Between the Polar Code and Article 234: The Balance in Canada’s Arctic Shipping Safety and Pollution Prevention Regulations

Abstract

In January 2017, the Polar Code entered into force and prompted the adoption, in Canada, of the Arctic Shipping Safety and Pollution Prevention Regulations (ASSPPR). The latter incorporate the Polar Code with a view to maintaining or increasing the preexisting level of protection. Consequently, a balancing act plays out in the ASSPPR, which are partly based on the Polar Code and partly on an alternative jurisdictional basis, arguably Article 234 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. The objective of this article is to map out and put into historic perspective the balance chosen by Canada in the ASSPPR.