What human activities have an impact on the Antarctic environment?
Most human activities have some form of environmental impact. However, in Antarctica the effects of activities taking place there are very much local, not regional or continental. It is activities taking place outside Antarctica which have caused major and lasting impacts. For example, the annual “ozone hole” above Antarctica which is caused by the release, mostly from the industrialized northern hemisphere, of man-made chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). In October 1996 the area of the hole was nearly 20 million square km. The only permanent structures of any size in Antarctica are scientific research stations. There are currently over stations with about 4000 scientists and support staff in summer, falling to about 1000 in winter. The largest UK research station is Rothera, which currently has a complement of around 130 people in summer and 20 in winter. The “footprint” of these stations is small; at Rothera it is 3 km².
