UNCLOS and the Balance of Environmental and Economic Resources in the Arctic

CITATIONS
Larkin, John E. D. "UNCLOS and the Balance of Environmental and Economic Resources in the Arctic." Georgetown International Environmental Law Review. Vol. 22. (2010): 307-336. [ More (5 quotes) ]

Quicktabs: Citation

Even routine off-shore oil extraction can be devastating in Arctic
Off-shore mining poses serious environmental hazards that are not always visible to the naked eye. For instance, drilling can cause ocean currents to change, altering the marine environment, and affecting temperatures worldwide. 10 7 It can also destroy marine habitats and their biological communities in the vicinity of hydrothermal vents.'0 8 More obviously, oil exploration, especially in the harsh conditions of the Arctic, risks oil spills into the Arctic waters. BP Exploration (Alaska), for instance, is on average responsible for an oil spill every day in its Prudhoe Bay operation.109 These spills have the effect of depleting the popula- tions of Arctic wildlife, including game animals hunted for food by indigenous Arctic peoples."110
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Larkin, John E. D. "UNCLOS and the Balance of Environmental and Economic Resources in the Arctic." Georgetown International Environmental Law Review. Vol. 22. (2010): 307-336. [ More (5 quotes) ]
Ordinary pollutants pose special problem in the Arctic

The same chemical, organic, and radiological pollutants that contaminate the ecosystems of the rest of the planet pose particular problems for the Arctic. The freezing temperatures of the Arctic, both on land and at sea, prevent pollutants from breaking down into non-toxic constituent components.20 For instance, although the Arctic nations stopped using leaded gasoline more than a decade ago, the measurable lead in fish and wildlife in the area has not declined.21 In addition to the cold, the currents which flow to the Arctic from all over the world bring as much as 60% of the pollutants ultimately sited in the Arctic from somewhere else.22 Thus, the failure to include non-Arctic nations in future Arctic clean-up efforts would leave the majority of incoming pollutants unaddressed.

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Larkin, John E. D. "UNCLOS and the Balance of Environmental and Economic Resources in the Arctic." Georgetown International Environmental Law Review. Vol. 22. (2010): 307-336. [ More (5 quotes) ]
Fragile Arctic environment plays a major role in global environmental system
While the Arctic suffers special harms from ordinary pollutants, the ordinary conditions of the Arctic play a special role in maintaining the global environment.2' First,the cool water of the marine Arctic plays an important role in global oceanic heat exchange, helping to keep the temperature and salinity of the tropical seas constant;24 second, the Arctic ice reflects solar energy in the form of light, further helping to cool the planet;25 third, although the Arctic is not a significant carbon sink,26 perennial Arctic ice has nevertheless trapped significant amounts of methane and carbon dioxide over the past several hundred years.27 Changes in any of these three processes have potentially major global impacts above and beyond the temperature increases generated by the underlying green- house effect. Decreased Arctic ice will result in a slower hydrological cycle, trapping heat in the tropics and the Arctic, while simultaneously mitigating the temperature effects of climate change on the North Atlantic region.28 Moreover, slower currents are less effective at transporting the evaporated freshwater that would otherwise migrate north from the tropics, creating on the one hand more severe precipitation events in the low latitudes, while on the other hand prevent- ing water vapor from traveling across continental land masses (thus resulting in droughts).2 9 Another result of melting Arctic ice is an overall rise in the global mean sea level.3° Observed increases in sea level due to Arctic melt indicate that decreases in Arctic sea ice and the Greenland ice sheet alone have already contributed a .98 ± .29 millimeter rise to global sea levels.31 Were both the Arctic and Antarctic ice to melt completely-it is difficult to imagine one without the other-the total increase in sea levels would be between seventy-five and ninety meters.32
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Larkin, John E. D. "UNCLOS and the Balance of Environmental and Economic Resources in the Arctic." Georgetown International Environmental Law Review. Vol. 22. (2010): 307-336. [ More (5 quotes) ]
U.S. has committed to abiding by UNCLOS framework in the Arctic both formally and informally

In spite of the fact that the United States has not formally adopted UNCLOS, the applicability of the Convention's Articles governing sovereignty over the continental shelf to the United States-namely Articles 76 through 85-is for several reasons not seriously in dispute. First, many writers contend that Article 76 has become a defacto part of customary international law because of its wide adoption-either via ratification of the Convention itself or via unilateral laws modeled after the Convention.47

Second, the United States has repeatedly demonstrated its intent to be bound by the provisions of UNCLOS not relating to Part XI, which prohibits mining on the deep-sea beds. For instance, after refusing to sign the treaty in 1983, President Reagan announced his intention that the United States nevertheless act in accordance with UNCLOS.48 Although it never reached a floor vote, President Clinton referred UNCLOS to the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations in 1994.49 The Bush administration similarly pushed for ratification of the Convention, likely because it found "that the Convention's navigational and national security benefits far outweigh any costs to the U.S."50 UNCLOS has found similar support in the decisions of the federal courts.51

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Larkin, John E. D. "UNCLOS and the Balance of Environmental and Economic Resources in the Arctic." Georgetown International Environmental Law Review. Vol. 22. (2010): 307-336. [ More (5 quotes) ]
U.S. has significant economic interest in Arctic oil reserves

The economic importance of the energy resources trapped under the Arctic seabed is difficult to overstate. In 2007, Alaska produced 722,000 barrels of oil per day.96 This is only a fraction of the state's 1988 production peak of 2,017,000 barrels of oil per day.97 Today, Alaskan oil production accounts for more than sixteen percent of all U.S. production; in 1988, it was more than a third. Natural gas is a significant energy resource in Alaska (433.5 billion cubic feet are marketed from Alaska per year) but contributes only 2.2% to the U.S. market.98 U.S. Arctic oil exploitation pales, however, in comparison with that of the other Arctic nations.99 Norway, for instance, has produced dramatically more oil from its Arctic sea beds than the United States has over similar periods. In 2007, Norway produced 2,564,884 barrels of oil per day compared to Alaska's mere 722,000 barrels per day; approximately 500,000 barrels per day more than Alaska's 1988 peak.100 The other Arctic nations each produce significant quantities of oil as well.101

[ Page 319 ]
Larkin, John E. D. "UNCLOS and the Balance of Environmental and Economic Resources in the Arctic." Georgetown International Environmental Law Review. Vol. 22. (2010): 307-336. [ More (5 quotes) ]