Aspects of Environmental Planning in the Antarctic

The 1998 Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty is a milestone for environmental planning on the continent. A overview is given of events in the 30 years following the Antarctic Treaty of 1959, before an examination of the Protocol's requirement for parties "to identify within a systematic environmental- geographical framework … areas of outstanding aesthetic and wilderness value". It is concluded that the phrase 'wilderness and aesthetic value' links two disparate concepts, best handled by separation. Almost all of the Antarctic should be considered a wilderness, with the only exceptions being areas of permanent habitation, or areas showing permanent evidence of present or past human habitation. The phrase 'aesthetic value' should be seen as part of a wider process - landscape character assessment - a procedure unfamiliar to most in the Antarctic community. These approaches should be considered as practical routes to meet the Protocol's requirements.