Speech at Ny-Ålesund symposium

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Changes in the Arctic

It is a great pleasure to be here in Ny/New Ålesund.

In the 1960s Ny-Ålesund was just an old coal mining village. Today it has become a modern, advanced platform for international polar research. Ny-Ålesund is a good example of how modern technology and strict regulations have contributed to restructuring of the economic activities to the benefit of the international research society/community and the environment. It is an important and dynamic place. (I would like to highlight the importance of )The monitoring station at the Zeppelin Mountain. The research activities by about 20 countries are contributing to regional, national and global monitoring networks and reports on the development of the environment.

But: The environmental situation is far from positive.

• Climate change is a growing threat and the effects in the Arctic are expected to be earlier and stronger than for the the rest of the world.
• The Arctic has become a recipient of air borne toxic substances affecting biological life and the ecosystem.
• Increasing demand for new energy resources has lead to increased attention to the High North. Exploitation of potential petroleum resources may have significant social, economic as well as environmental consequences in the region.

We need a common understanding of these major challenges in order to be able to respond in a coordinated and adequate way. This should be based on a long term perspective of preserving the unique environmental qualities of the High North.

Climate changes
The effects of climate change are already being felt here in Spitzbergen and throughout the Arctic region. This year, for example, the island has broken all previous temperature records./ The mean temperature in January was 13 degrees Celsius above the normal mean temperature!

This confirms the main findings of the Arctic Climate Impact Assessment (ACIA); that the average temperature in the Arctic has increased by about twice the global average in the past few decades. The ACIA- report describes a future with climate change that will strongly affect the people and the way of living in the north. Let me underline that Dr. Bob Corell and his team have done an excellent job in preparing the ACIA-report. It is unique in the sense that it contains both scientific and traditional knowledge. Urgent action is needed from the industrialized nations as well as the strongly growing developing countries in Asia and Latin America.

I can assure you that the follow-up of the ACIA-report will be one of our main priorities during the Norwegian chairmanship of the Arctic Council. The follow-up work includes development of adaptation strategies for the most vulnerable peoples and sectors of the society, further research and systematic observation to cover existing gaps in knowledge as well as efforts to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions.

I believe that international cooperation is vital if we are to achieve the necessary emission reductions and avoid dangerous climate change. Norway will therefore continue the cooperation on climate change, within the Barents Euro-Arctic Council and the Nordic Council of Ministers, and above all within the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. Following a Norwegian initiative within the Nordic Council of Ministers, a strategy on climate change and hazardous chemicals in the Arctic has been prepared. It will be put before the Nordic environmental ministers for approval at their meeting later this month.

Hazardous substances
Hazardous substances are one of the most serious threats, both to the Arctic and the global environment. Emissions of many of the most dangerous chemicals, have been considerably reduced, but new problems continue to arise. We still find “old environmental contaminants” like DDT and PCB in the Arctic. However, new contaminants from cosmetics, medical drugs and other wide spread products are the challenge of the future.

Chemicals are used in large quantities in modern production processes, and hazardous chemicals are transported throughout the world by global ocean currents and atmospheric circulation. Global trade also has a major impact on emissions of hazardous substances, because it contributes to their global spread in products. The High North acts as a sink for a number of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) that are transported with air and ocean currents from more southerly latitudes to the Arctic.

The accumulation of hazardous chemicals in the Arctic environment is of serious concern in polar bears, but also in killer whales and guls eggs, the latter being a part of human diet in the region. Moreover, the number of chemicals found in the Arctic is increasing. New contaminants, such as flame retardants and pesticides (currently in use) are now being detected. The contaminants represent not only a threat to the environment and health, but also to the fishing industry and to the basis of existence for Arctic people and societies.

The sum of environmental facts and findings are alarming. This is why the Norwegian Government is giving high priority to efforts to reduce and eliminate pollution from POPs and heavy metals. We need to strengthen the existing international instruments on POPs, and develop instruments to regulate mercury and other heavy metals. There have been some important steps forward. For example the entry into force of the POPs Convention in 2004 and the recent finalization of the international strategy on chemicals (SAICEM) in February. We invite governments as well as all other stakeholders to join us in the practical efforts to follow-up on these global environmental instruments.

We still don’t know enough about the effects of most chemicals on our health and the environment. Acute effects are often quickly recognized. But long-term effects can be much more difficult to establish. As we learn more, new problems are often revealed. But we also have positive reports coming in. Transportation of contaminants by air currents to Svalbard is reduced lately. We have registered a drop in concentrations of Sulphur dioxide (SOx) and Sulphate. This reflects the reduction in emissions of these substances in Europe.

PCB measured in air here in Ny-Ålesund has been constant for the last 5 – 10 years or slightly reduced, in line with the rest of the Arctic Region. However, the concentration of PCB in polar bear, seals and sea gulls around Svalbard is still among the highest in the Arctic.

Promoting Integrated Management
The Barents Sea is a clean and rich ocean. It is of urgent importance to preserve its high environmental quality. To meet the challenges the Government has developed a plan based on an integrated ecosystem approach. This integrated management plan based on close co-operation among the interest and sectors involved, covers the Norwegian part of the Barents Sea. We are also co-operating closely with Russia both at the political and expert levels to see how we together can assure high environmental and security standards for activities in the whole of the Barents Sea. A successful bilateral high-level seminar was held in Moscow this week to promote the Russian Norwegian co-operation on protection of the Barents Sea.

The management plans are based on an ecosystem management regime. The purpose of the plan is to establish a framework that can balance commercial and environmental interests/. This means balancing the interests of fisheries, maritime transport and petroleum activities in a way that will secure the quality of the environment and the biological diversity of the marine ecosystems. The plan will also handle possible conflicts of interest and propose special requirements and limitations on economic activities. It will also be a major challenge to establish an environmental monitoring system to supervise the development in environmental condition and quality of the ecosystem. The plan is now being finalised and will be submitted to the Parliament in April as a White Paper.

Dear Collegues

There are still major environmental challenges in the Arctic which have to be dealt with at the international level. Follow-up on international environmental conventions and protocols is of the greatest importance. Likewise, co-operation on environmental research (is needed in order )to detect new pollution trends and to maintain and develop new ambitious environmental policies for protection of the Arctic.

At the same time the new commercial interest for the Arctic makes the situation even more challenging from an environmental point of view. We need to balance the many interests involved. Our common challenge is to manage the Arctic within the framework of an integrated management regime. This will ensure:

• the integrity of the ecosystem,
• the value creation and
• the basis of existence for people and societies in the Arctic Region.

The Norwegian Government will take steps to strengthen international cooperation in the Arctic on environmental issues, on fisheries, trade, industrial development, science, education, and health.

I believe that we should all share a long term ambition to preserve the high quality environment of the Arctic. We need high ambitions in the High North. And I sincerely hope that this seminar will contribute to furthering this purpose.

Thank you for your attention!