> about the scope of China’s mining ambitions on the frozen continent. </p>
<h2>Potential future collaborations</h2>
<p>There are several reasons, however, to expect that China and Australia can put aside their diplomatic differences in pursuit of Antarctic science. </p>
<p>First, it seems more likely that China will continue to endorse the <a href="http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/81421.pdf">Antarctic Treaty</a> than to undermine it. As a rising power, China has growing interests in the Southern Ocean but it has no territorial claim in Antarctica. It would certainly not be at the front of the queue in the ensuing land grab if the treaty were to end. </p>
<p>Realistically, China should therefore continue to support the treaty, under which the seven existing national claims (plus any prospective claim by the United States, which has a <a href="https://www.nsf.gov/geo/plr/support/southp.jsp">research base</a> at the South Pole) are suspended.</p>
<p>This logic is backed up by China’s behaviour with regard to the even more politically fraught North Pole. By becoming an <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/16/world/europe/arctic-council-adds-six-members-including-china.html?_r=0">observer of the Arctic Council</a>, China has opted to embrace rather than challenge the current Arctic regime, despite the <a href="http://www.rcinet.ca/en/2016/05/08/why-canada-cant-have-the-north-pole/">jockeying among Arctic nations over territorial rights</a>.</p>
<p>Second, to maintain Australia’s leadership and excellence in Antarctic science, it will need to collaborate with industry and other nations. As an economic powerhouse, China has both the funding and the technology to deliver things like <a href="http://www.popularmechanics.com/military/weapons/news/a18867/china-launches-new-icebreaker/">icebreaker ships</a>, a well as a keen interest in Antarctica, which should extend to long-term scientific collaborations. </p>
<p>Third, Australia wants to maintain its leadership in environmental stewardship of Antarctica. One current hurdle seems to be China’s opposition to Australia, France and the European Union over the planned marine protected areas off East Antarctica. As the world’s <a href="ftp://ftp.fao.org/FI/STAT/summary/a-0a.pdf">largest fishing nation</a>, China’s reluctance to support “no-take zones” is hardly surprising. </p>
<p>Nevertheless, this issue could potentially be converted from obstacle to opportunity, perhaps by Australia inviting Chinese scientists to conduct joint scientific research in these areas of the Southern Ocean. This would not only improve understanding of unknown marine ecosystems, but would also be a useful way for Australia to exert diplomatic “soft power”.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129641/original/image-20160707-30690-138n248.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129641/original/image-20160707-30690-138n248.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/129641/original/image-20160707-30690-138n248.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129641/original/image-20160707-30690-138n248.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129641/original/image-20160707-30690-138n248.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129641/original/image-20160707-30690-138n248.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129641/original/image-20160707-30690-138n248.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/129641/original/image-20160707-30690-138n248.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Antarctica is increasingly attractive to the more affluent of China’s tourists.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3ATourism_in_Antarctica_(Cuverville_island).jpg">Butterfly voyages/Wikimedia Commons</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Finally, Australia has its own economic interests in Antarctica, such as sustainable fishing and tourism. Meanwhile, ever greater numbers of Chinese tourists are venturing abroad, with visits to Australia <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/business/the-economy/annual-chinese-visitor-numbers-exceed-1-million-for-first-time-20160111-gm3shn.html">passing the 1 million mark last year</a>. With Antarctica now also on the radar for China’s richer tourists, Australia could not only benefit economically but must also work closely with China to develop regulations that prevent this nascent industry from damaging the Antarctic environment.</p>
<p>All of this means we can reasonably expect Australian-Chinese ties to grow ever closer over the next two decades – even in the world’s remotest place.</p>
<p><em>This article is part of a series on Australian science and diplomacy in Antarctica. Look out for more articles in the coming days.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/59522/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nengye Liu does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Australia and China both have a keen interest in the frozen continent. And while they don’t agree on everything, there is great scope for scientific collaboration.Nengye Liu, Senior Lecturer in Law, University of New EnglandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.