UK parliamentary inquiry into ‘The UK and the Antarctic Environment’. Here is what we had to say:
23rd January 2025
In December 2024, the Environmental Audit Committee revived their Sub-Committee on Polar Research’s inquiry into The UK and the Antarctic Environment, which had been launched the previous year under the former government.
This inquiry is exploring the impacts of climate change in Antarctica and the role that UK science can play in understanding these changes and protecting the region.
Parliamentary inquiries offer direct routes for academics to inform the government about relevant scientific findings, provide research-led advice and influence policy decisions. Having taken part in the original call for evidence, the UK Centre for Polar Observation and Modelling (CPOM) submitted a supplementary statement to summarise the information we provided in our initial written report and reiterate key advice. We highlighted, for example, that changes in the Antarctic will have global consequences for people and animals, that we will need to adapt to significant impacts from sea level rise in the coming years, and that the UK needs to commit to support for long-term international collaborations between modellers, climate scientists, and remote sensing specialists to ensure we are fully prepared for these changes.
We also added that, since the initial call, additional evidence of Antarctic sea ice decline has been observed, we highlighted the opportunity to improve observations through the United Nations Antarctica InSync programme, and also pointed to the requirement for governance of any future geoengineering schemes. You can read our report alongside other evidence on the Inquiry website: https://committees.parliament.uk/work/8689/the-uk-and-the-antarctic-environment-revived/publications/