The Antarctic Treaty regime is a uniquely successful legal system which preserves Antarctica for peaceful purposes and guarantees freedom of scientific research. This volume based on an international conference, examines the legal, political and environmental issues that it raises. After setting the scene of the Antarctic environment, the early chapters discuss the legal issues involved in the Treaty. Later chapters consider protection of the marine environment and the regulation of mineral exploitation. The book concludes with a discussion of Antarctica and its development.

Because negotiations for the Antarctic Treaty were kept secret, the issues that shaped the treaty system have been poorly understood. Dr. Myhre breaks new ground by examining the records of the first Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meetings and evaluating the events of the Special Consultative Meetings on Antarctic Mineral Resources. Introducing the reader to Antarctic politics, Dr. Myhre examines legal and political problems arising from some nations' claims to sovereignty in Antarctica, reviews initial efforts to create an international administration for the region, and studies in detail the terms of the treaty and the rules of procedure for the consultative meetings. Turning to the diplomatic events that molded the treaty system, he concentrates on the issues that emerged in the 1960s: conservation, the role of Meetings of Experts, the position of the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research within the treaty system, the obligations of acceding states to uphold previous agreements, and the Consultative Powers' failure to establish an Antarctic Secretariat. Finally, he reviews the two main challenges to the system's survival—mineral extraction and Third World opposition to the present structure.

The international agreements covering Antarctica are models of cooperation and joined purpose. Convening at the Beardmore South Field Camp, near the Transantarctic Mountains, the Polar Research Board studied the Antarctic Treaty System and its implications for improved relationships between countries. This study examines the structure, meaning, and international repercussions of the Antarctic Treaty, focusing on the ways it benefits both the scientific and political communities. Chapters cover the history, science, environment, resources, and international status of Antarctica.

This book provides an invaluable up-to-date survey of the legal framework for Antarctic activities, written by an author with direct practical experience of the Antarctic Treaty system. Reflecting the increase of activity in the area, the work examines the basic Antarctic Treaty of 1959 and the subsequent major additional treaties and regulatory measures to provide a clear and authoritative picture of the Antarctic legal system as a whole. The author demonstrates how these legal arrangements make an important contribution to international law generally notwithstanding the unique characteristics that set Antarctica apart.

This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press’s mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1988.

With the negotiation of the International Protocol on Environmental Protection in 1991, those nations conducting scientific research programs in Antarctica face new challenges for stewardship of the southern continent and protection of its environment. Science and Stewardship in the Antarctic examines how the implementation of the 1991 agreement in the United States can be done in such a way to ensure the compatibility of scientific and environmental protection goals in this global laboratory. The book also addresses the potential for the new requirements both to benefit and harm research activities in Antarctica.

The Antarctic Treaty (1959) was adopted for the purpose of bringing peace and stability to Antarctica and to facilitate cooperation in scientific research conducted on and around the continent. It has now been over fifty years since the signing of the treaty, nevertheless security continues to drive and shape the laws and policy regime which governs the region. Antarctic Security in the Twenty-First Century: Legal and Policy Perspectives assess Antarctic security from multiple legal and policy perspectives. This book reviews the existing security construct in Antarctica, critically assesses its status in the early part of the Twenty-First century and considers how Antarctic security may be viewed in both the immediate and distant future. The book assesses emerging new security threats, including the impact of climate change and the issues arising from increased human traffic to Antarctica by scientists, tourists, and mariners. The authors call into question whether the existing Antarctic security construct framed around the Antarctic Treaty remains viable, or whether new Antarctic paradigms are necessary for the future governance of the region. The contributions to this volume engage with a security discourse which has expanded beyond the traditional military domain to include notions of security from the perspective of economics, the environment and bio-security. This book provides a contemporary and innovative approach to Antarctic issues which will be of interest to scholars of international law, international relations, security studies and political science as well as policy makers, lawyers and government officials with an interest in the region.