Circumpolar
Map
of Resources at Risk from Oil Spills in the Arctic |
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Introduction
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Project DescriptionThe
EPPR Working Group of the Arctic Council is taking a proactive approach to
identifying risks from oil-related activities to the Arctic. In accordance
with this philosophy, one of the priority areas of action is the task of
developing a database containing the important natural and human features
of the Arctic, and using this information to identify areas of congruence
between petroleum activities, the environment and other human activities. This application represents the culmination of these tasks carried out under the EPPR project "Circumpolar map of Resources At Risk From Oil Spills In the Arctic". It is designed to present the highlights of information from a database containing the information provided by each of the member countries. Herein, you will find a series of maps covering the circumpolar area that highlight the areas of highest risk of an oil spill and those areas where a selected set of sensitive natural resources or subsistence communities exist. The maps presented are intended primarily for use by non-specialists such as administrators, government officials, and the public. This project is circumpolar in scope, concentrating on those features of broad interest in an international context. Because of this large-scale (circumpolar) focus, the data coverage is not intended to be exhaustive at a local level. Although common criteria were established for the national datasets, each of the eight arctic countries identified, collated, and formatted and provided their own data. The maps contained here is the first attempt to combine each national dataset into a common database, and use the information in an integrated manner to provide an arctic-wide assessment of overlap between oil activities and a selected set of biological resources that might be impacted should a spill occur. Individual countries may update their datasets in the future as new information becomes available, and to ensure consistency with other national data. For more information on other EPPR activities, see the EPPR working group home page. The Arctic Council Home Page also provides information about EPPR in relation to the other working groups. |
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