The Arctic Marine shipping Assessment is a direct follow-up to the Arctic Marine Strategic Plan which was adopted by the Arctic Council Ministers at the 4th Arctic Council meeting in November 2004. PAME was requested to:

“conduct a comprehensive Arctic marine shipping assessment as outlined in the Arctic Marine Strategic Plan under the guidance of Canada, Finland, and the United States as lead countries and in collaboration with the EPPR (Emergency, Prevention, Preparedness and Response) working group and other working groups of the Arctic Council and Permanent Participants as relevant.”

Key Finding # 6 of the Arctic Climate Impact Assessment (ACIA), also released in November 2004, is furthermore directly relevant to why the Arctic Council has called for this assessment:

“Reduced sea ice is very likely to increase marine transport and access to resources”

This assessment is circumpolar in focus and promotes cooperation and collaboration with a wide range of stakeholders and relevant organizations and recognizes the importance of contributions from the broader maritime community.