Arctic marine shipping: overview of the international legal framework, gaps, and options

Abstract

matic impacts for the Arctic. The rapid warming of the Arctic climate was the first and most prominent of the 10 key findings of the 2004 Arctic Climate Impact Assessment (ACIA).1 On Sept. 15, 2007, the Arctic ice cap was 23% below the last record set in 2005.2 This 2007 record exceeded the computer model predictions used to prepare the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) in 2007.3 Perhaps even more important than ice-coverage is the increasing percentage of first-year sea-ice. Many scientists fear that the “Arctic meltdown” has become irreversible even though the 2007 record remained intact in 2008.4 Of particular importance to this article are the ACIA’s key findings four: “Animal species’ diversity, ranges and distribution will change,” and six: “Reduced sea ice is very likely to increase marine transport and access to resources.”5 While the former predicts changes in the composition of the Arctic marine ecosystem in quantitative, qualitative, spatial, and temporal terms, the latter predicts increased pressure on this ecosystem due to more intensive exercise of existing maritime uses, e.g., shipping and fishing, as well as new uses.