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NZ/US 50th Anniversary of Antarctic Cooperation
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January 2007 marked the 50th anniversary of New Zealand - United States cooperation in Antarctica. To celebrate this anniversary, Prime Minister Helen Clark and Sir Edmund Hillary travelled to Scott Base and McMurdo Station with a US delegation that included Assistant Secretary of State Claudia McMurray, Director of the National Science Foundation Dr Arden Bement Jr, and US Ambassador HE William McCormick. more
In 1989 the Consultative Parties agreed to review the wide range of existing environmental protection measures available and to elaborate a comprehensive system for the protection of the Antarctic environment. The outcome of that review was the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty. Any person proposing to carry out any activity in Antarctica must prepare an environmental impact assessment.
The Commission on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) was concluded in Canberra in 1980 with New Zealand as one of the original signatories.
The Ross Sea is an almost pristine natural environment which has attracted increased attention for its resources, in particular toothfish. This has led to consideration of the need to pursue a long-term management framework for the area. The state of the Ross Sea is a matter of considerable interest to many New Zealanders and officials invited public input on the advice provided to Ministers on options for the long-term management of the Ross Sea.
This document, the New Zealand Procedures for Non-Governmental Visitors to Antarctica, is primarily for the guidance of the organisers of private expeditions to the Ross Sea region of Antarctica, and secondly for government agencies administering relevant legislation. The document provides a practical explanation of the procedures involved for those planning activities in Antarctica. It replaces the Guidelines and Procedures for Visitors to the Ross Sea Region published in 1997.
