Beijing has approved a law to improve China’s Antarctic research and strengthen regulation of its exploration activities, the official Xinhua news agency reported on Friday.
– Like the US, China has been expanding its presence in Antarctica and the Arctic to explore polar resources.
- The law aims to encourage Chinese scientific exploration and “safeguards the security of national activities, assets and other interests in Antarctica”.
- It requires Chinese Antarctic activities to protect animals and plants, properly handle and dispose of waste, prevent marine pollution, and avoid or reduce adverse impacts on the Antarctic environment.
- Permission for Chinese Antarctic research, tourism, shipping, and other activities will be subject to a series of environmental, safety and other conditions.
- China has had an atmospheric monitoring station in Antarctica for two years, observing changes and supporting the global response to climate change.
- China is a party to the Antarctic Treaty, which designates the content as a scientific preserve open to research and bans military activity, and to its 1991 Protocol on Environmental Protection, which prohibited mining and oil exploration for 50 years.