On April 4, 2017 the IUCN released a report in order to advance the recognition and conservation of globally significant natural marine sights in the Arctic. 

From The Atlantic:

"Many of the proposed sites are threatened by climate change, or its consequences: As the rapidly melting sea ice brings new human activities to Arctic waters, previously inaccessible areas are now opening up to cruise ships, cargo vessels, oil and gas development and commercial fishing.

“Science tells us that the best way of giving these marine ecosystems the best chance of making it through the changes underway is by creating large protected areas,” says Lisa Speer, a marine scientist and director of the International Oceans Program at the Natural Resources Defense Fund, an environmental NGO that co-produced the report.

So far, only two of the sites are already being considered for the list. In the far reaches of Norway’s Arctic waters, the Svalbard Archipelago is home to large breeding bird colonies and open-water areas used by endangered stocks of bowhead whale, Atlantic walrus, narwhal, and the Greenland shark. In the ocean adjacent to Canada’s Quttinirpaaq national park on Ellesmere Island, a narrow band of sea ice more than nine years old—the oldest and thickest in the Arctic—bumps up against the coastline, steadily shrinking.

Before a site can be nominated for inclusion on the World Heritage List, it must have held a spot on a country’s list of tentative sites for at least a year. If UNESCO approves the site, the more than 190 countries that take part in the World Heritage program vow to protect it. This new report lays the groundwork for governments and local communities to evaluate these areas and consider adding them to that list."

Full Report HERE