Information Exchange on Tourism and Non-Governmental Activities
The Representatives,
Recalling Article III(1)(a) and Article VII(5) of the Antarctic Treaty;
Conscious of the obligations within the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty and its Annexes to exchange information;
Conscious also of Recommendation VIII-6 (1975) and other commitments that the Parties have made with respect to keeping each other informed by regular or occasional exchanges;
Desiring to ensure that the exchange of information between the Parties is conducted in the most efficient and timely manner;
Further desiring to respond to Recommendation 1 of the 2012 Committee on Environmental Protection study on the Environmental Aspects and Impacts of Tourism and Non-governmental Activities in Antarctica on the development of an Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting (“ATCM”) centrally managed database of tourism activities;
Further recalling Resolution 6 (2005), which recommended the use of a revised standard Post Visit Site Report Form for Tourism and Non-Governmental Activities in Antarctica;
Reaffirming Decision 4 (2012), which made mandatory the use of the Electronic Information Exchange System (“EIES”) for Parties to fulfil their information exchange obligations under the Antarctic Treaty and its Environmental Protocol and specified that Parties shall continue to work with the Antarctic Treaty Secretariat to refine and improve the EIES;
Desiring to supplement Appendix 4 of the ATCM XXIV Final Report on information exchange to ensure consistent reporting of types of tourist activity for both ship-based and land-based operations and to align that reporting with the information collected in the Post Visit Site Report Form endorsed in Resolution 6 (2005);
Decide:
1. to strengthen the exchange of information by supplementing Appendix 4 of the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting XXIV Final Report to include:
a) “type of activity” in Non-Governmental Expeditions - Ship-based Operations requirements;
b) the number of visitors that participate in each of the specific activities;
c) replace the heading of 1.1.2. A to ‘vessel-based operations’ as reflected in the Appendix to this Decision.
2. to revise the Electronic Information Exchange System (“EIES”) to include:
a) a list of non-governmental ship-based and land-based expedition activities from which Parties can select one or more for reporting in annual information, to be aligned with the activity fields in the Post Visit Site Report Form endorsed in Resolution 6 (2005), with the flexibility to enter additional activities; and
b) the number of visitors that participate in each of the specific activities;
3. to provide this information to the EIES and as a general principle, make that information publicly available.
The Representatives,
Recalling Article III(1)(a) and Article VII(5) of the Antarctic Treaty;
Conscious of the obligations within the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty and its Annexes to exchange information;
Conscious also of Recommendation VIII-6 (1975) and other commitments that the Parties have made with respect to keeping each other informed by regular or occasional exchanges;
Desiring to ensure that the exchange of information between the Parties is conducted in the most efficient and timely manner;
Further desiring to respond to Recommendation 1 of the 2012 Committee on Environmental Protection study on the Environmental Aspects and Impacts of Tourism and Non-governmental Activities in Antarctica on the development of an Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting (“ATCM”) centrally managed database of tourism activities;
Further recalling Resolution 6 (2005), which recommended the use of a revised standard Post Visit Site Report Form for Tourism and Non-Governmental Activities in Antarctica;
Reaffirming Decision 4 (2012), which made mandatory the use of the Electronic Information Exchange System (“EIES”) for Parties to fulfil their information exchange obligations under the Antarctic Treaty and its Environmental Protocol and specified that Parties shall continue to work with the Antarctic Treaty Secretariat to refine and improve the EIES;
Desiring to supplement Appendix 4 of the ATCM XXIV Final Report on information exchange to ensure consistent reporting of types of tourist activity for both ship-based and land-based operations and to align that reporting with the information collected in the Post Visit Site Report Form endorsed in Resolution 6 (2005);
Decide:
1. to strengthen the exchange of information by supplementing Appendix 4 of the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting XXIV Final Report to include:
a) “type of activity” in Non-Governmental Expeditions - Ship-based Operations requirements;
b) the number of visitors that participate in each of the specific activities;
c) replace the heading of 1.1.2. A to ‘vessel-based operations’ as reflected in the Appendix to this Decision.
2. to revise the Electronic Information Exchange System (“EIES”) to include:
a) a list of non-governmental ship-based and land-based expedition activities from which Parties can select one or more for reporting in annual information, to be aligned with the activity fields in the Post Visit Site Report Form endorsed in Resolution 6 (2005), with the flexibility to enter additional activities; and
b) the number of visitors that participate in each of the specific activities;
3. to provide this information to the EIES and as a general principle, make that information publicly available.
