Recommendation 179

The Arctic is heterogenous and the picture of economic prospects across the Arctic is not uniform. For example, Greenland, Sweden, Canada, and Alaska all have large known deposits of critical minerals, but different regulatory approaches determining their extraction. The prospects for shipping, often cited as a key growth sector due to retreating sea ice, also vary. While the waters along the Northern Sea Route and the Transpolar Sea Route may become more navigable, we heard that shipping prospects in Canada’s Arctic waters are limited “and will be for the foreseeable future”. 207 In addition, each Arctic country will have its own domestic priorities and approaches to dealing with environmental concerns and the interests of local Arctic communities. The interests of Arctic communities themselves are not uniform and there are often disparate views about what projects should go ahead in local areas. How the various priorities and interests are balanced will determine the extent to which a sector may be able to gain a foothold or expand. Shipping in the Arctic