Legal Aspects of Environmental Protection in the Arctic

The Arctic attracts the attention of states with its wealth of natural and mineral resources and the ability to use the Northern Sea Route. The desire of states and private actors to capitalize on this potential can lead to disastrous repercussions not only for the region but for the whole world. Already, the Arctic is tremendously exposed to adverse human-induced impacts, including climate change and the penetration of a large number of pollutants. Low temperatures trigger slow biodegradation processes and pollutants can be stored in Arctic glaciers for centuries. Permafrost thawing accelerates global warming and threatens the emergence of new viruses. Existing universal international legal instruments for environmental protection practically do not take into account the special Arctic conditions. Regional treaties, including those within the Arctic Council framework, only partially affect environmental issues and are unable to ensure the conservation of biodiversity. The prospective UNCLOS instrument on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of ABNJs aims not at protecting ecosystems, but at expanding intellectual property rights and further commercialization of living organisms. The environmental outcomes of the Arctic Council Working Groups are not sufficiently used by the Arctic states. Financial institutions focus on the profitability of projects and not on their ability to effectively protect the Far North ecosystems. Challenges in the Arctic are urgent and already now require a global and regional legal response. The current environmental inaction of states will lead to environmental degradation, both in the Arctic and in the whole Earth, which will result in the inevitable world-wide disaster.