Change will be the constant – future environmental policy and governance challenges in Svalbard

Abstract

ABSTRACT Svalbard will gain increased strategic importance in the future development of the Norwegian Arctic. We argue from a perspective of international relations that the current Svalbard policies inadequately reflects the environmental, economic, social and political changes facing the archipelago. We ask what will be the paramount environmental management challenges facing Svalbard in the future, and how the governance system can deal with these? With the backdrop of climate change, developments throughout the Circumpolar Arctic suggest that the Polar region as such will experience increasing exploration and exploitation for natural resources, growth in marine traffic, different forms of tourism and militarization. Due to the structure of the Svalbard treaty, all policy measures and management interventions must be carefully balanced in the context of global geopolitics. Changing public values, climate change, oil- and gas exploration, marine harvesting, securitization, and expanding infrastructure and logistics will characterize the future. There is a need to develop expanded emergency response systems, an improved knowledge base for management including social science data, and better mechanisms for integrating science in policy- and decision-making. Environmental policy goals should also be revised to reflect the dynamic and uncertain state of social and environmental drivers of change already impacting Svalbard.