MARINE MAMMAL COMMISSION — Annual Report for 1992 
Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research and 
IUCN-The World Conservation Union on 29 June-2 
July 1992. Pending entry into force of the Protocol, 
the meeting called upon Parties to voluntarily take 
such steps as possible to ensure that all visitors to 
Antarctica are aware of the locations and purposes of 
protected areas and that they comply with the restric- 
tions on entry and activities that can be conducted in 
these areas. 
Tourism and Adventure Expeditions — In 1991 
and 1992 the number of tourists and adventurers 
visiting Antarctica each year has surpassed the number 
of scientists and scientific support personnel working 
there. Such activities can interfere with research and 
have adverse environmental impacts. Consequently, 
at the XVIth Consultative Meeting, several Parties 
proposed developing an annex to the Antarctic Treaty 
Protocol on Environmental Protection that would 
explicitly address tourism. It was agreed that an 
informal meeting on tourism and non-governmental 
activities should be held in advance of the XVIIth 
Consultative Meeting. 
The informal meeting on tourism and non-govern- 
mental activities was held in Venice on 9-10 Novem- 
ber 1992. Discussion focused on a draft annex 
prepared by France, Spain, Germany, Italy, and 
Chile. These Parties argued that a high-visibility 
annex that synthesizes the relevant provisions of the 
Protocol and creates additional restrictions on non- 
governmental visitors to Antarctica is necessary to 
ensure that such activities, particularly tourism and 
adventure expeditions, do not interfere with science or 
adversely affect the Antarctic environment. Other 
Parties, including the United States, pointed out that 
all activities, including non-governmental activities, 
would be governed by the Protocol on Environmental 
Protection and that there was no apparent need for 
special measures to govern tourism or other non- 
governmental activities. They also pointed out that 
the draft annex contained provisions inconsistent with 
the Protocol and in some cases inconsistent with the 
Antarctic Treaty. For example, the draft annex 
included provisions that would limit access to Antarc- 
tica by requiring prior approval by Antarctic Treaty 
Consultative Meetings of tourist visits, restricting 
tourists to specific locations, and limiting the overall 
numbers of tourists and non-governmental visitors. 
138 
The differing viewpoints could not be resolved. It 
was agreed that the matter would be considered 
further at the next Antarctic Treaty Consultative 
Meeting. 
Liability — Article XVI of the Antarctic Treaty 
Protocol on Environmental Protection calls upon 
Parties to develop an annex specifying rules and 
procedures for assessing and determining liability for 
environmental damage arising from activities in the 
Antarctic Treaty Area. At the XVIIth Consultative 
Meeting, Chile, Germany, and The Netherlands called 
for immediate negotiation of the liability annex. The 
United States and others argued that detailed prepara- 
tory work should be done before attempting to reach 
agreement on the liability annex and that establishing 
a secretariat and taking the steps necessary to bring 
the Protocol into force should be afforded higher 
priority. It was agreed that proposals would be 
developed and exchanged through diplomatic channels 
and that an expert legal group would be convened 
before or in conjunction with the XVIIIth Consultative 
Meeting to begin development of the liability annex. 
National Academy of Sciences Study of the 
Effects of Antarctic Policy on Antarctic Science 
The Antarctic Treaty Protocol on Environmental 
Protection recognizes that scientific research programs 
and related logistic support activities, as well as 
tourism and other non-governmental activities, could 
have adverse impacts on the Antarctic environment 
and its value as a scientific laboratory. It will require 
that Parties, among other things, assess the possible 
environmental impacts of research programs and 
related logistic support activities during the planning 
Stages and take steps to assess and minimize the 
effects of activities that are conducted. 
Scientists in the United States and other countries 
are concerned that these obligations and/or efforts to 
meet them will create bureaucratic impediments to 
basic research and reduce the amount of funding 
available to support basic research. To assess the 
validity of these concerns, the National Academy of 
Sciences proposed to the Department of State that a 
study be undertaken by the Academy’s Polar Research 
Board to assess the impacts of Antarctic policy on 
