SUDARCO

The Arctic Ocean is undergoing rapid climate change. As the region warms and sea ice retreats, previously inaccessible areas are becoming accessible. New economic prospects are being unveiled, paving the way for increased commercial activity, which has potential to create new economic value for Norway.  Expectations of increased human activity create the need for an updated approach to governance with a holistic, integrative and adaptive approach. Changes in the ice cover, water column structure and composition have already affected the ecosystem in the Arctic Ocean. Our current understanding is outdated and needs updating to enable effective management and adaptation based on a state-of-the-art understanding of the ecosystem and its response to the changing environment. Although the Arctic is warming, it remains an extreme environment; cold, dark and ice-covered for much of the year, making comprehensive studies extremely challenging. To maximise relevance for Norwegian management and policy development, this project will focus on the western ends of the Nansen and Amundsen Basins in the area north of Svalbard and Greenland, hereafter referred to as the ‘Focus Area’

We have identified three key knowledge gaps that need to be addressed to allow sustainable development within our Focus Area as follows:

1.         How accessible are the different parts of the Focus Area today and how will this change? 

2.         What is valuable and what is vulnerable in the Focus Area? 

3.         What regulation exists in the Focus Area today, will it be adequate in the future and how can it be changed?

https://www.uarctic.org/news/2023/5/sudarco-sustainable-development-of-the-arctic-ocean/

https://app.cristin.no/projects/show.jsf?id=2551323