Antarctic Cleanup Moves at Glacial Pace

More than three years ago, diplomats met in Spain and signed an agreement to ban mining in Antarctica and set new, stringent environmental standards for their scientific stations.

But the Madrid Protocol is still a gentlemen’s agreement without teeth, because only 14 of the 26 nations that are full members of the Antarctic Treaty have ratified it.

“It’s toothless,” said Malcolm Macfarlane, the senior officer at New Zealand’s Scott Base. “It means there is no national law to say, ‘If you don’t do this, I’ll lock you up.’ ”

Among those that have not ratified are the United States, Russia, Britain, Poland, South Africa, Japan and South Korea.

Environmental advocacy groups fear momentum for adoption of the protocol has been lost.

“The tardy progress on ratification has made a sham out of all the fine words of three years ago about Antarctica being saved,” said Janet Dalziell, Greenpeace’s Antarctic programs coordinator, based in Sydney, Australia.

U.S. officials regard that as alarmist. They note that all Antarctic Treaty nations have agreed to observe conditions of the protocol until it comes into force.

The protocol limits the dumping of raw sewage into the sea and emissions into the sparkling clean air from trash burning. It also bans mining for 50 years.

A recent visit by Greenpeace representatives to Chilean, Polish, Chinese and Russian stations in Antarctica found them burning rubber, treated wood and plastics that are supposed to be sent back to their homelands for disposal.

Argentina’s Jubany Station was dumping untreated sewage into the sea--as do McMurdo and New Zealand’s Scott Base.

American officials, although not defending or justifying such practices, shrug them off and point to the future.

“The main effect it will have will be environmental assessment of future projects,” said Erick Chiang, the National Science Foundation officer in charge of the three U.S. Antarctic bases.

U.S. officials also argue that the impact of the stations is small.

“What’s the potential for harm at a lot of these small stations?” asked Robert Cunningham, the National Science Foundation official in charge of making sure U.S. programs conform to the protocol.

American stations have begun recycling programs and are shipping trash back to the United States for disposal. Officials are planning a waste treatment plant for the McMurdo station.

The U.S. representative signed the Madrid Protocol in October, 1991, but formal ratification got bottled up in congressional committees last year and fizzled out. There will be a new push this year.