Transcript Protecting Antarctica (ppt - 2283k)

PROTECTING
ANTARCTICA
Dr John Shears
Environmental Officer
British Antarctic Survey
Cambridge
Where is Antarctica?
•
•
•
•
•
•
At the bottom of the world!
Remote and barren icy
desert: South Pole -52oC!
The coldest, windiest, and
driest place on Earth
No rivers, forests or native
people
About the same size as
Europe
Very simple ecosystems
with few species
Antarctica - The Last Great Wilderness
Antarctica is the
world’s largest
remaining
wilderness region.
The Antarctic continent remains almost
undamaged by mankind, but the marine
ecosystem of the Southern Ocean has
been exploited for over 200 years.
Protecting Antarctica
• A unique set of international
regulations - the Antarctic Treaty
System - protects Antarctica.
• The Antarctic Treaty (1961)
suspends territorial claims and
preserves the continent for
science and peace.
• The Treaty has been reinforced
by other agreements. The most
important are:
The Antarctic Treaty
has been signed by
45 countries,
including Britain.
They meet each year
to discuss the future
of the continent.
- the Convention for the
Conservation of Antarctic Marine
Living Resources (CCAMLR)
(1982)
- the Madrid Protocol on
Environmental Protection (1998)
Current Threats to Antarctica
• Global
- Climate change
• Regional
- Pirate fishing and seabird mortality
• Local
- Scientific research and tourism
Global Threats – Climate Change?
• The northern Antarctic
Peninsula has warmed by 2.5oC
over the last 50 years.
• This has caused the collapse of
several ice shelves. Larsen ‘B’
disintegrated in March 2002
releasing over 500 billion
tonnes of ice.
Top. NASA Terra satellite image showing the
collapse of Larsen ‘B’ ice shelf. Image is 300 x
300 km. Left. Aerial photograph of Larsen ‘B’.
Climate Change – Rising CO2 concentrations
• CO2 concentrations measured at South Pole show a significant
increase over the last 50 years.
• The rise is due to the use of fossil fuels and the burning of forests.
• Ice core data show that CO2 concentrations are now ~30% greater
than in the previous 400,000 years.
Regional Threats – Pirate fishing
• In the past, sealing and
whaling caused significant
impacts to the Southern
Ocean.
Longline fishing vessels are
targeting Patagonian toothfish
(Dissostichus eleginoides).
Toothfish can fetch £18 a kg
wholesale. The high price
attracts “pirate” vessels.
• Now, the catches of
Patagonian toothfish have
reached unsustainable
levels.
• In 2001/02, the legal catch
of toothfish was 12,800
tonnes. But a further 10,900
tonnes was probably taken
illegally.
Save the Albatross
• Longlining kills thousands of albatrosses every
year in the Southern Ocean because they get
caught and drowned on the baited hooks of lines
>100 km long.
• At Bird Island, South Georgia the breeding
population of wandering albatrosses is decreasing
by 1% per annum.
Local Threats – Science
• The scientific exploration of
Antarctica began only just over
100 years ago.
• Up to 10,000 scientists and
support staff now work there
each summer, falling to 1000 in
winter.
• The only human settlements
are research stations.
• Environmental impacts of
science are localised, and
found largely around major
permanent stations.
Rothera Research Station is the largest British
base in Antarctica. In summer, about 120 people
work there.
How does BAS minimize its impact ?
• Environmental Impact
Assessment of all activities
• Recycle or remove all solid
wastes
• Clean-up of abandoned
bases and waste dumps
• Introducing renewable
energy systems
• Conserving historic sites
Local Threats - Tourism
• Environmentalists are
worried by the rapid growth
in tourism to Antarctica.
25000
20000
Actual
Estimated
15000
10000
5000
0
19
9
1 9 2 /9
9 3
1 9 3 /9
9 4
1 9 4 /9
9 5
1 9 5 /9
9 6
1 9 6 /0
9 7
1 9 7 /9
9 8
1 9 8 /9
9 9
2 0 9 /0
0 0
2 0 0 /0
0 1
2 0 1 /0
0 2
2 0 2 /0
03 3
/0
4
• There are concerns about
a major fuel spill from a
tourist vessel, and
disturbance to breeding
wildlife.
No. of visitors to Antarctica
• Numbers of tourists have
doubled since 1992,
reaching 13,500 last
season.
Insert photo of
cruise ship here.
Also IAATO logo
Antarctic Summer Season
Do we need to take further action?
Number of closures
25
20
15
10
5
0
82/83 84/85 86/87 88/89 90/91 92/93 94/95 96/97 98/99 00/01 02/03
Year
Number of closures per year of the Thames barrier.
Source: DEFRA, 2003.
• Global warming may cause sea level to rise due to melting ice
sheets. International action required to reduce CO2 emissions.
• If the West Antarctic Ice Sheet melted this would raise global
sea levels by about 5m over several centuries.
• Sea level rise will put many low-lying coastal regions of the
UK, such as London, at risk of flooding.
Summary
• Antarctica is the last great
wilderness on earth
• Human activities on the continent
are carefully regulated and
controlled by the Antarctic Treaty.
• The greatest threat to Antarctica is
from global warming, caused by
activities elsewhere on the planet.
• Think global – act local!