Photo: Kjartan Mærstad, Institute of Marine Research. Frontphoto: Helge M. Markusson, The Fram Centre.
In December 2013, the Norwegian Ministry of Climate and Environment gave the green light for the start-up of a sixth research flagship programme: Environmental impacts of industrial activity in the north (MIKON).
Speaking at the Arctic Frontiers conference in Tromsø 21 January, Prime Minister Erna Solberg said, “Such knowledge is needed in order to ensure environmentally responsible development, based on the best environmental solutions that will not have negative impact on ecosystems, cultural heritage or society. The research programme will also seek to promote international cooperation and exchange on these issues.”
A total of 15 million NOK has been allocated to the MIKON project in the national budget. In 2014, over half of that sum will be used to finance the ice-drift project with the Norwegian Polar Institute’s RV Lance (see page X). In 2015 the budget allocations will go in their entirety to MIKON. This means that measured in money, the research activities will increase significantly in the years to come and that MIKON will be the largest of the Fram Centre’s six research programmes.
Will strengthen the knowledge base
MIKON’s objective is to do research that will strengthen the knowledge base used by the authorities in efforts to limit the “footprint” of industrial activity in the High North, and ensure that new industrial activity takes place within a responsible environmental framework. The research within the MIKON programme will take into consideration both existing business activities and visions/expectations of future developments.
In the words of Jan-Gunnar Winther, chair of the Fram Centre’s committee of institutional directors, “MIKON will increase our expertise and expand our knowledge base concerning the High North – this is Norway’s greatest advantage in these northern areas. It will not only benefit Norwegian environmental management and industry in the north, but also have ripple effects on foreign policy.”
Cross-disciplinary approach
MIKON will be an interdisciplinary programme. The Ministry of Climate and Environment points out that the environmental consequences of new industrial activity will be complex, and knowledge from a range of disciplines will be relevant, including the natural and social sciences, and cultural history.
MIKON will make use of knowledge from the Fram Centre’s five other flagship programmes; natural boundaries between the programmes will be set to prevent duplication of effort. Ultimately, work done within the framework of MIKON will provide better methods and models for environmental impact assessment, risk analysis and monitoring. However, MIKON will not itself be doing any of these things. Its aim is to provide better tools for others to use.
This article will be printed in Fram Forum 2014, relased in early march. Fram Forum is published once a year and aim to inform the general public about the wide range og activites that take place within the Fram Centre.