The Role of the Arctic Economic Council in the International Legal Framework of the Environmental Management of the Arctic Ocean

Abstract

The article covers the legal aspects of the establishment of a new international forum – the Arctic Economic Council – and its role in the existing international legal framework for governing the Arctic Ocean, including the Arctic seas. The status and the functioning of this international forum, particularly with regard to the activities within its Working Groups, are examined based on an analysis of the documents adopted by the forum since its establishment. Special attention is paid to the legal analysis of the coordination of the newly established forum with the Arctic Council and the prospects of such institutional cooperation.

The research is based on the relevant documents released by the Artic Council, in the context of legal and scientific sources on the topic of the Arctic Ocean and its seas, as well as on the Reports of the Arctic Economic Council submitted to the Senior Officials of the Arctic Council. The article also takes into consideration the political and legal research into the Arctic Council’s work, aimed at the sustainable development of economic activities in the region, as well as respective archive documents from the electronic database of the Arctic Council, including relevant press releases.

The Arctic Economic Council (AEC), established at the initiative of the Arctic Council in 2014, is a new circumpolar business forum, which aims at fostering the sustainable development of the Arctic region by substantive cooperation with entrepreneurs who carry out economic activities in the region or plan to do so. The new international organization has the potential to become an effective international legal mechanism to promote greener economies in the Arctic. At the same time, however, the organization is yet to become a constructive platform for dialogue on fostering economic activities in the region.

The AEC foundational documents determine the structure and the course of action of the organization. The article, nevertheless, suggests that the executives and the Secretary of this newly established international forum ensure that business representatives, committed to conducting activities in the Arctic, seek to comply with international environmental standards, applicable to the Arctic, namely, the exchange of best practices, with due account of the unique vulnerability of the Arctic environment. Moreover, in view of the growth in shipping and other marine activities in the region, Arctic business standards need to be more environmentally oriented, while also taking into account the possibility of diversifying the Arctic economy. The AEC could focus its efforts on enhancing the quality of regional regulation of the economic activities in the Arctic, paying particular attention to the coordinated self-regulative measures of the legal entities in different countries. In this case, its activities may prove to be more relevant and effective.