ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book reviews of resource allocation problems in Antarctica. It examines in some detail the success and shortcomings of the present regime. Sovereign claims to most land areas of the world have long been internationally recognized. Competition for access to raw materials is increasing, and the rapid pace of technological innovation is enabling highly industrialized countries to expand the frontiers of their economic activities to once inaccessible areas. As the world price for fossil fuels increases, commercial exploitation of Antarctic energy resources becomes more feasible. Thus, Antarctica, like other areas of the world before it, has become the object of activities which create the need for regulation and control. Seven territorial claims have been made in Antarctica, but none of the claims is widely recognized. A major success has been the negotiation and ratification of a convention governing the exploitation of Antarctic marine living resources.
