Workshop on arctic transportation infrastructure
Around 70 experts on arctic transportation from the Arctic Council member states are meeting in Reykjavik, 3-6 December, focussing on repsonse capacity and sustainable development in the Arctic. The workshop is a part of a project, assessing transportation infrastructure in the High North on behalf of the Arctic Council's Sustainable Development Working Group.
Iceland supports this project, as arctic ports and airports serve as an important base for response, acting as a gateway to support SAR, resource extraction and development activities, pollution prevention and environmental safety, and community health and security. Icelandic institutions take part in the project, with a number of experts representing aviation-, marine- and harbour authorities as well as the Icelandic Coast Guard and ministries.
The project is led by the United States, and co-led by Iceland, with Canadian support and participation of other Arctic Council states. The results from the workshop and other materials will be put forward to the Ministerial Meeting in Kiruna in May 2013. Following that, work will continue on developing transportation infrastrucures in the Arctic.