Law Commons^™

Arctic Warming: Environmental, Human, And Security Implications, Mary B. West

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Arctic warming has myriad implications for the Arctic environment, residents, and nations. Although definitive predictions are difficult, without question the scope and rapidity of change will test the adaptive capacities of the Arctic environment as well as its residents. Warming is affecting marine ecosystems and marine life, terrestrial ecosystems, and the animals and people who depend on them. Human impacts include effects on access to food and resources; health and well being; and community cohesion, traditions, and culture. Increased shipping and resource activity create the need for additional maritime presence and security; better environmental and safety regulations; peaceful resolution of …

Symposium Introduction, Peter C. Marshall, Jr.

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

The last ten years have been the warmest on record. During 2007, Arctic sea ice dropped to the lowest levels since measurements began in 1979. Valuable natural resources in the Arctic, including gas and oil, are becoming more accessible to exploitation. The Northwest Passage--a highly desirable shipping route connecting Europe and Asia--is increasingly navigable during the summers. These changes have highlighted new and unresolved legal issues as the nations bordering the Arctic vie for control of these new waters and the resources that lie beneath them.

In February 2009, the Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law invited some of the most …

Who Controls The Northwest Passage?, Michael Byers, Suzanne Lalonde

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

From Martin Frobisher in 1576 to John Franklin in 1845, generations of European explorers searched for a navigable route through the Arctic islands to Asia. Their greatest challenge was sea-ice, which has almost always filled the straits, even in summer. Climate change, however, is fundamentally altering the sea-ice conditions: In September 2007, the Northwest Passage was ice-free for the first time in recorded history. This Article reviews the consequences of this development, particularly in terms of the security and environmental risks that would result from international shipping along North America's longest coast. It analyzes the differing positions of Canada and …