Chapter IV — International 



done so were reminded of their obligation to develop 

 contingency plans for environmental emergencies. 



Although Aimex V concerning protected areas has 

 not yet come into force, the Consultative Meeting 

 considered and, based on the advice of the Committee 

 for Environmental Protection, adopted a measure 

 recommending that historic sites at Cape Royds, Hut 

 Point, and Cape Adare be designated Specially Pro- 

 tected Areas 27, 28, and 29 and that the proposed 

 management plans for these areas be approved. The 

 Parties also adopted a measure recommending to their 

 governments that the part of Mensa Bay on the 

 southwest coast of Elephant Island, where the remains 

 of a wooden sailing ship have been found, be added 

 to the list of historic monuments pending determina- 

 tion of the origin of the wreckage. 



The Consultative Parties welcomed the Guide to 

 the Preparation of Management Plans for Antarctic 

 Specially Protected Areas forwarded by the Committee 

 for Environmental Protection. They adopted a resolu- 

 tion recommending that the guide be used by those 

 preparing or revising management plans for protected 

 areas in accordance with Armex V of the Protocol. 

 The guide is included as an attachment to the report of 

 the Consultative Meeting. The Treaty Parties also 

 endorsed the Committee's recommendation that a 

 workshop be held immediately before the 1999 

 Consultative Meeting in Lima, Peru, to develop 

 guidelines for identifying areas meriting special 

 protection as outlined in Article 3 of Annex V. 



Liability for Damage to the Antarctic Environ- 

 ment — Article 16 of the Envirormiental Protocol 

 calls upon the Parties to elaborate rules and proce- 

 dures relating to liability for environmental damage 

 arising from activities taking place in the Antarctic 

 Treaty Area and covered by the Protocol. As noted 

 in previous Commission reports, a series of meetings 

 of legal experts has been held to discuss and attempt 

 to reach consensus on (1) what should be viewed as 

 damage to the Antarctic environment and to dependent 

 or associated ecosystems; (2) the types of damage for 

 which Parties should be liable; (3) whether there 

 should be any defenses or limits to liability; and (4) 

 the mechanisms that might be used to determine 

 damage and liability for damage. 



As noted in the Commission's previous report, the 

 group of experts met in Cape Town, South Africa, on 

 17-22 November 1997. The report of the meeting 

 was considered at the Consultative Meeting in Trom- 

 S0. It was agreed that the Council of Managers of 

 National Antarctic Programs, the Scientific Committee 

 on Antarctic Research, the International Association of 

 Antarctica Tour Operators, and the Committee for 

 Environmental Protection should be asked to provide 

 input to the 1999 Consultative Meeting on practical 

 aspects of the liability issue. In this context, it was 

 pointed out that any rules and regulations on liability 

 should be consistent with the objective of the Environ- 

 mental Protocol designating Antarctica as a namral 

 reserve, devoted to peace and science, and that the 

 liability regime should not undermine legitimate 

 scientific and other activities in Antarctica. It was 

 agreed that further negotiation of an annex or annexes 

 on liability should be undertaken by a working group 

 that meets during the Consultative Meetings with 

 simultaneous interpretation in the four official treaty 

 languages (English, Spanish, French, and Russian). 



Tourism and Other Non-Governmental Activities 



— Until 1966 nearly all travel to Antarctica was for 

 scientific purposes and was either organized or 

 sponsored by the Antarctic Treaty Consultative 

 Parties. Regular commercial tourist expeditions began 

 in 1966. Since then, there has been a steady increase 

 in tourism and other non-governmental activities (e.g., 

 yachting and mountain climbing). 



In recent years, the number of tourists and adven- 

 mrers visiting Antarctica has increased substantially. 

 At the 1998 Consultative Meeting, the International 

 Association of Antarctica Tour Operators advised the 

 Treaty Parties that more than 9,000 people traveled to 

 Antarctica on 14 commercial tour vessels from 

 November 1997 to March 1998. All but one of these 

 tour vessels were operated by members of the associ- 

 ation. Six of the 14 vessels were of Russian registry. 

 Ninety-eight of 108 voyages were to sites in the 

 Antarctic Peninsula, the most accessible and biologi- 

 cally diverse region in Antarctica (Figure 13). The 

 association estimated that, during the 1998-1999 

 austral summer, more than 11,000 tourists will visit 

 Antarctica aboard tour ships. As noted earlier, U.S.- 

 based tour operators have prepared and provided to 

 the Environmental Protection Agency assessments of 



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