Environmental Degradation, Strategy and Competition in the Arctic Region: An Assessment in the Context of Environmental Security

• Main Authors: İsmail Utku CANTÜRK, Senem ATVUR
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English; Turkish
• Published: International Journal of Politic and Security 2021
• Subjects: arctic; hydrocarbon reserves; trade routes; climate change; Political science (General); JA1-92; Arctic; Canada; Climate change
• Online Access: https://doaj.org/article/b5d4b79897bf4122b83013b5f89ae76c

Facing the rapid environmental destruction caused by the global environmental crisis, the Arctic has been exposed to structural changes throughout 21st century. Caused by global climate change, the gradual decrease in permanent glacial layer is opening the doors for a future that will transform the Arctic into a hub for overseas transportation whilst relatively facilitating the access to hydrocarbon reserves in the region. In an effort to evaluate the opportunities in the changing regional geopolitics in the form of national interests, Arctic actors have engaged in a regional competition. Such competition is deepening the environmental degradation in the Arctic region; due to the deterioration of the Arctic environment the global environmental crisis becomes even more devastating. This work explains the environmental degradation in the Arctic and the competition over region’s potential hydrocarbon resources and maritime trade routes through the four prominent Arctic actors, which are USA, Canada, Russia and China; the work aims to reveal the effects of this competition over regional and global environmental security.