The Polar Bear Treaty and the Changing Geography of the High Arctic

Abstract

Concerned with overhunting, the five circumpolar states with polar bear populations entered into the Polar Bear Treaty in 1973 to promote conservation by limiting the hunt or take. Since that time, new challenges—such as climate change and renewed recreational hunting markets in some member states—have raised a renewed specter of polar bear population decline. This article analyzes the effectiveness of the treaty regime, combining doctrinal analysis and reports of empirical trends to assess modern challenges. After examining the history, negotiation process, and doctrinal structure and effects of the treaty, I examine how the treaty regime has changed between 1973 and 2009, focusing on how the Polar Bear Specialist Group has adapted to changing circumstances such as climate change. To do so, I review scientific evidence about trends in population dynamics and in the changing geography of the high Arctic. Throughout this discussion runs a concern about inadequate attention to threat change: are the parties to the Treaty effectively and adequately regulating the polar bear populations? Are the states parties tracking other present or emerging threats to critically analyze their conservation approaches? I briefly present developments in bilateral and end-user agreements contributing to conservation efforts, then concludes with normative implications for habitat protection efforts if we understand the treaty regime as aligned toward conservation, and not simply restricting take.

Keywords: Polar bears, Arctic Council, climate change, international environmental law, treaty regimes

JEL Classification: K32, K33, Q54, Q58, Q26, Q28