Abstract
As a near-Arctic state and a shipping power, China shows great interest in developing polar shortcuts from East Asia to Europe against the background of shrinking Arctic sea ice. Due to the Arctic’s historic inaccessibility and corresponding vulnerable ecosystems, Arctic shipping activities must be carried out sustainably. In this study, a content analysis method was adopted to detect Chinese perspectives toward sustainable Arctic shipping based on qualitative data collected from the websites of several Chinese government agencies. Results show that, first, China emphasizes the fundamental role played by scientific expeditions and studies in developing Arctic shipping routes. Second, China encourages its shipping enterprises to conduct commercial and regularized Arctic voyages and intends to strike a good balance between shipping development and environmental protection. Third, China actively participates in Arctic shipping governance via extensive international cooperation at the global and regional levels. Several policy recommendations on how China can develop sustainable Arctic shipping are proposed accordingly.
Highlights
Arctic sea ice is undergoing an extraordinary transition from generally thick multi-year sea ice to seasonal sea ice that is younger and less thick because of global warming [1]
Before 2010, very limited data were available from the websites of relevant Chinese government agencies because the system of the openness of government affairs was unsound at that time
With the improvement in government affairs openness and further involvement in the trans-regional and global issues in the Arctic, an increasing amount of media coverage on Chinese activities in the Arctic has been given on the governmental websites since 2010, when China conducted its fourth Arctic scientific expedition and created a historical record by reaching the North Pole
Summary
Arctic sea ice is undergoing an extraordinary transition from generally thick multi-year sea ice to seasonal sea ice that is younger and less thick because of global warming [1]. The reduction in Arctic sea ice provides potential business opportunities for the international shipping industry. Increasing shipping activities will significantly impact Arctic marine ecosystems and coastal communities with high confidence [3]. Those ship-based environmental impacts include accidental discharge of oil or toxic chemicals, regular discharges to water, emissions to air, sound and noise disturbance, vessel strikes on marine mammals, light disturbance, and introduction of invasive species [4]. Shipping activities must be conducted in a sustainable and environment-friendly manner in the Arctic area, where the ecosystems are especially vulnerable to potential impacts from ships [5]
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