Summary
The Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty (the Madrid Protocol) introduces the requirement to plan and conduct activities to avoid or minimise degradation of the wilderness and aesthetic values of Antarctica. This paper describes a preliminary study to explore the practicalities of fulfilling this requirement. The concepts of wilderness and aesthetics in Antarctica are explored and ways of assessing the impacts of proposed activities on Antarctic wilderness are suggested. It is proposed that all of Antarctica can be defined as wilderness unless modified or degraded by human activities from within Antarctica. It is also proposed that if human activities or the result of these activities can be sensed, either by sight or sound, then the areas from which those activities can be sensed have been modified. The methods by which activities can be sensed are described and the methodology suggested as the basis of a process for assessing the potential impacts of future activities on wilderness. Research continues on methods for assessing potential impacts on aesthetic values.