Title: ATS: Secretariat of the Antarctic Treaty

Source/Sponsoring Agency: Antarctic Treaty Secretariat

URL: http://www.ats.aq/

Date Checked: 10/30/2008      Status: Active

Date Annotated: 10/30/2008

Topics: Environmental Law; International Law; Science And Technology

Other keywords: Conservation; Antarctic

Contents: The Antarctic Treaty was created on December 1, 1959 by the twelve nations active in Antarctica at the time. Designed “in the interest of all mankind that Antarctica shall continue for ever to be used exclusively for peaceful purposes and shall not become the scene or object of international discord,” thirty-four additional countries have since acceded to the Treaty. The treaty operated without an institution until 2004, when the Antarctic Treaty Secretariat (ATS) was established in Buenos Aires. This resultant website provides a space to both make their information publicly available, and aid the work of the members, committees, and consultants of the treaty. The Resources section provides access to the bulk of materials on the website. The Antarctic Treaty database is a major gateway into the publications of the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting, with nuanced search limitations by date, category, topic, and keyword. The Final Reports from all meetings are also available in PDF format. The Documentation Centre is the searchable and browseable ATS online library catalog. Other publications available through the website include the CEP (Committee on Environmental Protection) Handbook, visitor guidelines for tour operators, and the ATS newsletter. Links to related websites and online resources are nicely organized and extensive. Environmental protection is a major area of cooperation between the treaty parties and a substantial portion of the ATS website is devoted to making related documentation easily accessible. On the website, information is heavily cross-linked, making navigation somewhat confusing at first. The site map provides a clearer picture of available content.

Author of Annotation: J Jones