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Antarctic Treaty Looks to Limit Ship Size

Posted by Janelle Nanos on December 10, 2009
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Antarctica photoSome good news is coming out of Antarctica this week, as the countries who manage the region are currently in meetings to discuss new controls over the fleets of passenger ships that have been swarming its icy waters. Tourism to the Antarctic has jumped from 10,000 visitors a decade ago to over 45,000 this past year, the AP reports, and with that comes increased concern about environmental impact to the already precarious region.

While the current rules state that visitors cannot leave any garbage or human waste behind in the waters, there have been few regulations on the types of vessels allowed to travel to Antarctica, and what kind of fuel they can use. This is of particular concern because there have been several incidents in the past few years, including the sinking of the Explorer, in which ships have either run aground or have not been strong enough to withstand an impact with an iceberg. According to the AP,  these cases were a wake-up call for Trevor Hughes, the head of Antarctic policy at New Zealand’s foreign ministry, and experts from the Antarctic Treaty are looking to establish a new code. Hughes told the AP:

“Without regulations, we are going to have a disaster where a lot of lives are lost and where oil spills out into the environment, and we see penguins being smothered and poisoned by fuel oil in their rookeries,” he said.

Increased oversight can only mean good things for the region, says our colleague Jonathan Tourtellot, who runs National Geographic’s Center for Sustainable Destinations. “One of the concerns has been about unsuitably large cruise ships visiting the Antarctic,” he said. “My hope is that this will be a constructive move.”

[The AP]

Photo: National Geographic My Shot user Tatyana Yegorova

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Comments

  1. Shailendra
    December 28, 2009, 6:01 pm

    This is definitely a good initiative to prevent the disaster like “Titanic”. I hope this will protect wild life along with humans. Hotel Booking

  2. Anna
    January 1, 2010, 1:14 am

    This can only be a good thing – to protect the wildlife especially. Often with oil-spills, local residents onshore take on the lions share of the clean up, in this kind of environment, however, the disaster is much worse as there are no onshore locals to help!

  3. vijay
    February 22, 2010, 12:26 pm

    This is definitely a good initiative to prevent the disaster like “Titanic”. Sole F80 TreadmillI hope this will protect wild life along with humans.

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    February 26, 2010, 10:36 am

    This is definitely a good initiative to prevent the disaster like “Titanic”.Celebrity Cruise line I hope this will protect wild life along with humans.

  5. Edward Long
    March 3, 2010, 8:13 am

    Its surprising to read that there have been several incidents in the past few years in which ships have not been strong enough to withstand an impact with an iceberg. I would have thought that a visit to Antarctica, the Arctic or even an Alaska Cruise would have required a ship specially designed for this eventuality.

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    March 20, 2010, 6:18 pm

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  9. Jasson
    March 29, 2010, 4:27 pm

    It’s great to know that visitor raised from 10,000 to 45,000. I never thought that are so many people visiting Antarctica. Hope people will obey to the regulations and keep Antarctica peaceful.
    Regards,
    Jasson

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  12. Linda Nexus
    May 30, 2010, 2:57 pm

    Antarctica is getting so popular that visitor raised from 10,000 to 45,000. We want to see Antarctica always peaceful. how to win your ex back

  13. tiggy max
    June 29, 2010, 1:56 pm

    Restricting the amount of tourist that can visit an area can be both beneficial and at the same time these restrictions can have an adverse affect on the local trade and commence of an area. Subsequently creating financial hardship for indigenous people of the region
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    July 18, 2010, 11:47 am

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  15. back
    August 6, 2010, 9:21 am

    i love to travel :)

  16. Video Baby Monitor
    January 12, 2011, 5:12 pm

    Tourism can highlight awareness, but it can also rapidly increase the destruction of the Antarctic. We need more sustainable solutions that still gives people access to these areas.

  17. Marcel
    January 14, 2011, 3:07 pm

    Hopefully increased numbers of visitors will mean an increased awareness about the fragility of the region
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