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Current Issues
Are there features
of the biotic and abiotic systems of the Arctic that require special
treatment in the development of environmental and resource regimes?
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Every region has its own distinct
features, a fact that means nesting must be handled in a manner
that is sensitive to the circumstances prevailing in each region
of the world. In the Arctic, these features involve things like
high concentrations of birds and animals that make whole populations
vulnerable to catastrophic events; slow rates of regeneration for
depleted stocks and degraded ecosystems; long residency periods
for many types of pollutants, and bioaccumulation and biomagnification
that concentrate contaminants such as POPs and heavy metals at the
top of the food chain [21]. Clearly,
there is a need to bear these features of the region's biophysical
systems in mind in devising international regimes dealing with Arctic
issues. Stocks of some species of whales depleted a hundred and
more years ago by commercial whalers have yet to recover in a number
of parts of the Arctic. Stocks of other species (e.g. caribou and
sea lions) are subject to fluctuations whose speed and magnitude
are great but whose causes are poorly understood. Ecological "cascades"
are common under Arctic conditions, so that there can be no assurance
that ecosystems will return to their preexisting state following
more or less severe disturbances. The implications of these circumstances
are clear. Although there is a legitimate role for global regimes,
there can be no substitute for a detailed understanding of the dynamics
of regional systems in devising effective arrangements to manage
human/environment relations in an area like the Arctic. What is
more, there is a critical need to make use of all available knowledge,
including traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) as well as western,
scientific knowledge, in devising and administering specific environmental
and resource regimes [22]. |
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