The Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy (AEPS) (sometimes referred to as the Finnish Initiative or Rovaniemi Process) is a multilateral, non-binding agreement among

Arctic The Arctic (; . ) is the polar regions of Earth, polar region of Earth that surrounds the North Pole, lying within the Arctic Circle. The Arctic region, from the IERS Reference Meridian travelling east, consists of parts of northern Norway ( ...

states on

environmental protection Environmental protection, or environment protection, refers to the taking of measures to protecting the natural environment, prevent pollution and maintain ecological balance. Action may be taken by individuals, advocacy groups and governments. ...

in the Arctic. Discussions began in 1989, with the AEPS adopted in June 1991 by

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

, the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

, and the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. The AEPS deals with monitoring, assessment, protection, emergency preparedness/response, and conservation of the Arctic zone. It has been called a major political accomplishment of the

post–Cold War era The –Cold War era is a period of history that follows the end of the Cold War, which represents history after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in December 1991. This period saw many former Soviet republics become sovereign states, as well a ...

Background

In January 1989, Finland sent a letter to the other Arctic states proposing a conference on protection of the Arctic environment. The

Rovaniemi Rovaniemi ( , ; ; ; ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Lapland (Finland), Lapland. It is located near the Arctic Circle in the northern interior of the country. The population of Rovaniemi is approximately , while the Rovaniemi su ...

Meeting of September 1989 established two working groups. This was followed by the second consultative meeting in

Yellowknife Yellowknife is the capital, largest community, and the only city in the Northwest Territories, Canada. It is on the northern shore of Great Slave Lake, about south of the Arctic Circle, on the west side of Yellowknife Bay near the outlet of t ...

Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories is a federal Provinces and territories of Canada, territory of Canada. At a land area of approximately and a 2021 census population of 41,070, it is the second-largest and the most populous of Provinces and territorie ...

in April 1990 where a third ''ad hoc'' group was established to develop the strategy. It also resulted in the preparation of a draft document.

Kiruna (; ; ; ) is the northernmost Stad (Sweden), city in Sweden, situated in the province of Lapland, Sweden, Lapland. It had 17,002 inhabitants in 2016 and is the seat of Kiruna Municipality (population: 23,167 in 2016) in Norrbotten County. The c ...

, Sweden was the site of the third meeting, held in January 1991, where one group worked on the drafting the AEPS while another dealt with specific

environmental issues Environmental issues are disruptions in the usual function of ecosystems. Further, these issues can be caused by humans (human impact on the environment) or they can be natural. These issues are considered serious when the ecosystem cannot recov ...

Adoption

Government officials from all the Arctic nations convened in Rovaniemi in June 1991 for the last consultative meeting. The first three days included meetings, followed by a ministerial-level meeting on 13–14 June observed by representatives from

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

, the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, and the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

. Three

indigenous people There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...

s' organizations observed, participated, assisted in developing the strategy, and later became Permanent Participants in the Arctic Council: the

Saami Council The Saami Council is a voluntary, non-governmental organization of the Sámi people made up of nine Sámi member organizations from Finland, Norway, Russia, and Sweden. Since the founding of the Nordic Saami Council in 1956, among the first indi ...

, the Inuit Circumpolar Conference, and the Association of Indigenous Minorities of the North, Siberia and the Far East of the Russian Federation (RAIPON). They considered the Rovaniemi ministerial meeting to be "historic" as it represented the first time that Arctic indigenous peoples participated in an international declaration's preparation process. On 14 June 1991, the AEPS and the Declaration on the Protection of the Arctic Environment ("Rovaniemi Declaration") were formally adopted. The main objectives were listed as,

"Preserving environmental quality and natural resources, accommodating environmental protection principals with the needs and traditions of Arctic Native peoples, monitoring environmental conditions, and reducing and eventually eliminating pollution in the Arctic Environment."

Follow-up

The AEPS outlined five objectives and six pollution issues. Legal issues included its jurisdictional reach and extent of obligations for the member states. Data-gathering, information compilation, and assessment tasks were organized around these issues. In their 1993 follow-up meeting in

Nuuk Nuuk (; , formerly ) is the capital and most populous city of Greenland, an autonomous territory in the Kingdom of Denmark. Nuuk is the seat of government and the territory's largest cultural and economic center. It is also the seat of gove ...

Greenland Greenland is an autonomous territory in the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. It is by far the largest geographically of three constituent parts of the kingdom; the other two are metropolitan Denmark and the Faroe Islands. Citizens of Greenlan ...

, ministers endorsed expanding the AEPS in order to deal with sustainable development, and issued the Nuuk Declaration. Another meeting occurred in 1996 in

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

, resulting in the Ottawa Declaration (1996) and the establishment of the

Arctic Council The Arctic Council is a high-level intergovernmental forum that addresses issues faced by the Arctic governments and the indigenous people of the Arctic region. At present, eight countries exercise sovereignty over the lands within the Arctic ...

. The last meeting, held in 1997 in Alta following the AEPS's 1996 absorption into the

resulted in the Alta Declaration. The AEPS remains a strategy for the Council's working groups, including: *

Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme The Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme was established as a working group of the Arctic Council in 1991. Its main function is to advise the governments of the eight Arctic member nationsCanada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, S ...

(AMAP) * Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF) * Protection of the Arctic Marine Environment (PAME) * Emergency, Prevention, Preparedness and Response (EPPR) * Sustainable Development and Utilization (SDU)

Criticism

Critics of the Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy argue that it: #Lacks ongoing political attention and direction, along with financial commitment. #Lacks the legal authority of a treaty. #Involves studies and talks but lacks concrete action. #Does not address specific problems, for example, Arctic haze.

References

{{reflist, 30em

Background

Adoption

Follow-up

Criticism

See also

References

External links