Baby, It’s (Not as) Cold Outside: Applying the National Environmental Policy Act to Antarctic Research Stations [Article]

Abstract

Antarctica is an environmentally critical and fragile region, yet human activities and climate change continue to harm the continent. Despite the environmental protections mandated by the Antarctic Treaty, the operation of U.S. Antarctic research stations continues to present material harms to the region, and gaps in the Treaty’s legal framework allow research station operations to escape full environmental oversight. The U.S. National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), a procedural statute guiding federal agency decisions, can supplement these gaps in environmental protections, but its application to Antarctica is challenged by the presumption against extraterritoriality. Yet, strong precedent exists for NEPA’s extraterritorial application outside traditional U.S. jurisdiction. In one pivotal case, NEPA applied extraterritorially to waste management activity at a U.S. Antarctic research station, but this statutory application was confined to agency decision-making that occurred within the domestic United States. This precedent should be extended to warrant NEPA’s true extraterritorial application to Antarctic research station operations. Such extraterritorial application is justified by the United States’ significant legislative control in Antarctica, the absence of foreign policy conflicts, and the broader global implications of continued Antarctic degradation. Implementing NEPA at U.S. stations would enhance environmental oversight and reinforce global Antarctic conservation efforts.