Being part of one of the many science teams in Antarctica is a huge privilege with plenty of challenges, but equally, the opportunity to positively impact the environment in Antarctica, and beyond. This season, the Cleaner Antarctica project has scientists working on contaminated site assessments, biodiversity surveys and remediation across three stations – Casey (including Wilkes, and the remote field camp at Bunger Hills), Davis, and Mawson.

This week at Casey: 17 January 2025

Being part of one of the many science teams in Antarctica is a huge privilege with plenty of challenges, but equally, the opportunity to positively impact the environment in Antarctica, and beyond. This season, the 'Cleaner Antarctica' project has scientists working on contaminated site assessments, biodiversity surveys and remediation across three stations – Casey (including Wilkes, and the remote field camp at Bunger Hills), Davis, and Mawson.

The work we are doing will help us understand the impacts that a human presence in Antarctica has on the local environment, and how we can better manage our footprint into the future. For example, when we map biodiversity ‘hot spots’ (like the moss beds that give Casey the nickname “the Daintree of the south”), we can protect them from the hazards of station life. And when we identify soil or water contamination associated with historical (or current) practices, we can provide advice on improving operating procedures and management of ongoing activities on station, as well as developing and implementing practical steps to remediate or restore environmental values.

With the serious stuff out of the way, here’s some of the reasons why we do what we do, and why being a scientist in Antarctica is unbeatable:

  1. We get ‘hands-on’ and see, feel, smell, hear the environment around us. Sometimes we dig or steam-drill holes through the snow and ice to collect samples! It’s the best kind of outdoor workout!
  2. We have some of the coolest tools around – drones to conduct photogrammetry, 3D lidar and geophysical missions for mapping what is above and below the surface, underwater drones to see and sample the marine environment, and steam powered drills to help us sample up to 15m below the ice.
  3. Travelling off-station in Hagglunds (navigating melt streams), and even planes or helicopters, when we can find a weather window (a challenge in itself).
  4. Having support from enthusiastic tradies and other expeditioners to 'MacgGyver' unique ways to install samplers and help us move our equipment and collect samples (citizen science at its best)!
  5. Sometimes we are the first ones to find new species in this unique environment like under the sea ice at Mawson.
  6. Seeing positive changes in the environment, restoring disturbed sites and reducing our footprint. Examples of this are the decade-long work on the Casey fuel spill sites using bioremediation and rehabilitating physical disturbances associated with deep field camps or other infrastructure like at Bunger Hills and Davis station this year.
  7. Being a detective (conducting ‘environmental forensics’ as we like to say), tracking down sources of fuel spills, sometimes literally ‘sniffing’ them out.
Two antarctic expeditioners in yellow survival clothing working on an installation.
Distant image of Mawson Station. In the foreground image displays ice and rock. The mid-ground features the Mawson station colours buildings dotted across a band of brown rock. In the distant you can see snow to the horizon with a mountain in the center of the image.
Foreground of the image depics brown rocks in shallow water, The mid section of the image has a group of people in black clothing bending down conducting work along the shoreline. The background shows a snow covered hill.
Image focuses on a Hagglund vehicle towing a caboose. The background shows a series of rocky hills covered in snow. In the centre of the image there is a deep blue body of water.
Focus of the image is an expeditioner dressed in yellow survival clothing kneeling beside a hole in the snow with equipment scattered around. The sky is grey and cloudy and reaches to the horizon line. Along the horizon line is a rocky hill.
The image shows a rocky/dirt road into the distance. The horizon line features rocky hills against a blue sky.
Image of rocks covered with green and brown moss.
Image depicts two people standing to the left of the image with a drone hovering at eye-level to the right of the image. The ground is snow with equipment scattered throughout the image. The background features a body of water with snow covered hills in the distance.
The image shows two people crouching over a rock surface with a frame resting on the rock. The two people are taking photos on mobile devices of the famed area. The sky is bright blue and sunny.
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