Safety & Sustainability of Shipping and Offshore Activities in the Arctic The Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology: A ROUND TABLE REPORT CONTENTS INTRODUCTION . 2 PART I: THE ARCTIC – AN OVERVIEW . .. 3 THE ARCTIC OCEAN . 3. Sea Ice Extent . 4 MARITIME OPERATIONS IN THE ARCTIC . 5 Emerging Opportunities for Shipping . .. 5 Offshore Operations - Natural Resource Exploration . 6 PART II: THE POLICY CONTEXT . 7 THE IMPACT OF SHIPPING AND OFFSHORE OPERATIONS IN THE ARCTIC . 7 Safety and Sustainability . 7 Minimizing the Impact and Managing the Risks . 7 INTERNATIONAL LEGISLATION FOR SHIPPING AND OFFSHORE ACTIVITIES IN THE ARCTIC . 7 ARCTIC-RELATED ISSUES IN EXISTING INSTRUMENTS . 9 Unclos . 9 Terremolinos Convention . 9 Ballast Water Management Convention . 9 London Convention & London Protocol . 9 CURRENT DEVELOPMENTS – THE POLAR CODE . 9 NON-BINDING GUIDELINES . 11 Arctic Council Offshore Oil and Gas Guidelines (2009) . 11 Oil and Gas Producers HSE Guidelines for Metocean & Arctic Surveys . 11 PART III: SECTOR VIEWS – SURVEY AND ROUND TABLE OUTCOMES . 12 ARCTIC RISKS – VIEWS FROM THE IMarEST SURVEY . 12 ARCTIC SAFETY AND SUSTAINABILITY – ROUND TABLE . 13 Prospects for Future Development in the Arctic . 13 Risks to the Environment . ..