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Article: Frozen waste. (revising the Antarctic Treaty)
- Article from:
- The Economist (US)
- Article date:
- April 20, 1991
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1991 Economist Newspaper Ltd. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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AMONG environmentalists, not much arouses greater passion than Antarctica. The last continent free almost) from human intrusion, its future has become a touchstone for greens of man's willingness to preserve a wilderness, whatever treasures it may conceal. Foolish idealism? The question will divide the countries that control the continent's fate when they meet in Madrid on April 22nd.
The countries are signatories to the Antarctic Treaty, which came into force 30 years ago and this year comes up for review. When the treaty was drawn up, in 1959, environmentalists had scarcely been invented; nobody seriously considered that valuable oil and minerals might lie ...