Antarctica is surrounded by a vast, unbroken and dynamic body of water known as the Southern Ocean, which constitutes about 15% of the world’s total ocean surface. It is the only continent on Earth to be completely governed by its very own international agreement. The Antarctic Treaty was signed in 1959 by the 12 nations present in Antarctica at that time, who agreed to set aside their differences and work peacefully together to carry out scientific research. A further 31 nations signed the Treaty after it came into force in 1961, and it is still open to any member of the United Nations.

Since the first Consultative Meeting in Canberra in 1961, several measures have been adopted covering such areas as exchange of information; interchange of scientific personnel; preservation of historic sites; protection of specific areas; conservation of fauna and flora; conduct of tourists; mineral resources; and emergency assistance.

Antarctica’s resources have been harvested for about 200 years. In many cases the intense level of exploitation resulted in the severe depletion of harvested stocks, as was the case for fur and elephant seals in the 19th century, and whales and finfish in the 20th century. The resulting concern for the health of Antarctic ecosystems and its extraordinary marine and terrestrial life has kept environmental issues at the forefront ever since the Treaty was adopted.

In recent years there have been two milestones of particular relevance to the Regional Seas Programme. The first was the adoption of the Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR), which came into force in 1982. The Convention was primarily a response to concerns raised in the mid-1970s that an increase in krill catches in the Southern Ocean could have a serious effect on populations of krill and other marine life; particularly on birds, seals and fish which depend on krill for food. The Convention defines a Commission and a Scientific Committee to work together to manage marine living resources in the Southern Ocean.

The second milestone was the signing in 1991 of the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty, which, inter alia, establishes the Committee for Environmental Protection (CEP). The Protocol entered into force on 14 January 1998. Programmes which relate directly to the Protocol include monitoring of marine debris and its impact on marine animals including seals and seabirds, the CCAMLR Ecosystem Monitoring Programme (CEMP), and reduction of seabird by-catch in fisheries.

In contrast to other multilateral fisheries conventions, CCAMLR is concerned not only with the regulation of fishing, but also has a mandate to conserve the ecosystem. This ‘ecosystem approach’, which considers the whole Southern Ocean to be a suite of interlinked systems, entails managing the resource while avoiding adverse effect on ‘dependent and related species’ and considering the status and health of the ecosystem.

The importance of the continent for science, its mostly pristine environment, its remarkable marine life, and its abundant natural resources have ensured that environmental protection will always play a central role within the Antarctic Treaty system.

Dr Denzil Miller is Executive Secretary of the
CCAMLR Secretariat