Arctic
Overview
U.S. Arctic policy emphasizes environmental protection and sustainable development, with particular emphasis on the role of indigenous people and other Arctic residents as stakeholders in the Arctic. The U.S. seeks to promote the viability and socio-economic well-being of Arctic communities and supports scientific research and international cooperation in achieving these goals.
United States Arctic policy is based on six principal objectives:- Meeting post-Cold War national security and defense needs
- Protecting the Arctic environment and conserving its living resources.
- Ensuring that natural resource management and economic development in the region are environmentally sustainable
- Strengthening institutions for cooperation among the eight Arctic nations.
- Involving the Arctic's indigenous communities in decisions that affect them.
- Enhancing scientific monitoring and research on local, regional, and global environmental issues.
The United States has been an Arctic nation with important interests in the region since the purchase of Alaska from Russia in 1867. At that time, national security and economic development were key U.S. interests. While this remains true today, significant changes in the international political arena, environmental, scientific and technological developments, and increasing global interdependence have created new challenges and opportunities for the United States and the other Arctic nations.
In 1991, the United States joined the seven other Arctic countries (Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, and Sweden) in establishing the Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy (AEPS). The AEPS was a Finnish initiative to address a variety of environmental protection issues in the Arctic. Four working groups were established under the AEPS to focus on environmental monitoring and assessment, conservation of flora and fauna, emergency preparedness, and marine environmental protection.
After several years of working on pan-Arctic environmental issues within the AEPS, the member states, at Canada's initiative, decided to expand the focus of the AEPS to deal with issues of sustainable development in the Arctic. To this end a new entity was formed with the signing of the "Declaration on the Establishment of the Arctic Council" in Ottawa on September 19, 1996.
The Arctic Council
The Arctic Council is a high-level intergovernmental forum that addresses environmental protection and sustainable development issues in the Arctic region. The eight founding nations of the AEPS comprise the member states of the Arctic Council. Six Arctic indigenous groups hold permanent participant status, and a number of other countries and organizations have observer status. The Council meets every two years at the Ministerial level to coordinate Council activities and oversee the work of the six working groups. Senior Arctic Officials from each member state meet more frequently to oversee Council operations between Ministerial meetings. The Arctic Council website, http://arctic-council.org, includes general information about the Council and its activities, projects, and upcoming events, as well as archives of Council documents and links to the working group websites.The United States participates in the Arctic Council under the leadership of the Department of State. Many other agencies, including the Departments of Interior, Energy, Commerce (NOAA), Transportation (FAA), and Homeland Security (Coast Guard), the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Science Foundation, the Arctic Research Commission, and the state of Alaska support or actively participate in the Arctic Council's work. The United States is currently leading or co-leading several important projects including an assessment of effects of oil and gas development in the Arctic (OGA), the Arctic Human Health Initiative (also an IPY project), the Arctic Marine Shipping Assessment (AMSA), and an Arctic Biodiversity Assessment (ABA).
The Working Groups of the Arctic Council
Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Program (AMAP): AMAP assesses the health and ecological risks associated with contamination from radioactive waste, heavy metals, persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and other contaminants. It also recommends targeted monitoring of regional environmental developments including the effects of climate change. www.amap.no
Arctic Contaminants Action Program (ACAP): ACAP works to raise awareness in the Arctic states about the sources and effects of pollutants in the Arctic environment, and assists with capacity building in Arctic indigenous communities and in Russia. www.ac-acap.org
Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF): CAFF focuses on the conservation of biodiversity in the Arctic through regional monitoring, assessments, and other conservation-related activities. www.caff.is
Emergency Prevention, Preparedness, and Response (EPPR): EPPR develops projects on responding to environmental emergencies in the Arctic such as from oil spills, accidental discharges of pollution, and radiation releases. http://eppr.arctic-council.org
Protection of the Arctic Marine Environment (PAME): PAME concentrates on the Arctic Ocean ecosystem and undertakes such activities as developing guidelines for offshore oil and gas development in the Arctic, and Arctic shipping activities. It developed a regional action plan for the control of land-based sources of Arctic marine pollution. www.pame.is
Sustainable Development Working Group (SDWG): Through SDWG, the Arctic Council undertakes projects in socio-economic areas such as human health, energy utilization, information and communications technologies, indigenous concerns and the Arctic regional economy. http://portal.sdwg.org
Scientific Research
U.S. Arctic policy recognizes that cooperation among Arctic nations can contribute to better coordination of scientific research in the region. The U.S. Interagency Arctic Research Policy Committee (http://www.nsf.gov/od/opp/arctic/iarpc/start.jsp), with advice from the U.S. Arctic Research Commission (www.arctic.gov), coordinates federal efforts to produce an integrated national program of research, monitoring, assessments, and priority-setting for the Arctic region that most effectively uses available U.S. Government resources.
Related Links
· The Arctic Council (http://arctic-council.org)
· International Polar Year (IPY) (http://www.ipy.org/)
· U.S. IPY (http://www.us-ipy.gov/Default.aspx)
· U.S. National Science Foundation, Office of Polar Programs http://www.nsf.gov/dir/index.jsp?org=OPP)
· Interagency Arctic Research Policy Committee (http://www.nsf.gov/od/opp/arctic/iarpc/start.jsp)
· U.S. Arctic Research Commission (http://www.arctic.gov)
· NOAA Arctic Research Program (http://www.arctic.noaa.gov/aro/)
· U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Polar Bear information page http://www.fws.gov/home/feature/2008/polarbear012308/polarbearspromo.html
· State of Alaska (http://www.state.ak.us)
U.S. Senior Arctic Official
The U.S. Senior Arctic Official is a Foreign Affairs Officer in the State Department's Office of Oceans Affairs/Bureau of Oceans, Environment and Science.
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