A Tale of Two Poles: A Comparative Look At The Legal Regimes in The Arctic And The Antarctic

• Main Author: Lennon, Erika
• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: Digital Commons @ American University Washington College of Law 2008
• Subjects: environmental law; international law; law of the sea; Arctic; Antarctic; The Antarctic; Antarc*; Climate change; International Polar Year; Law of the Sea
• Online Access: https://digitalcommons.wcl.american.edu/peel_alumni/111; https://digitalcommons.wcl.american.edu/context/peel_alumni/article/1110/viewcontent/viewcontent.cgi

Currently, the world is in the midst of the International Polar Year, a project to conduct research in the Polar Regions, which has increased focus on the poles. Given the physical manifestations of climate change, for example melting glaciers and ice caps, it appears as though the Antarctic and the Arctic will continue to be regions of concentration and concern. While the Antarctic has a treaty in place to protect it, the Arctic remains vulnerable due to its lack of comprehensive laws to determine a uniform governance system and environmental protections. Moreover, in the Arctic, competition between nations in the race to stake claims for resources threatens to further harm the environment, as well as to overtake the debate on stewardship of the fragile environment. This Article examines the legal regimes in the Polar Regions in an effort to inform how existing regimes may aid in developing Arctic governance and environmental protections.