Antarctic Treaty System PDF

# Antarctic Treaty System ## Antarctic Treaty System **Alan D. Hemmings** **University of Canterbury, New Zealand** The Antarctic Treaty System (ATS) comprises the 1959 Antarctic Treaty, the 1972 Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Seals, the 1980 Convention on the Conservation of Antarc...

# Antarctic Treaty System ## Antarctic Treaty System **Alan D. Hemmings** **University of Canterbury, New Zealand** The Antarctic Treaty System (ATS) comprises the 1959 Antarctic Treaty, the 1972 Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Seals, the 1980 Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR), the 1991 Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty (Madrid Protocol), and measures in force under these instruments. Three of these apply to the area south of 60° south. CCAMLR's northern boundary approximates the Antarctic convergence, a biologically rich zone where Antarctic waters meet the waters of the sub-Antarctic. The ATS is one of the longest established regimes (Rothwell and Hemmings 2018). Its purpose is international governance of the region, since although seven states claim territorial sovereignty over parts of the continent, these claims are not generally recognized and many see Antarctica as common heritage of humanity. - Thirty states plus the European Union are decision-making parties, and thirty more are non-decision-making parties to one or more ATS instruments. - A number of intergovernmental organizations (such as the Council of Managers of National Antarctic Programs (COMNAP), United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)), nongovernmental organizations (including environmental groups and tourism and fishing industry associations), and hybrid organizations such as International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) have observer status. The three pillars of the ATS are: - Peaceful purposes (avoiding militarization) - Environmental protection - Freedom of scientific enquiry The latter two and operational management of human activities under way in the region are the subject of measures adopted within the ATS (Saul and Stephens 2015). Responsibility for whaling lies entirely outside the ATS, with the International Whaling Commission (IWC). Current ATS foci include: - The vexed issue of establishing large marine protected areas in Antarctic waters alongside commercial interests in fishing (see Fisheries governance) - Sustaining international Antarctic science and associated logistics collaboration, particularly around globally significant climate change research, although not yet climate policy (Leane and McGee 2019) - Managing the regional consequences of the changing world order. ## Effectiveness While the ATS historically claims effectiveness, in ensuring peaceful order and addressing management issues around the conduct of activities and the environment, it is long-lived in international relations terms and faces challenges if it is to continue to effectively manage the region (Dodds et al. 2017). Globalization challenges its Antarctic exceptionalism model of governance, wherein issues were addressed through specific instruments negotiated under the ATS. Increasingly, there are pressures to leave regulation to market forces or administrative action, or to global instruments. Increasing scale, pace, and complexity of technology-enabled Antarctic activities, less constrained by Antarctica's remoteness and harshness than in the past, require improved ATS institutional integration and instrumental coverage. Further, the architecture of the ATS has its foundations in the Cold War, and rising international powers such as Brazil, India, South Africa, and particularly China, plus the broader community of emerging countries, few of which are presently within the ATS, will need to be assured that it now serves their interests too (Hemmings 2014). ## References - Dodds, Klaus, Alan D. Hemmings, and Peder Roberts (Eds.). 2017. Handbook on the Politics of Antarctica. Cheltenham and Northampton, Edward Elgar. - Hemmings, Alan D. 2014. “Re-justifying the Antarctic Treaty System for the 21st Century: Rights, Expectations and Global Equity.” In Polar Geopolitics: Knowledges, Resources and Legal Regimes, Eds. Richard Powell and Klaus Dodds, 55-73. Cheltenham and Northampton, Edward Elgar. - Leane, Elizabeth and Jeffrey McGee (Eds.). 2019. Anthropocene Antarctica: Perspectives from the Humanities, Law and Social Sciences. London, Routledge. - Rothwell, Donald R. and Alan D. Hemmings. 2018. “Introduction: The Context of International Polar Law.” In International Polar Law, Eds. Donald R. Rothwell and Alan D. Hemmings, xiii xliv. Cheltenham and Northampton, Edward Elgar. - Saul, Ben, and Tim Stephens (Eds.) Antarctica in International Law. Oxford and Portland, Hart.