Chapter 7. Environmental Assessments in the Marine Areas of the Polar Regions

Abstract

This chapter examines how overarching provisions in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (LOS Convention) and other global instruments such as the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) apply to environmental assessments in the marine areas of the polar regions. It comments on the endorsement of environmental impact assessment (EIA) obligations as customary international law in the jurisprudence of international tribunals such as the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS). The development of EIA regimes for sectoral activities such as fisheries at the global and regional level and their relevance for the polar regions are explored. The evolution of EIA instruments and policies for both the Arctic and the Antarctic are reviewed as regional instruments specific to particular sectors in the polar regions. Keywords: Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD); environmental impact assessment (EIA); International Court of Justice (ICJ); Law of the Sea (LOS Convention); polar regions