Committee for Environmental Protection (CEP)

The Committee for Environmental Protection (CEP) is the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting's expert advisory body. The CEP provides advice and formulates recommendations on the implementation of the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty. The CEP was established in 1998 and meets annually. Currently the CEP is chaired by Dr Neil Gilbert from New Zealand.

The Committee provides advice on:

• effectiveness of Protocol measures
• application / implementation of environmental impact assessment procedures
• means of minimising or mitigating environmental impacts of activities in the Antarctic Treaty Area
• procedures for situations requiring urgent action including response action in environmental emergencies
• operation and further elaboration of the Antarctic Protected Area system
• inspection procedures including inspection report and checklist formats for inspection conduct
• collection, archiving, exchange and evaluation of environmental protection information
• the state of the Antarctic environment
• need for scientific research including environmental monitoring related to the implementation of the Protocol.