A Case Study from an Emergency Operation in the Arctic Seas

The objective of this paper is to highlight the needs for improved access to high quality maritime data and information in the Arctic, and the need to develop maritime communication infrastructure with at least the same quality, in terms of availability and integrity, as in other more centralized areas. The foreseen Arctic ice meltdown is expected to provide new maritime transport corridors within relatively short time, and there is an urgent need to prepare for this, to ensure safe operations at sea and to protect the vulnerable Arctic environment. This paper points out some of these needs by presenting a case from a former accident in the Arctic sea. The case shows how the lack of proper information and data complicates the emergency operation. Some possible solutions to the challenges are proposed, and finally the paper briefly discusses the IMO e-Navigation concept in light of the Arctic challenges.