Pan Arctic Forum

The Guideline aims to improve safety of Arctic marine operations by incorporating Arctic-specific risk factors not covered by existing guidelines

17 April 2020

Editor’s note: The Arctic Council released the following press release, which reads as follows:
“The Emergency Prevention, Preparedness and Response (EPPR) Working Group of the Arctic Council today released its Guideline for Arctic Marine Risk Assessment. The guideline contains best practice methods and data sources for conducting regional and area-wide risk assessments concerned with ship traffic and operations in the Arctic. The guideline aims to improve and ease the process of conducting Arctic-specific risk assessments by creating a common ground and incorporating unique Arctic risk factors.

Editor’s note, the Arctic Institute published the above-titled article, which reads in part as follows:

“The Arctic is emerging as a new domain for the strategic rivalry between the United States and China. As China expands its engagement in the Arctic, the implications of its presence and activities are an increasingly debated topic in the United States, among the Arctic states, and globally. China has claimed benevolent intentions in peace, development, and improving Arctic governance. However, given the opaqueness of China’s decision-making and capability development, many American policymakers and observers, if not most, remain skeptical or even hostile toward China’s potential in the Arctic. A solid strategy on China in the Arctic should begin with a well-defined and well-articulated concrete threat perception by Washington.

The Interagency Arctic Research Policy Committee (IARPC), which is chaired by the National Science Foundation, seeks public input on the content and organization of the next 5- year Arctic Research Plan: 2022–2026.  Written comments must be submitted no later than July 2, 2020.