Topic: European Union declares Arctic interests

[sam]

http://www.nature.com/news/2008/081126/full/456435c.html?s=news_rss

[Clive]

Sorry Sam.  You will have to cut and paste because it's restricted to subscribers only. 

[sam]

oh darn, I'll do this when I get to the office (if I remember)

[sam]

The member states of the European Union (EU) have joined those countries staking an official interest in the Arctic, after the EU last week released a declaration of its "interests and policy objectives" in the far north. The European Commission billed it as the "first step towards an EU Arctic Policy".

The move comes amid steadily rising rhetoric from nations bordering the Arctic, with Russia, Canada and the United States rattling sabres over their rights to the area. As well as support for climate-change mitigation and oil exploration, the declaration also renews the EU's commitment to building a new research icebreaker, Aurora Borealis.

Further projects are promised that will monitor rising sea levels and the loss of sea ice and permafrost, as well as screening for organic chemicals and heavy metals in the region.

[Clive]

We need to stake our claim to the oil!   

[mistybear]

Who says that climate change, and the melting poles is a bad thing.