Summary of Working Paper No. 162-1999

II.5.10 “NSR Valued Ecosystem Components: Indigenous People, Wild reindeer, Domestic reindeer and Protected areas”

By J. Thomassen, Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, Trondheim, Norway; W. Dallmann and Kjell Isaksen, Norwegian Polar Institute, Tromsø, Norway; V. Khlebovich, Zoologigal Institute, St.Petersburg, Russia; and Ø. Wiig, Zoological Museum, University of Oslo, Norway.

One of the main objectives in INSROP has been to establish a database containing baseline ecological and environmental selected components, so-called Valued Ecosystem Components (VECs) in the Northern Sea Route (NSR) area, and to present a discussion of possible impacts from proposed NSR activities on these components. This information is used as basis for an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) (see INSROP Working Papers 31-1996 and 142-1999). The central point in the INSROP EIA has been to identify and evaluate key impacts from possible NSR activities on the VECs.

In November 1993 a number of VECs were selected. Later on in INSROP Phase I additional VECs were brought into the system. These VECs are documented in INSROP Working Papers 12-1995, 40-1996, 53-1996 and 60-1996.

This paper document the four last VECs identified in 1997 and 1998 (VEC Protected areas, VEC Indigenous people, VEC Domestic reindeer and VEC Wild reindeer), using the Adaptive Environmental Assessment and Management concept.