Actic Law & Policy Year in Review: 2015
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University of Washington School of Law UW Law Digital Commons Articles Faculty Publications 2016 Actic Law & Policy Year in Review: 2015 Craig H. Allen University of Washington School of Law Bridgette J. Cooper Adam Murray Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.law.uw.edu/faculty-articles Part of the Administrative Law Commons, International Law Commons, and the Law of the Sea Commons Recommended Citation Craig H. Allen, Bridgette J. Cooper, and Adam Murray, Actic Law & Policy Year in Review: 2015, 6 Wash. J. Envtl. L. & Pol'y 71 (2016), https://digitalcommons.law.uw.edu/faculty-articles/78 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Faculty Publications at UW Law Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Articles by an authorized administrator of UW Law Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Copyright © 2016 by Washington Journal of Environmental Law & Policy ARCTIC LAW & POLICY YEAR IN REVIEW: 2015 Arctic Law & Policy Institute, University of Washington* I. INTRODUCTION: ARCTIC NEWS HIGHLIGHTS ........... 73 II. TREATIES AND OTHER INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS ............................................................... 79 A. U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea ................... 79 B. U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change ... 80 C. International Convention for Prevention of Pollution from Ships ................................................. 81 D. Arctic Council Agreement on Cooperation on Marine Oil Pollution Preparedness and Response in the Arctic............................................... 82 E. Arctic Council Agreement on Cooperation on Aeronautical and Maritime Search and Rescue in the Arctic ............................................................... 82 F. Declaration Concerning the Prevention of Unregulated High Seas Fishing in the Central Arctic Ocean .............................................................. 83 III. STATE PRACTICE .......................................................... 84 A. United States: Federal Government ......................... 84 1. U.S. Congress ................................................. 84 2. President ....................................................... 87 3. Department of State ....................................... 89 4. Department of Homeland Security / U.S. Coast Guard ................................................... 90 5. Department of Commerce / National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration .... 95 6. Department of Interior / Bureau of Ocean Energy Management / Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement / U.S. Geological Survey .......................................... 99 7. Department of Defense ................................ 103 8. National Aeronautics and Space Administration ............................................. 107 * Craig H. Allen, Judson Falknor Professor of Law, Director, UW Arctic Law and Policy Institute, with assistance from Bridgette J. Cooper (UW ‘16) and Adam Murray (UW ‘14). 71 72 WASHINGTON J. OF ENVIRONMENTAL LAW & POLICY [Vol. 6:1 9. Environmental Protection Agency ............... 107 10. Significant U.S. Court Decisions ................. 108 11. U.S. Arctic Research Commission................ 112 12. National Ocean Council ............................... 113 13. Committee on the Marine Transportation System .......................................................... 114 14. National Academies Transportation Research Board ............................................ 115 B. United States: Alaska ............................................. 115 1. State of Alaska ............................................. 116 2. The Alaska Arctic Policy Commission ......... 117 3. Alaska Marine Mammal Co-Management Agreements .................................................. 118 C. Canada .................................................................... 119 D. China ...................................................................... 120 E. Denmark/Greenland ............................................... 121 F. Finland .................................................................... 122 G. Iceland ..................................................................... 122 H. Japan........................................................................ 123 I. Norway .................................................................... 125 J. South Korea ............................................................. 126 K. Russia 127 L. Sweden .................................................................... 129 M. The European Union ............................................... 129 N. United Kingdom ...................................................... 130 IV. INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS ........................... 130 A. United Nations ........................................................ 130 B. Arctic Council .......................................................... 131 C. International Maritime Organization ..................... 141 D. Food & Agriculture Organization Committee on Fisheries .................................................................. 143 E. International Whaling Commission ....................... 144 F. North Atlantic Marine Mammal Commission ........ 146 G. Commission on Limits of the Continental Shelf .... 146 H. UNESCO / IOC / ICES / PICES .............................. 152 I. World Trade Organization ...................................... 153 J. International Tribunals .......................................... 155 K. United Nations Environment Program .................. 157 V. SELECTED ARCTIC THEMES ......................................... 157 A. Arctic Marine Shipping ........................................... 157 1. Prognosis for Arctic Shipping ...................... 158 B. Arctic Marine Shipping Assessment....................... 158 1. Arctic Shipping Routes................................. 161 2. International Agreements on Shipping Safety ........................................................... 168 3. Arctic Shipping Safety Measures ................. 169 C. Polar Icebreakers ..................................................... 170 2016] ARCTIC LAW & POLICY YEAR IN REVIEW: 2015 73 D. Arctic Living Marine Resources .............................. 176 E. Arctic Non-Living Marine Resources ...................... 181 F. Marine Pollution Prevention, Response, & Liability ................................................................... 188 G. Arctic Marine Scientific Research .......................... 190 H. Indigenous Arctic Residents ................................... 193 I. Military Activities in the Arctic .............................. 194 VI. UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON ALPI NEW DEVELOPMENTS ........................................................ 202 VII. SELECTED CONFERENCES ....................................... 202 I. INTRODUCTION: ARCTIC NEWS HIGHLIGHTS In April 2015, Canada passed the Arctic Council Chair to the United States. In assuming the chair, the United States adopted as its theme: One Arctic: Shared Opportunities, Challenges, and Responsibilities. The U.S. chairmanship goals are detailed in Section IV.B. Early Predictions for 2015 A January 21, 2015, article in The Economist proclaimed that the Arctic “hype” is receding, and that while the Arctic still matters; mainly for environmental reasons, the surge of interest in its economy and politics has ebbed.1 Global Climate Change Agreement As 2015 drew to a close, delegates attending the 21st Conference of Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP21) in Paris reached unanimous agreement on measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Although non-binding, the Agreement was hailed as a major win for the environment.2 The Arctic Report Card Arctic Ice Conditions: In 2015, the winter maximum Arctic sea ice extent reached a record low, extending 1. Not So Cool: The Hype Over the Arctic Recedes, Along with the Summer Ice, ECONOMIST (Jan. 31, 2015), http://www.economist.com/news/international/21641240- hype-over-arctic-recedes-along-summer-ice-not-so-cool. 2. About COP21, CLIMATE ACTION (2015), http://www.cop21paris.org/about/cop21/. For a more detailed discussion, see infra Section II.B. 74 WASHINGTON J. OF ENVIRONMENTAL LAW & POLICY [Vol. 6:1 only 14.54 million square kilometers—approximately 1.1 million square kilometers below average. In September, the summer minimum Arctic sea ice extent was 4.63 million square kilometers, the fourth lowest September sea ice extent in the modern satellite record, which started in 1979.3 Arctic Climate Conditions: The average annual surface air temperature anomaly (+1.3°C relative to the 1981– 2010 baseline) over land north of 60°N between October 2014 and September 2015 was the highest in the observational record beginning in 1900. This represents a 2.9°C increase since the beginning of the 20th century. On Dec. 30, 2015, the high temperature at the North Pole reached 42° Fahrenheit. 4 U.S. Oil and Gas Activities On December 23, 2015, the price of Brent crude oil, the global benchmark for oil prices, fell to $36.11 per barrel—its lowest level in eleven years—as global supply continues to outpace demand.5 The Department of Interior released a draft of its 2017– 2022 lease plan for the U.S. outer continental shelf (OCS).6 The plan withdrew 9.8 million acres of the Arctic Ocean from oil and gas leasing.7 In late September 2015 Shell announced that it was 3. Maria-Jose Viñas, 2016 Arctic Sea Ice Wintertime Extent Hits Another Record Low, NASA, Mar. 28, 2016, http://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2016/2016-arctic-sea