Developing a management plan for the McMurdo Dry Valleys
The US National Science Foundation Office of Polar Programs and the New Zealand Antarctic Institute (Antarctica New Zealand) developed an environmental management plan for the McMurdo Dry Valleys, which was adopted as ASMA No. 2 in 2004. The aim of the management plan is to improve coordination and planning of activities taking place within the McMurdo Dry Valleys. Dr Colin Harris of ERA participated in a US-NZ drafting workshop hosted by the Byrd Polar Research Center, Ohio State University, in August 2001. The workshop discussed the principles of the proposed plan, such as the boundaries, zoning and a Code of Conduct for activities within the region. The workshop developed the first working draft of the plan.
Lake Vashka, Barwick Valley protected area. Photo: © Colin Harris.
Dr Harris has written several articles relevant to the development of the management plan. The first of these was on the principles and application of zoning mechanisms under Annex V of the Madrid Protocol (first published as Harris, C.M. 1994. Standardisation of zones within specially protected and managed areas under the Antarctic Environmental Protocol. Polar Record 30(175): 283-86.). This article argued the need for a coherent and proactive approach to zoning in Antarctica, so that a disparate and potentially confusing array of zones could be avoided. Five basic types of zone were suggested to meet current and anticipated needs - Restricted, Scientific, Tourist, Facilities and Historic zones. Subsequently, this paper was revised in 2002 to include an additional category of "Sensitive Zone". This version of the paper was not re-published although is made available for download here (pdf 24 kb).
The second article examined environmental management issues in the McMurdo Dry Valleys specifically, and reviewed the principal types of activities and pressures apparent in the region. The case is argued for an environmental management plan and also development of an environmental Geographical Information System (GIS) to support science and management needs. This article was first published as Harris, C.M. 1998. Science and environmental management in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica. In Priscu, J (ed) Ecosystem Processes in a Polar Desert: the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica. Antarctic Research Series, Vol. 72, American Geophysical Union, Washington. Download the article on environmental management in the Dry Valleys (pdf 375 kb).
