The European Union and the establishment of marine protected areas in Antarctica

• Main Author: LIU, Nengye
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University 2018
• Subjects: European Union (EU); Marine protected areas; Antarctica; China; Southern Ocean; Biodiversity; Environmental Law; Antarctic; Antarc*
• Online Access: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/sol_research/4141; https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=6099&context=sol_research

This paper examines how the EU can best use its powers to establish marine protected areas (MPAs) in Antarctica. It first discusses the EU’s role in Antarctic governance and legal basis for the EU’s actions, with particular focus on the pending Joined Cases C-625/15 and C-659/16 at the Court of Justice of the European Union. Secondly, the paper analyses the negotiation process of the EU’s MPA proposals in the Southern Ocean within the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources. Thirdly, it provides suggestions regarding the EU’s potential actions that might help achieve proposed Antarctic MPAs.