Environmental groups are applauding international shippers and shipping companies that have voluntarily promised to stay away from controversial Arctic routes.
"We were really excited to get this pledge together," said Dan Hubbell of the Ocean Conservancy, which is co-ordinating the campaign.That means signatories that produce consumer goods -- including Nike, Puma, Columbia and Ralph Lauren -- will ensure their products aren't shipped along routes that go through Arctic waters.
The impact of shipping on Arctic ecosystems, animals such as beluga whales, narwhal and walrus, as well as Indigenous communities is largely unknown. Ice and periods of 24-hour darkness add to the hazards of northern seas. Fiske counted about 3,100 commercial vessels in Arctic waters in 2016, the vast majority on the Northern Sea Route. About half are cargo vessels of some type: from oil tankers to bulk shippers. The rest are for passengers, supplies or fishing.
He expects it will be hard to persuade shippers to stay away from the Arctic as climate change shrinks the ice cover that has kept it in frozen isolation.
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