“comnap desktop study” preparing for the 2020/21 ......2020/06/08 · preparing for the 2020/21...
TRANSCRIPT
1
“COMNAP Desktop Study” Preparing for the 2020/21 Antarctic season in the context of global COVID‐19 4 May 2020
Table of Contents Background ................................................................................................................................. 2
Keeping Antarctica COVID‐19 free .............................................................................................. 5
Current gateway situations under COVID‐19 restrictions .......................................................... 7
Specific Information for: Argentina (See further information in Annex, section 1.1). ....................................................... 9
Australia (See further information in Annex, section 1.2). ........................................................ 9
Chile (See further information in Annex, section 1.3). ............................................................... 9
New Zealand (See further information in Annex, section 1.4). ..................................................9
South Africa (See further information in Annex, section 1.5). ................................................. 10
Preparing for the 2020/21 Antarctic season in the context of COVID‐19 ................................ 10
Best‐case scenario ..................................................................................................................... 11
Worse‐case scenario ................................................................................................................. 12
Next steps ................................................................................................................................. 20
Annexes ................................................................................................................................................. 22
Annex 1: Gateway Cities Information ............................................................................................... 23
1.1 Ushuaia, Argentina – Information provided by Dirección Nacional del Antártico (DNA) and current as at 7 June 2020 .............................................................................................................. 23
1.2 Hobart, Tasmania, Australia – Information provided by Australian Antarctic Division and Antarctic Tasmania and current as at 29 May 2020. .................................................................... 24
1.3 Punta Arenas, Chile – Information provided by A‐PAL Association and current as at 31 May 2020. ............................................................................................................................................. 26
1.4 Christchurch, New Zealand – Information provided by Antarctica New Zealand and current as at 28 May 2020. ........................................................................................................................ 31
1.5 Cape Town, South Africa – Information provided by South African National Antarctic Programme (SANAP) and current as at 28 May 2020. .................................................................. 33
Annex 2: National Antarctic Programs season 2020/21 Policies and Procedures received ............. 34
Annex 3: Other Policies and Procedures received ............................................................................ 35
2
“COMNAP Desktop Study” Preparing for the 2020/21 Antarctic season in the context of global COVID‐19 Background On 31 December 2019, the World Health Organisation (WHO) was informed of cases of pneumonia of unknown cause in Wuhan City, China. A novel coronavirus was identified as the cause by Chinese authorities on 7 January 2020. Coronaviruses (CoV) are a large family of viruses that cause illness ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases. A novel coronavirus (nCoV) is a new strain that has not been previously identified in humans. On 30 January 2020, the WHO Director‐General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus declared the novel coronavirus (2019‐nCoV) outbreak a public health emergency of international concern. On 11 February 2020, WHO announced a name for the new coronavirus disease that the virus caused: COVID‐19.1 On 12 March 2020, WHO announced that the COVID‐19 outbreak was a pandemic. At that time, there were 55 countries with reported cases; 125,260 total cases confirmed; and 4,613 total deaths. The majority of the reported cases and deaths at that time were from China, being 80,981 and 3,173 respectively. 2 Against this constantly evolving global situation, the Antarctic season 2019/2020 was underway. On 12 March 2020, when the WHO declared the COVID‐19 pandemic, in Antarctica at that time, the summer season was completed or well‐advanced for the majority of the COMNAP Member national Antarctic programs and their facilities were already in or about to enter into the winter isolation period. The COMNAP database3 holds information on COMNAP Member, Observer and non‐governmental operators with records for 105 open4 Antarctic facilities in total, broken down as follows:
75 Stations o 39 Year‐round (Winter‐over) o 36 Seasonal
7 Airfield Camps o 1 Year‐round o 6 Seasonal
13 Seasonal Camps
3 Seasonal Depots
2 Seasonal Laboratories
5 Seasonal Refuges The year‐round and seasonal stations are spread across the Antarctic continent with a concentration in the Peninsula Region (Figure 1).
1 See www.who.int. 2 See the WHO weekly statistic reports, https://www.who.int/docs/default‐source/coronaviruse/situation‐reports/20200312‐sitrep‐52‐covid‐19.pdf?sfvrsn=e2bfc9c0_4. 3 The current list of all facilities in the COMNAP database can be found using the GitHub facility at: https://github.com/PolarGeospatialCenter/comnap‐antarctic‐facilities. 4 Where “open” means operational/still in existence.
3
Figure 1. Antarctic facilities. Yellow indicates a year‐round facility and red indicates a seasonal facility (COMNAP Antarctic Station Catalogue, August 2017).
So that on 12 March, the majority of the 39 year‐round, open, Antarctic stations5 had already closed for the Antarctic winter‐over season. There are no reported cases of COVID‐19 illness at any of these stations which are now isolated for the winter‐over period. Of the 36 seasonal, open, Antarctic stations, 6 the majority had closed for the season and no personnel were at the station, however, several national Antarctic programmes were continuing to support their summer season Antarctic operations, especially in the Peninsula. Several national Antarctic programs reported that they had shortened their planned summer operational period in order to extract personnel early for return to home nations due to the emerging COVID‐19 situation.7 At least one program reported that they cancelled some planned summer science and did not allow scientists to go south late in the Antarctic summer season.8 According to Antarctic Treaty Secretariat Electronic Information Exchange System (EIES) Pre‐Season Information Exchange for 2019/20, thirteen national Antarctic program vessels (including military and contracted) were operating in the Antarctic Treaty area, predominately in the Peninsula, but also in other regions.9
5 COMNAP database accessed March 2020. 6 ibid 7 The programmes of Chile, Spain and the United Kingdom each mentioned an earlier end to their summer season than was initially planned during the COMNAP Townhall Meetings on 7, 8 and 15 April 2020. 8 Several programmes mentioned that their Arctic science season was being cancelled or impacted, including Canada and India. 9 https://www.ats.aq/devAS/InformationExchange/LatestReports?lang=e
4
The International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators (IAATO) reported10 that Member operators did have vessels in the Peninsula region as per their ship scheduler.11 Many of those vessels did have authorisation to disembark passengers and crew which included visitation to several Antarctic stations in the Peninsula. IAATO Member, Antarctic Logistics & Expeditions (ALE) reported that their last aircraft had left Antarctica on 19 February 2020, so they had no personnel or activity in Antarctica after that point in time.12 Information from the e‐AFIM release 19‐03 (2 December 2019) indicates that IAATO Member, White Desert completed its operations at Whichaway Camp on 28 February 2020. Antarctic Logistics Centre International (ALCI) completed its operations in late February. Main body, inter‐continental aircraft missions were completed for the Ross Sea (23 February), East Antarctica (10 March) and the Dronning Maud Land Regions (end of February). Aircraft were still operating in the Peninsula Region intra‐continentally between stations that had been in isolation for more than 14 days and an intercontinental aircraft mission was being considered for later in the year in support of Marambio’s Search and Rescue (SAR) responsibilities. Post‐main body, inter‐continental aircraft missions in the Ross Sea Region were planned for later in March and in early April for extraction only of expeditioners from Antarctica. Moving expeditioners north out of Antarctica after 12 March 2020 Although Antarctica was the only continent to be COVID‐19 free when the pandemic was declared, expeditioners deploying out of Antarctica were subjected to travel restrictions imposed by gateway country governments and many country governments that expeditioners needed to transit through while heading north to their home country. This proved to be particularly challenging for those transiting by air, and for those vessels with expeditioners (of multiple nationalities/citizenship) from wishing to make a port stop in order to refuel, resupply or to carry out planned disembarkation of passenger who had intended to complete their journey home via commercial aircraft. Disembarking and transiting international passengers from vessels to a port and then on to aircraft proved to be particularly complicated as ports around the world closed quickly in light of what was being reported as a high number of COVID‐19 cases on cruise vessels, as international borders closed and as commercial flights were being cancelled globally. In a few cases expeditioners travelling north were held in the gateway country and were not permitted to transit through either due to the gateway country travel restrictions or to the destination country travel restrictions or both. Moving expeditioners north might again be a problem when winter‐over stations open for the start of the 2020/21 Antarctic summer season with ability to travel depending on the global COVID‐19 situation at that time. The situations at the Antarctic gateway countries were a key consideration during the deployment (north and south) of expeditioners. For the gateway countries, the following travel restrictions were declared on or around the time of the WHO declaration of the pandemic:13 Australia: Before 12 March, the Australian government had banned entry for passengers who arrived from, or during last 14 days had been in China, Iran, Korea or Italy. From 16 March, the Australian government required all arrivals (except airline crew) to self‐isolate for 14 days upon arrival. On 20 March, they imposed a total entry ban except for citizens and immediate family members of citizens.
10 IAATO Secretariat,Terry Shaller and Lisa Kelley (pers comms), via ZOOM Meeting, UTC 11 March 2020, 1900 hours. 11 The IAATO Ship Scheduler 2019/20;at least thirteen vessels in operation in the Antarctic area on 12 March 2020. 12 ALE, David Rootes, email received 19 February 2020. 13 COVID‐19 Travel Restrictions Database https://restrictions.info/tr/.
5
Argentina: On 16 March, the Argentine government imposed forced isolation for passengers who arrived from, or had been in China, France, Germany, Iran, Italy, Japan, Korea, Spain and the USA. On 17 March, they changed the forced isolation into a ban on entry for those countries and from Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden and the United Kingdom. Later on 17 March the government imposed a total entry ban but lifted that ban on 1 April. A total entry ban was reinstated on 2 April.14 Chile: On March 15, the Chilean government prohibited the docking of cruise ships in all Chilean ports. All borders closed to non‐residents, effective from midnight 19 March with Chilean citizens and permanent residents being exempted. All foreigners and Chileans entering Chile are subject to a mandatory 14‐day self‐quarantine. New Zealand: On 12 March, the New Zealand government banned entry for all passengers who arrived from, or during the last 14 days had been in China or Iran. On 13 March, the government added Italy and Korea to that ban. Passengers (not including airline crew) who had been in Italy or the Korea prior to entry were required to self‐isolate for a period of 14 days before arriving in New Zealand and were required to fill‐in a health registration form upon arrival. On 16 March, the government extended the requirement for 14 days of isolation upon entry to New Zealand to all arriving passengers. On 1 April, the New Zealand government imposed a total entry ban except for citizens and permanent residents and their immediate family members. South Africa: On 18 March, the South African government banned entry for passengers who arrived from, or had been in China, Germany, Iran, Italy, Republic of Korea, Spain, United Kingdom, and the United States. On 20 March, they added France; on 21 March, they added Switzerland. On 24 March, the government declared that arriving passengers who had been in Hong Kong, Portugal and Singapore must have a visa and they were subject to extra screening. On 25 March, all flights to Lanseria Airport (HLA), Johannesburg, were suspended and also imposed forced isolation for passengers who arrived from, or after 9 March have been in, China, France, Germany, Iran, Italy, Korea, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom or the USA. Ban on entry to all including South African citizens effective from midnight 26 March. Generally, the movement of cargo was, and continues to be, severely impaired globally including to/from all the gateway countries. This was due for the most part in the cancellation of passenger flights, the restrictions to vessel movements and the standing down of workforce in many countries.15 Keeping Antarctica COVID-19 free As is usual practice, all national Antarctic programs recognize the importance of keeping expeditioners safe and healthy in transit to/from and during any time in Antarctica at facilities, on aircraft and on vessels. Planning for medical emergency and response is a risk addressed in national Antarctic program planning in normal circumstances. Importantly the ability to respond to a highly infectious novel virus with significant mortality and morbidity in the extreme and austere environment of Antarctica with limited sophistication of medical care and public health responses is High Risk with potential catastrophic consequences including death.16 Therefore, national Antarctic
14 This is stated to be in place through 1 September 2020. 15 Accenture notes that for the week 22–28 April 2020 for example, global air cargo capacity is 29% lower than the same time in 2019. https://www.accenture.com/us‐en/insights/travel/coronavirus‐air‐cargo‐capacity. 16 COMNAP SARS‐CoV‐2 / COVID‐19 Recommendations (non‐mandatory) in the context of Antarctic Operations (2020), paragraph 3.5.
6
programs were proactive in their recognition of the importance of a rapid response in order to keep the coronavirus from entering the Antarctic population. Recognising the severity of the global situation, the COMNAP EXCOM meet via ZOOM on 9 March, 2020. The meeting had only one agenda item and one objective, which was to: “Focus on devising a strategy that collectively strengthens national efforts to avoid introducing the coronavirus (COVID‐19) disease to Antarctica. Outline major points of consideration for our collective strategy and action items toward an implementation plan, mindful of the rapidly evolving circumstances. Ensure we are engaging as EXCOM with the COMNAP Membership in regards to information exchange on COVID‐19; and also with others in the Antarctic community (in particular with IAATO), on prevention practices, ability to respond on Antarctic stations, and media/communications plans.” During this meeting, the COMNAP EXCOM established the COVID‐19 ad hoc sub‐committee led by Dr Tim Heitland (AWI) with Dr Pradip Malhotra (NCPOR) and Dr Fabio Catalano (ENEA) and in collaboration with Dr Anne Hicks (JEGHBM Leader) and participants within the Joint Expert Group on Human Biology and Medicine (JEGHBM). The sub‐committee developed the COMNAP SARS‐CoV‐2 / COVID‐19 Recommendations (non‐mandatory) in the context of Antarctic Operations Working Paper which was distributed to all COMNAP MNAPs on 16 March and is available from the Member’s Only webpage, under the Current and Working Documents table. The key message from the recommendations was “Act Early, Act Strongly as containment and prevention must be the priority to prevent introduction of SARS‐CoV‐19 in Antarctica.” The Recommendations provides guidance on four primary objectives, as follows:
Objective 1: Prevent the intercontinental spread of SARS‐CoV‐2.
Objective 2: Prevent the intracontinental spread of SARS‐CoV‐2.
Objective 3: Prevent the spread of SARS‐CoV‐2 within a station.
Objective 4: Dealing with COVID‐19 in Antarctica.
As part of these recommendations, under objective 1, paragraph 5.2 stated “…all national Antarctic programs who have not already closed their seasonal facilities or who have not yet entered TOTAL winter‐over/winter isolation mode, should urgently reconsider any scheduled access, personnel and freight transport into Antarctica given the potential risks of the pandemic and limited ability to medically respond in Antarctica.” So that, as at 16 March 2020, COMNAP guidance to all COMNAP Member national Antarctic programs was to consider entering station lockdowns by banning visitations by all non‐station personnel for all Antarctic facilities.
Current Antarctic situation Currently, there are no reported cases of COVID‐19 in Antarctica with all stations now in winter‐over mode and with a total of 975 expeditioners17 in Antarctica. Antarctica is the last continent to be COVID‐19 free. Figure 2 shows the year‐round Antarctic stations that currently are in winter‐over mode.
17 This is an actual total based on email exchange with all 30 COMNAP Member national Antarctic programs during April/May 2020.
7
Figure 2. Antarctic year‐round facilities (graphic derived from COMNAP Antarctic Station Catalogue (August 2017)).
There are no national Antarctic program vessels operating in the Antarctic, although several fishing vessels are shown on Vessel Finder18 in the Antarctic Peninsula Region and one in the Ross Sea Region. All main body flights are completed but at least three national Antarctic programs have planned air operations over the winter months.19 All air crews on flights operating to/from Antarctica should be instructed to self‐isolate upon arrival in Antarctica, that is, no interaction between aircraft personnel/crew and Antarctic station personnel that are staying in Antarctica. All expeditioners deploying north will be subject to the restrictions that are in place while in transit or at any point of departure from the aircraft. Current gateway situations under COVID‐19 restrictions As of 3 May 2020, globally, there were 3,349,786 total cases (with 82,763 of those being new cases reported in the past 24 hour period) and 238, 628 deaths.20 All thirty COMNAP Member national Antarctic program countries are currently reporting confirmed cases (Figure 3).21
18 www.vesselfinder.com accessed on 3 May 2020. 19 Brazil’s PROANTAR’s air activity is related to a planned airdrop, so that no aircrew or personnel will actually be on the ground in the Antarctic Treaty Area. Argentina’s planned air operations are related to SAR responsibilities and policies are being developed specifically addressing the COVID‐19 situation. 20 https://www.who.int/docs/default‐source/coronaviruse/situation‐reports/20200503‐covid‐19‐sitrep‐104.pdf?sfvrsn=53328f46_2. 21 As at 4 May: Only Uruguay is reporting less than 1000 cases; Only USA is reporting greater than 1,000,000 cases. Eight COMNAP Member countries are reporting between 1001–10,000 cases. Fourteen COMNAP Member countries are reporting between 10,001–100,000 cases. Six COMNAP Member countries are reporting between 100,001–999,999 cases.
8
Figure 3. Map showing number of confirmed COVID‐19 cases reported in a seven‐day period (25 April to 3 May 2020) by country (from WHO/WHO Health Emergency Programme).
At the time of writing, 107 countries around the world had travel restrictions in place (Figure 4) and all the traditional Antarctic gateway countries had banned entry to foreign nationals.
Figure 4. Graphic showing global travel restrictions in place as at 4 May 2020 (Covid‐19 Travel Restrictions Database22).
22 https://restrictions.info/tr/ accessed on 3 May 2020.
9
Specific information for: Argentina (See further information in Annex, section 1.1). https://www.argentina.gob.ar/salud/coronavirus‐COVID‐19 The Argentine government is working by way of regular publication of Decree of Necessity and Urgency (DNU) under a Health Emergency which was extended for a period of one year (from 12 March 2020), empowering the Ministry of Health as the enforcement authority (DNU 260/2020). At the time of writing, DNU 297/2020 was in force which established social, preventative and compulsory isolation until 10 May 2020 for all people in the country and which provided guidelines to follow during isolation. Australia (See further information in Annex, section 1.2). https://www.health.gov.au/news/health‐alerts/novel‐coronavirus‐2019‐ncov‐health‐alert The Australian government has activated the Emergency Response Plan for Novel Coronavirus (COVID‐19) which identifies two COVID‐19 Plan Stages: Action and Standdown (Figure 5). At the time of writing Australia was in Action stage.
Figure 5. Australian government graphic indicating their COVID‐19 Plan Stages (from Australian government Ministry of Health).
Chile (See further information in Annex, section 1.3). https://www.minsal.cl/nuevo‐coronavirus‐2019‐ncov/ The Chilean government is using three Phases of alerts and utilizing a system of regional border controls. As of 22 April ban on all entry to Chile and portions of Santiago and Punta Arenas are in lockdown with curfews in place. New Zealand (See further information in Annex, section 1.4). https://www.health.govt.nz/our‐work/diseases‐and‐conditions/covid‐19‐novel‐coronavirus The New Zealand government is working to a 4‐Level Alert System (Figure 6), with Level‐4 being the highest level. As of 14 May, New Zealand will be in Level 2. See further information provided by Antarctica New Zealand at Annex 1, section 1.0.
10
Figure 6. New Zealand government graphic indicating their COVID‐19 Alert Levels (from New Zealand Government Ministry of Health).
South Africa (See further information in Annex, section 1.5). https://www.nicd.ac.za/ & https://www.gov.za/Coronavirus The South Africa government is working to a 5‐Level Alert System (Figure 7), with Level‐5 being the highest level of measures. At the time of writing, South Africa was in Level 4. Figure 7. South African government graphic indicating the Summary of alert levels (from South African Government).
Preparing for the 2020/21 Antarctic season in the context of COVID-19 No one is in a position to clearly understand what the global situation will be at the planned start of the Antarctic summer season 2020/21. The most recent report (1 May 2020) from the third meeting of the Emergency Committee convened by the WHO Director‐General under the International Health Regulations (2005) (IHR) regarding the coronavirus disease (COVID‐19) unanimously agreed that the outbreak still constitutes a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC)23 with the Emergency Committee reconvening within three months or earlier, at the discretion of the Director‐General. Some forecasts are expecting the pandemic to extend through the [boreal] summer.24
23 WHO Statement on the third meeting of the International Health Regulations (2005) Emergency Committee regarding the outbreak of coronavirus disease (COVID‐19), 1 May 2020, Geneva, Switzerland. 24 University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) Statement, 5 May 2020.
11
Best-case scenario In the best‐case scenario, COVID‐19 will no longer be a pandemic as at the start of Antarctic summer Season 2020/21. If this is the case, then national Antarctic program operations could take place as normal as travel restrictions will no longer be in place globally. However, even if COVID‐19 is no longer a pandemic at that time, the economic impacts are likely to resonate through national Antarctic programs for the foreseeable future, with several national Antarctic programs reporting that their governments were cutting operational budgets by up to ten percent.25 The global economic situation and any programme budget cuts coupled with the impact the COVID‐19 pandemic has had on recruitment means that even in the best case there will likely be impact to national Antarctic program operations for the 2020/21 Antarctic season. The COMNAP Townhall Meeting notes reported: “Recruitment of Antarctic season 2020/21 personnel usually begins now (April/May). This is currently difficult and impossible in some cases. There may not be a high number of people available to fill particular roles.” So, even in the best case, there is likely to be a reduction of activity in Antarctica this summer season. Words like “caretaker”, “basic” and “sustaining” were used as part of the COMNAP Townhall Meetings with many programmes indicating that no large projects including planned construction will likely take place in the 2020/21 Antarctic season and that automation for some data collection technologies may become more important than would be usual. In this case, national Antarctic programs would be prepared to open their stations as normal but should remain cognisant in regards to their winter‐over personnel, especially to their mental wellbeing. It is likely they are under higher than usual stress/psychological burden, due to worrying about family and friends back home, and about related issues such as the global economic situation or about becoming infected on the journey home. Research26 has shown that winter‐over personnel are immune system compromised after a long period of Antarctic isolation and so even in this best case scenario, since it is likely a vaccine will not be available until at least 2021/2022, care must be taken during deployment of expeditioners from Antarctica north to home destinations to protect them from exposure to the COVID‐19 virus, and in fact to other viruses such as the flu. The COMNAP SARS‐CoV‐2 / COVID‐19 Recommendations (non‐mandatory) in the context of Antarctic Operations (2020), paragraph 7.7 recommends in preparedness, all national Antarctic program should immediately review and enhance:
7.7.1 Current healthcare staffing levels at Antarctic facilities, training and remote medical support requirements. 7.7.2 Current diagnostic capability. 7.7.3 If maintaining essential winter operations, review and if possible implement PCR respiratory panel diagnostic testing (e.g. BioFire PCR with FilmArray Respiratory Panel testing for 20 common respiratory pathogens).27 7.7.4 Current Teleradiology and Telemedical support capability. 7.7.5 Current infection control and isolation capability.
25 COMNAP Townhall Meetings: Common themes, concerns, opportunities and actions in the context of the COVID‐19 pandemic, Notes, 24 April 2020. 26 There is a large body of published research on this topic. See for example: Glesson et al, Immunol Cell Biol. 2000 Dec;78(6):616‐22; Yadav et al, Wintering in Antarctica: Impact on Immune Response of Indian Expeditioners, 2012, https://doi.org/10.1159/000339512; Strewe et al, Sex differences in stress and immune responses during confinement in Antarctica, 2019, https://doi.org/10.1186/s13293‐019‐0231‐0. 27 Australia has implemented at Macquarie Island pending lack of COVID‐19 test access to exclude diagnosed respiratory illness and thus exclude COVID‐19. See https://www.biomerieux.com.au/product/filmarray‐multiplex‐pcr‐system.
12
7.7.6 Current aeromedical evacuation capability. 7.7.7 Current ICU capability including prolonged capabilities.
It further recommends in paragraphs 8.6 through 8.9 to review medevac plans in the context of COVID‐19, but this is also a sound recommendation under normal operating circumstances:
8.6 Review medevac plan a) The plan should include identifying a suitable hospital infrastructure (external to Antarctica) for any COVID‐19 patients. Think about where is the next available ICU, where is the next ECMO (extrocorporal membrane oxygenation) at the relevant gateway city or a city close to the relevant gateway city. b) While the patient remains on the Antarctic station, your medavac plan should consider that the expected time to Medevac will dictate the amount of equipment needed.
8.7 The optimal minimal Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) could be: ‐ 1 mask (FFP 2 or 3) ‐ 5 pairs of gloves ‐ 5 disposable protective gowns per person and day ‐ 1 device of eye protection per person.
8.7.1 As an example calculation: In case of an expected time to Medevac of 10 days and 2 persons helping the patient/s that would add up to a minimum stock on station of:
‐ 20 masks ‐ 100 pairs of gloves ‐ 100 disposable gowns ‐ 2 eye protection devices
8.7.2 Additional PPE could be stocked (for at least two patients) at nodal points of entry or exit to Antarctica. It can be collectively utilized by several stations in times of need on first‐come, first‐served basis. 8.8 Now is the time to review any plan or to establish a plan as to how to proceed in case of (suspected) infection including chain of information for individual stations and allaying fear, anxiety amongst neighbouring stations. 8.9 Have a communications plan, especially in order to keep families of station personnel in formed and to inform media requests.
Worse-case scenario In the worse‐case scenario, COVID‐19 remains a pandemic at the start of Antarctic summer season 2020/21, the global economy has collapsed or is in recession, and national Antarctic programs are not able to operate a “usual” Antarctic summer season. National Antarctic programs have indicated that if the worse‐case scenario is in place as at Antarctic season opening 2020/2021 they would simply undertake logistics and operations only in order to remove their winter‐over population from Antarctica and bring them back home. Figure 8 shows the Year‐round stations that currently have personnel wintering‐over there and the number after each is the total number of expeditioners currently on station for the winter/closed period. This provides some indication as to where in the Antarctic personnel would need to be extracted from, where exchange of personnel would need to take place or where changes to length of stay of individuals might need to occur should the worse‐case scenario materialise.
13
Figure 8. Antarctic year‐round facilities with the number in parenthesis indicating the number of expeditioners currently there for the winter‐over period (graphic derived from COMNAP Antarctic Station Catalogue (August 2017)).
If extraction of winter‐over personnel is the only operation possible at the start of the Antarctic summer season 2020/21, many national Antarctic programs said they were considering that they would use their own vessels to extract their own personnel from their own year‐round stations in order to avoid exposure of personnel to COVID‐19 and to reduce any imposed quarantine or isolation regulations‐so to be in a position to bring their expeditioners directly back to the home country without making stops in transit. Figure 9 shows the list of “in service” vessels in the COMNAP database that support Antarctic operations. This list is only those vessels indicated in either the Antarctic Treaty Secretariat Electronic Information Exchange System (EIES) or the COMNAP AGM XXXI (2019) Regional Information Exchange templates to be in operation for the 2019/20 Antarctic season. Therefore the list may not be complete or may indicate vessels not available for the 2020/21 Antarctic season.
14
Country Vessels
Argentina ARA Almirante Irizar
Aviso ARA Bahia Agradable
Aviso ARA Puerto Argentina
Australia Aurora Australis
Brazil Ary Rongel
Almirante Maximiano
Chile AP 41 Aquiles
ATF Lautaro
LSDH Sargento Aldea
OPV Marinero Fuentealba
Karpuj
Antarctic Warrior
China Xue Long
Xue Long 2
France L'Astrolabe
Germany Polarstern
India MV Vasiliy Golovnin28
Italy Laura Bassi
Japan Shirase
New Zealand Tangaroa
Norway MV Mary Arctica
Kronprins Haakon
Peru Carrasco
Republic of Korea Araon
Russian Federation Admiral Vladimirsky
Akademik Aleksandr Karpinskiy
Akademik Fedorov
Akademik Tryoshnikov
Marshal Gelovani
Yantar
South Africa Agulhas II
Spain Hesperides
United Kingdom RRS James Clark Ross
United States Laurence M. Gould
Maersk Peary
Nathaniel B. Palmer
Ocean Giant
Polar Star
Uruguay ROU 26 Vanguardia Figure 9. List of countries’ “in service” vessels undertaking Antarctic operations (COMNAP 2020).
28 This is a Russian Federation flagged vessel contracted by India’s National Centre for Polar and Oceans Research (NCPOR) for the past several seasons.
15
Twenty countries list vessels in the database, meaning that ten COMNAP Member programs do not operate or contract their own vessels so either deploy to Antarctic strictly by air or collaborate with another Antarctic program for vessel space for passenger and cargo transport. Some national Antarctic programs indicated that vessel availability may be reduced in the upcoming season, due to non‐availability of required maintenance, delays with delivery of new vessels, and with non‐availability of operating crews who may come from a severely COVID‐19 impacted country or community. Ability to operate intra‐continentally compromised At the height of the Antarctic summer season, national Antarctic programs operate intra‐continentally, usually at a regional level, to transport passengers, cargo and scientific equipment across Antarctic region. Under both scenarios (best‐case and worse‐case), the ability to operate intra‐continentally for national Antarctic programmes and their contractors may be compromised for the upcoming Antarctic summer season. This is because the majority of the intra‐continental transport is carried out by mostly chartered and some program‐owned turboprop aircraft that move south from the northern hemisphere. There is no clarity at the time of writing how operators such as Kenn Borek Air Ltd has been impacted by the global pandemic and how aircraft can be moved south in the worse‐case scenario, although a presentative from Kenn Borek has informally reported that they are planning for a “usual” Antarctic summer season. Most of the chartered and program‐owned turboprop aircraft move south from the northern hemisphere through South America into the Peninsula, then through South Pole or Dronning Maud Land.29 It is currently unclear how COVID‐19 restrictions might impact the transiting of these aircraft and their crews. IAATO members move their aircraft principally through the South American gateway to Frei Station/Marsh Aerodrome or through Rothera Airfield. There are also deep field operations in the Dronning Maud Land region. The British Antarctic Survey (BAS) issued a letter to all COMNAP Member programmes and to the IAATO Secretariat on 29 April 2020, indicating that discussions were underway within BAS regarding the level of support that may be available to non‐BAS aircraft transiting through Rothera Research Station in the 2020/21 season and requested all programmes to advise them of any preliminary plans to transit aircraft through Rothera. The other vectors of intra‐continental transport are land traverse, other fixed‐wing aircraft30 and vessels (to coastal, island and floating ice areas only). The COMNAP Asset Tracking System (CATS) is one means of understanding the general over‐all picture of COMNAP Member vessel and aircraft31 movement in the Antarctic Treaty area (Figures 10 and 11).
29 For example, one DROMLAN Basler aircraft for 2018–2019 moved from Calgary through USA, Costa Rico, Ecuador and Chile, to Rothera, Antarctica. 30 The use of rotary‐wing aircraft has not been considered here but of course such transport is used for short‐haul intra‐regional movement of passengers and supplies including scientific equipment. 31 CATS does include all aircraft, and any vessel that chooses not to participate.
16
Figure 10. CATS Screen capture from 16 January 2019.
Figure 11. CATS Screen capture 6 January 2020.
The graphic from a recent DROMLAN Annual Report shows indicative intra‐continental travel routes between stations in the Dronning Maud Land region (Figure 12).
17
Figure 12. Flight routes for aircraft movements in the frame of intra‐continental flights for DROMLAN logistics (red) with and for science (blue) with AWI Polar 6 (DROMLAN Annual Report 2014–2015).
In addition to the Rothera airfield, inter‐continental flights normally arrive at one of nine other Antarctic airfields. It will be important to understand, as soon as possible, whether any of the airfields are placing restrictions on entry or transit under a COVID‐19 worse‐case scenario:
Lieutenant Rodolfo Marsh Aerodrome, SCRM, 62oS/58oW, Year‐round, Gravel, Wheel only President Eduardo Frei Base, Chile
Marambio Airfield, SAWB, 64oS/56oW, Year‐round, Gravel, Wheel only Marambio Station, Argentina
Wilkins Aerodrome, YWKS, 66oS/111oE, Seasonal, Land ice, Wheel and ski Casey Station (approximately 70 kms distant), Australia
Rothera Runway, EGAR, 67oS/68oW, Seasonal, Gravel, Wheel only Rothera Station, United Kingdom
Novolazarevskaya Airfield, AT17, 70oS/11oE, Seasonal, Land Ice, Wheel and ski Antarctic Logistics Centre International (ALCI)‐Airbase (approximately 17 kms distant from), Novolazarevskaya Station, Russian Federation
18
Perseus Airfield, 71oS/23oE, Seasonal, Blue ice, Wheel and ski Antarctic Logistics Centre International (ALCI)‐Nord Airfield Camp (approximately 60 kms from Princess Elisabeth Antarctic Station, Belgium)
Troll Airfield, AT27, 72oS/2oE, Seasonal, Land ice, Wheel and ski Troll Station, Norway
Mario Zucchelli Runway, 74oS/164oE, Seasonal, Sea‐ice, Wheel and ski Mario Zucchelli Station, Italy
Phoenix Airfield, NZFX, 78oS/166oE, Seasonal, Ice shelf, Wheel and ski McMurdo Station, United States of America
Union Glacier Runway, 79oS/83oW, Seasonal, Blue‐ice, Wheel and ski Antarctic Logistics & Expeditions (ALE) Union Glacier Camp (approximately 8 kms from Estación Polar Científica Conjunta Glaciar Unión (EPCCGU), Chile)
All of these airfields and their operators have been contacted by the COMNAP Secretariat for information in regards to the upcoming Antarctic summer season. In a “usual” Antarctic season there is a high‐level of regional co‐operation, with the regional aviation “hubs” in four distinct areas of operation in the Antarctic (Figure 13). This regional co‐operation may be impacted under the worse‐case scenario if one of the country partners is severely impacted by COVID‐19.
In the East Antarctica hub, Australia, China, and the USA collaborate. Australia also collaborates with France, Italy and New Zealand in this area and between this area and the Ross Sea hub.
In the Dronning Maud Land (DML) hub, the Dronning Maud Land Air Network (DROMLAN) is an international collaborative project of the national Antarctic programs of Belgium, Finland, Germany, India, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Russia, South Africa, Sweden and the United Kingdom with stations and scientific interest in the wider DML area.32 Under this collaboration, the services of a primary contractor Antarctic Logistics Centre International (ALCI) are used alongside the various national Antarctic program assets and facilities for inter-continental air transport of passengers and cargo to and from Cape Town, South Africa, and to organise intra-continental feeder flights to various destinations within the DML and beyond.
In the Ross Sea hub, Italy, New Zealand and the USA have collaborated for many years to share both contracted and military aircraft for cargo and passenger movements to and from Christchurch, New Zealand, and around the continent. The Republic of Korea and Germany through its Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR), and France also collaborate with Italy in the Terra Nova Bay Region of the Ross Sea, including on flights to/from Concordia Station.
In the West Antarctica/Peninsula hub, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, United Kingdom and Uruguay are the primary air operators with heavylift military aircraft and national Antarctic program-owned air assets used to provide air logistics and support to nineteen national Antarctic programs. Figure 13. Table listing the usual regional co‐operation hubs (from COMNAP IP002 (ATCM XLII, 2019) Overview of Aviation Activity to Inform Discussions).
32 DROMLAN Annual Report Season 2017 ̶2018, 1.1.
19
Tourism Under the worse‐case scenario it is likely that Antarctic tourism operations will not take place in 2020/21, although advertising on the web does not seemed to be removed in regards to selling tour packages for the 2020/21 season and beyond.33 Regular contact between the COMNAP Secretariat and the IAATO Secretariat specifically on the topic of COVID‐19 began on 12 March 2020. During that first discussion IAATO confirmed that “IAATO vessels are still in operation in the Peninsula region as per the vessel schedule and they are following Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) Guidelines on screening of passengers: https://cruising.org/news‐and‐research/press‐room/2020/march/clia‐covid‐19‐toolkit.” By 16 March, COMNAP had issued guidance to all COMNAP member national Antarctic programs that stated: “5.10 Tourists should be prevented from entering national Antarctic program facilities and from any interaction with national Antarctic program personnel (i.e. passengers and crew to stay aboard of cruise ships, no flying to Antarctica). Tourists MUST be prevented from visiting research stations noting also the risk of medical support requests from Antarctic national medical facilities. Due to logistical interactions, cruise ships should not be disembarking. Tourists are most likely the population at risk to develop severe complications (cf national Antarctic program personnel) considering age and lack of medical screening. We recommend early discussion with IAATO as between any national Antarctic programs that had scheduled visitations planned with IAATO Member vessels/aircraft. Note that many national Antarctic programs have already banned interaction in Antarctic between tourists/tour vessel crews and expeditioners.” This early action likely prevented introduction of the virus to Antarctica by way of the IAATO Member cruise vessels. As at the time of this writing, IAATO shared with COMNAP this statement: “At this point in time, the short‐term impact of COVID‐19 on IAATO Member operations in the upcoming 2020/21 season, as well as longer‐term impacts, is unclear. Given both the unprecedented nature of the pandemic and its continued changes to worldwide health and travel, the issue is still very much a ‘live’ one, and one that will require monitoring and modification as it unfolds. As we all navigate these uncertain times, IAATO remains steadfast in its commitment to supporting its members, the Antarctic community and its mission for safe, environmentally responsible travel.” IAATO has recommended to their operators that they follow Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) and WHO Guidelines. IAATO is preparing its COVID‐19 detailed policy for Antarctic operations 2020/21 and wishes to hear from governments and any national Antarctic programs in regards to Antarctic station visitations policies for the 2020/21 Antarctic season and understands that station visitations are not recommended at this time and that many national Antarctic programs have stopped stations visitations. IAATO provided the COMNAP Secretariat with a list of the stations usually visited by IAATO Members during a typical Antarctic summer season (Figure 14).
33 See for example this new fly/cruise option announced on 13 May 2020: https://robbreport.com/travel/destinations/fly‐direct‐to‐antarctica‐silversea‐2920462/.
20
Arctowski Station Artigas Station
Arturo Prat Station Bellingshausen Station
Brown Station
Comandante Ferraz Esperanza Station
Vernadsky Station
Frei Station Gonzalez Videla Station
Gondwana Station Great Wall Station McMurdo Station
Novolazarevskaya O’Higgins Station
Ohridski Station
Orcadas Station
Palmer Station
Rothera Station34
San Martin Station
Scott Base
Amundsen‐Scott South Pole Station
Signy Island Station
Vernadsky Station
Figure 14. List of stations visited by IAATO Members during a typical Antarctic summer season (IAATO March 2020).
The IAATO Secretariat has requested information from national Antarctic programs in regards to their station visitation policies for the 2020/21 season as soon as possible, but before mid‐June 2020 at the latest. Governmental Inspections As per Article VII of the Antarctic Treaty, Parties have the right to designate observers to carry out any inspection with each designated observers having “...complete freedom of access at any time to any or all areas of Antarctica”... “including all stations, installations and equipment within those areas, and all ships and aircraft at points of discharging or embarking cargoes or personnel in Antarctica, shall be open at all times to inspection by any observers designated...”. Given the complications in the context of COVID‐19 of allowing visitations to stations, other facilities, ships and aircraft, the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Parties should give due consideration to the risk involved if inspections take place in the upcoming Antarctic summer season. Next steps COMNAP continues to convene the COVID‐19 ad hoc sub‐committee under the leadership of Dr Tim Heitland and EXCOM continues its regular on‐line meetings to discuss the evolving global situation and other matters. The next round of COMNAP on‐line ZOOM Meetings will begin on 9 June 2020. This round of meetings is called “Advanced Planning Forums” and national Antarctic programs are asked to come prepared to discuss any restrictions in regards to access to their stations, their aircraft and their vessels to non‐program participants in order to understand whether we are likely to be entering the Antarctic summer season 2020/21 towards the worse‐case scenario. A list of national Antarctic programmes’ policies and procedures for 2020/21 will be created and regularly updated as an Annex to this Desktop Study (Annex 2 National Antarctic Programs season 2020/21 Policies and Procedures). COMNAP also intends to update the COVID‐19 recommendations when necessary and will hold a ZOOM on‐line meeting on 9 June with the Joint Expert Group on Human Biology & Medicine (JEGHBM) in order to understand the latest research on COVID‐19 and what that might mean for preparedness in Antarctica. COMNAP also intends to hold a ZOOM on‐line meeting particularly to focus on the impact a worse‐case scenario summer season might have on science. National Antarctic programs will be asked to nominate a science representative for this discussion and a date/time is to be confirmed.
34 Note: No passenger visits since 2018 due to construction, deep field planes still fly through.
21
National Antarctic programs are encouraged to send information on their intentions for the 2020/21 Antarctic summer season to the COMNAP Secretariat as soon as possible in order to share that information in advance of the third round of ZOOM on‐line meetings the “AGM Regional Break‐out Groups” scheduled to begin on 3 August 2020. COMNAP Members are encouraged to regularly consult the technical guidance at https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel‐coronavirus‐2019/technical‐guidance and to share any national Antarctic program and governmental information on the COVID‐19 situation as we approach the opening of Antarctic summer season 2020/21.
22
Annexes
23
Annex 1: Gateway Cities Information 1.1 Ushuaia, Argentina – Information provided by Dirección Nacional del Antártico (DNA) and current as at 7 June 2020. Travel restrictions (airports and sea ports): Argentina has been in quarantine since March 20. International air arrivals are suspended, except for flights of repatriation of citizens. Commercial domestic flights are also suspended. For the time being, the ban on the sale of air tickets will continue until September 2020. Ports like those of Buenos Aires and Ushuaia, maintain commercial activities such as those related to cargo and fishing, but the arrival of vessels with tourists is not allowed. Changes are subject to decisions of the National and Provincial Executive Power. Provide understanding of business response capabilities: a. Travel: Currently all international arrivals and commercial domestic flights are suspended. There is no commercial air connection Buenos Aires and Ushuaia until September at least. Change of status will be reported in due course, subject to review and decision of the Executive Power. b. Food providers: No information available at this time. c. Clothing providers, dry‐cleaners, repair: No information available at this time. d. Fuel provision: No information available at this time. e. Medical supply availability: Currently, limited to domestic health authorities. Change of status will be reported in due course, subject to review and decision of the Executive Power. Any Government “exemptions” or specific provision for Antarctic in‐transit, non‐resident expeditioners: This is not currently being discussed by government but will be discussed in due course. Currently, efforts are focussed on containment of the virus, which has not yet reached the peak of infection predictions for the country. Availability of COVID‐19 testing: Currently, access to testing is not guaranteed for any personnel in transit to Antarctica (in the case that transit is allowed). Testing availability will be considered in due course. Currently, efforts are focussed on containment of the virus, which has not yet reached the peak of infection predictions for the country. Ushuaia hospital ICU capability: No information available, Any other specific information in the context of COVID‐19 for the 2020/21 season: To minimize the risk of importation of patients with COVID‐19 and the care of national patients are the current priorities. The measures taken towards the end of the year will depend on the evolution of the pandemic in Argentina and of the decisions of the national and provincial authorities. DNA will accept presentations of Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs), but the reception and eventual approval of the EIA will not guarantee the activity can proceed, depending on the decisions to be taken by the national and provincial authorities for the ports and airports, at the beginning of the season. Visitors would not be accepted at Argentine Antarctic stations during the 2020/2021 season. Further Information (in Spanish) can be found on the COMNAP Member’s Only webpage at: https://www.comnap.aq/wp‐content/uploads/2020/06/COVID‐Procedure‐Argentina‐Directiva‐COCOANTAR‐03‐2020.pdf.
24
1.2 Hobart, Tasmania, Australia – Information provided by Australian Antarctic Division and Antarctic Tasmania and current as at 29 May 2020.
Travel restrictions (airports and sea ports): Australia and its states and territories operate under a range of border controls and travel restrictions. The lifting of restrictions is planned in stages, with the current plans as follows https://www.health.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/2020/05/3‐step‐framework‐for‐a‐covidsafe‐australia‐3‐step‐framework‐for‐a‐covidsafe‐australia_1.pdf Stages beyond the current plan are expected to be announced once the success of each stage has been determined. In the state of Tasmania, the stages are planned for the following dates:
Stage 1: from 18 May 2020 Stage 2: from 15 June 2020 Stage 3: from 13 July 2020
Under all current stages, border restrictions remain in place. No timeframe has yet been determined for international border restrictions to be lifted. Note that ‘interstate travel’ is likely to include travel between Australia and New Zealand. Provide understanding of business response capabilities: a. Travel: At present only limited airlines provide flights to Australia, based on the travel restrictions in place. This will change as restrictions are being lifted over time. All non‐essential travellers arriving in Tasmania will be required to enter quarantine for 14 days. Non‐Tasmanian residents are required to complete their quarantine at Government provided accommodation. There is no current timeframe for the lifting of this requirement. See https://coronavirus.tas.gov.au/travellers‐and‐visitors/coming‐to‐tasmania. The information includes information for maritime and other crew arrivals. b. Food providers: Food providers operate reliably, and all businesses in Tasmania have or will have COVID‐19 Safety Plans in place by 15 June 2020. These plans are designed to keep both workers and customers safe and minimise the risk. c. Clothing providers, dry‐cleaners, repair: All services will be available as normal. d. Fuel provision (vessels and aircraft): All fuel will be available as normal. e. Medical supplies: There are no current limits placed on purchasing medical supplies. f. Other relevant businesses: Other relevant businesses will also operate under COVID‐19 Safety Plans. Main businesses are accommodation providers, transport providers, and similar. From 15 June 2020 all accommodation will be permitted to operate without restrictions. Any Government “exemptions” or specific provision for Antarctic in‐transit, non‐resident expeditioners: The discussion with the Tasmanian Government has been initiated, and further information about a procedure will be made available as soon as possible, with some of the details being subject to the timelines of governments lifting restrictions, which may not be known for a period of time as they rely on the success of the initial stages of lifting restrictions. Availability of COVID‐19 testing: The best potential delivery of COVID‐19 testing will have to be determined once a Tasmanian Government procedure has been developed, and full government cooperation has been confirmed. Current community COVID‐19 testing capability is substantial around the State and has a between a 2 to 24 hour turnaround time. Hobart hospital ICU capability: Exact number to be confirmed, but The Royal Hobart Hospital has good ICU bed capacity which has recently been increased in response to COVID‐19.
25
Any other specific information in the context of COVID‐19 for the 2020/21 season: Tasmania’s Antarctic gateway offers significant benefits to national Antarctic programs through the collaboration among service providers and government programs under the Tasmanian Polar Network. It is envisaged that a dedicated gateway service package will be developed for international COVID‐19 Antarctic transits for the summer season 2020/21. This package would be developed with input from national Antarctic programs to address individual national Antarctic program requirements and meet Australia’s COVID‐19 standards and procedures. In regards to Antarctic tourism, the national Antarctic authority makes decisions related to tourism, it is not a local/regional matter. From a Tasmanian perspective there is currently a ban on cruise ship visits in place for Tasmania with no current timeframe for a lifting of this ban.
26
1.3 Punta Arenas, Chile – Information provided by A-PAL Association and current as at 31 May 2020.
The Chilean government´s response to the COVID‐19 emergency has been very dynamic. It has not been the same across Chile’s 16 regions, which span a distance of 2650 miles north to south. Given this great distance, the differing regional approaches is to be expected, but the response has also varied from neighbourhood to neighbourhood. The 7 million people of the Metropolitan Region, where the capital of Santiago is located, has 38 districts (“comunas” in Spanish) (Figure A). Some of these have been in and out of quarantine over the last two months. Figure A. The 38 districts of the Metropolitan Region of Chile.
The usual way that Antarctic expeditioners arrive into Chile is through the Santiago Airport, which is located in the Pudahuel district, in the west of the city. Usually they wait at this airport for their next commercial flight going south to the city of Punta Arenas. Once in Punta Arenas, the expeditioners normally wait one to two days before boarding their national Antarctic program aircraft or vessel or contracted aircraft or vessel to Antarctica. As of 31 May:
75% (1033 people) of all Chilean COVID‐19 patients hospitalised in intensive care units are in
27
Santiago.
Punta Arenas has only four patients in intensive care units.
Out of 4830 new COVID‐19 cases reported in Chile today, 4253 cases were reported in the Metropolitan Region but only two in the Region of Magellan.
Travel restrictions (airports and sea ports): There are travel restrictions currently in place. It is not possible to anticipate which restrictions or regulations, if any, will be in force in Chile by the beginning of the Antarctic summer season/end of 2020. As an example, restrictions in place this week (week beginning 25 May) are as follows:
28
29
Provide understanding of business response capabilities: a. Travel: b. Food providers: No restrictions in place in Punta Arenas. c. Clothing providers, dry‐cleaners, repair: No restrictions in place in Punta Arenas. d. Fuel provision (vessels and aircraft): No restrictions in place in Punta Arenas. e. Medical supplies: Medical supplies are available. f. Accommodation: The majority of Punta Arenas hotels are open, however, they are operating with less availability than is normal due to Governmental sanitary measures and restrictions in place. g. Other relevant businesses: Through A‐PAL, commercial logistics provider DAP Airlines had provided COMNAP with a (preliminary) “PROPOSAL FOR PREVENTIVE MEASURES AND DEVELOPMENT OF PROTOCOLS FOR SANITARY BIO‐SECURITY: Traffic of Passengers CHILE – ANTARCTICA” document dated April 2020 (see Annex 3).
Any Government “exemptions” or specific provision for Antarctic in‐transit, non‐resident expeditioners: There are meetings with the government regarding the next Antarctic season. Work in progress. Availability of COVID‐19 testing: COVID‐19 PCR testing is available in Punta Arenas. The analysis is done in local laboratories with a short turn‐around time. Over 70 labs are doing PCR testing in Chile. Since the beginning of the pandemic, 582,440 PCR tests have been undertaken in Chile, with 393,007 of those tests done in the month of May. A table showing one‐day numbers of tests is shown in Figure B.
Figure B. A list of regions showing numbers of tests carried out on 30 May 2020.
Chile hospital ICU capability: There are 2576 ventilators currently in all of Chile. Of these, 2263 are in use (so 313 available). Ventilators and respirators availability increases every day, as they are imported and also built in Chile. The regions are also able to share capacity and transfer use of equipment based on need. For example, there is a difficult COVID‐19 situation in Santiago currently, as complicated as it was in Punta Arenas from April 18 to April 24. Fortunately, the situation is coming back to normal in Punta Arenas. The Magallanes Regional hospital´s bed ICU capacity was increased, when it was needed, and therefore there is a spare capacity available today.
30
Any other specific information in the context of COVID‐19 for the 2020/21 season: Chilean authorities are well aware of Punta Arenas´ Antarctic gateway role and responsibilities. Therefore, the Government is giving attention to take appropriate measures to facilitate that role as soon as possible. As we are still five to six months ahead of the beginning of the Antarctic season and there are urgent matters to attend elsewhere, particularly in Santiago, decisions have not been made as yet. If the COVID‐19 pandemic situation would still be in place in November, as it is now in Chile, there is likely to be a “sanitary corridor” established between Santiago Airport and Punta Arenas Airport to provide a working solution for the transfer of expeditioners to Antarctica. Decisions have not been made yet in the context of Antarctic tourism operations.
31
1.4 Christchurch, New Zealand – Information provided by Antarctica New Zealand and current as at 28 May 2020. Antarctica New Zealand’s intention is to work with parties to develop a set of protocols and processes that would meet the needs of the New Zealand Government, and National Antarctic Programs (including Antarctica New Zealand) using Christchurch as a gateway to transit to and from Antarctica. The requirements are likely to include quarantine and testing regimes. The aim is to ensure that Antarctica remains COVID‐19 free, and that New Zealanders are also protected from an increase in COVID‐19 cases in New Zealand. Travel restrictions (airports and sea ports): The restrictions that are currently in place include limited air access for non‐New Zealand citizens and permit holders and the requirement to isolate in a Government‐registered hotel for a period of two weeks on arrival. For vessels, the current requirement is to enter New Zealand ports only when the vessel has completed two weeks at sea with no cases of COVID‐19, or the vessel is required to anchor off port until two weeks has been completed. The New Zealand Government has moved to open up movements within New Zealand at a pace that ensures that COVID‐19 continues to be eliminated. Should this situation continue, it is likely that some of the restrictions may be further reduced. There have been exemptions granted for Antarctica to New Zealand travellers working under National Polar Programmes to date. Provide understanding of business response capabilities: a. Travel: Air transport internationally has been limited with less than 5% of pre‐COVID schedules operational. A number of routes have been ceased, and others are offering only a reduced schedule. Domestic travel within New Zealand is available, with a schedule that matches demand. Recent increases in freedom of movements have increased the demand for domestic travel and travel is available between cities, and regionally. Travellers from international ports must isolate at the port of entry, which is likely to be Auckland for air travel. b. Food providers: Some restrictions are in place for the number of people in restaurants and bars, but operations are as per normal apart from that. Supermarkets, grocery stores are fully operational. c. Clothing providers, dry‐cleaners, repair: Fully operational but limited people in enclosed spaces and limited person‐to‐person contact. d. Fuel provision (vessels and aircraft): Fully operational but limited people in enclosed spaces and limited person‐to‐person contact. e. Medical supplies: Fully operational but limited people in enclosed spaces and limited person‐to‐person contact. COVID‐19 testing is controlled by health authorities but there are no limitations currently on the numbers of tests being undertaken on a daily basis. f. Accommodation: Some accommodation providers have reduced operations significantly, but there is accommodation available. g. Other relevant businesses: Operating under Government guidelines according to official alert level status. Fully operational but limited people in enclosed spaces and limited person‐to‐person contact. Most retailers are requesting contactless payments, that is, no cash exchange/cash payments. Their preference is for card payments that do not require input of a PIN or a signature in order to reduce contact with payment equipment. Any Government “exemptions” or specific provision for Antarctic in‐transit, non‐resident expeditioners: To date exemptions have been provided by the New Zealand Government for travellers transiting through New Zealand from Antarctica given the de facto isolation on continent. These are one off exemptions. Antarctica New Zealand is working with the Gateway Christchurch team and Governmental agencies to identify processes which would meet the dual need of keeping New Zealanders from contracting COVID‐19 and Antarctica COVID‐19 free. These processes and
32
protocols are currently in development. The timeline aim is to have these confirmed well in advance of the first flight south to Antarctica, given the likely requirement for quarantine prior to travel. National Antarctic Programmes are encouraged to use formal diplomatic channels within their own country and New Zealand Government to signal any intentions for using Christchurch and/or Lyttelton as a gateway to Antarctica. All exemptions will require a formal high‐level Government review. Availability of COVID‐19 testing: The testing regime is part of the conversations currently underway with Governmental agencies. Christchurch hospital ICU capability: Christchurch Hospital has current ICU capability of 59 beds. The role that Christchurch Any other specific information in the context of COVID‐19 for the 2020/21 season: plays as a gateway city is considered of importance for New Zealand. Our intention is to develop a process for using Christchurch as a gateway that meets the needs of all parties. Antarctica New Zealand is in active discussions to generate a proposition, which would be used for all Antarctic travellers to New Zealand and Antarctica. Scott Base will not be open for tourist visits in the 2020/21 season.
33
1.5 Cape Town, South Africa – Information provided by South African National Antarctic Programme (SANAP) and current as at 28 May 2020.
Travel restrictions (airports and sea ports): South Africa has five levels of “lockdown” restrictions. The whole country remains on Lockdown level 4 at time of writing with every person confined to their place of residence and all persons who are able to work from home should do so. No international travel is permitted except for repatriation purposes. Ports are very strict in quarantine of vessels. Governmental information: https://www.nicd.ac.za/ & https://www.gov.za/Coronavirus. Provide understanding of business response capabilities: a. Travel: b. Food providers: Food provision is an essential service, no impact to normal services. c. Clothing providers, dry‐cleaners, repair: Dry cleaning services available, most engineering services remain closed. Clothing providers required a special permit to sell the programme the cold weather gear that the programme needed for sub‐Antarctic Marion Island operations. d. Fuel provision (vessels and aircraft): There is a significantly lesse demand for fuel than would be normal in the country. There are no impacts to normal fuel provision services. The SANAP were able to obtain bunker fuel, polar diesel and Jet A1 even during level 5 Lockdown. e. Medical supplies: There is impact to the availability of medical supplies, with hospitals having first preference for supplies and pharmaceuticals. Supplies of pharmaceuticals are being limited with supplies reserved for the use in the country during the COVID‐19 pandemic. f. Other relevant businesses: Accommodation is challenging, in that only specific hotels are providing quarantine services‐there seems to be no distinction made between quarantine of non‐infected and infected persons, meaning, anyone arriving from another country is subject to a mandatory 14 days quarantine. Any Government “exemptions” or specific provision for Antarctic in‐transit, non‐resident expeditioners: There has been no discussion about this. The Marion Island voyage, which consisted of only South African expeditioners, was not considered an exception. At this stage there seems to be a governing structure call “NatJoints” that is responsible for making key decisions. They are very focused on only what is termed “essential” and that does not include consideration of Antarctic‐specific impacts and exceptions. Probably, at lower lockdown levels, things may become easier. Availability of COVID‐19 testing: The testing of asymptomatic people remains frowned‐upon as there is a postulated argument about not having enough test kits to test those that may really be infected. SANAP had to revert to getting special permission and also pay a premium rate and eventually had tests conducted on about 75 person. Results took about 72 hours as they were presented as a batch. Cape Town hospital ICU capability: Exact number to be confirmed, but the resources of the hospitals are in great demand as the Western Cape remains the epicentre of the outbreak, with more than 60% of the country’s total infections. A significant number of ventilators were received from the USA and this has eased the ventilator capacity constraints somewhat. The Western Cape has recently repurposed part of the Cape Town International Convention Centre as an emergency hospital: https://m.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/watch‐cticc‐transformed‐into‐paperless‐field‐hospital‐to‐boost‐covid‐19‐fight‐20200526. Any other specific information in the context of COVID‐19 for the 2020/21 season: South Africa’s immigration protocols and port health services seems to be the biggest hurdle for transiting expeditioners. In regards to Antarctic tourism, there has not been any pronouncement on this as yet, but SANAP will be guided by its Department of International Relations and Cooperation.
34
Annex 2: National Antarctic Programs season 2020/21 Policies and Procedures received
1. Argentina; March 2020; “DIRECTIVA DEL COMANDANTE CONJUNTO ANTARTICO Nro 03 /20 “TRASLADO AEREO DE PERSONAL Y CARGA, HACIA Y EN EL CONTINENTE ANTARTICO ANTE PANDEMIA PRODUCIDA POR VIRUS SARS‐ COV‐2 (COVID‐19)”. https://www.comnap.aq/wp‐content/uploads/2020/06/COVID‐Procedure‐Argentina‐Directiva‐COCOANTAR‐03‐2020.pdf.
35
Annex 3: Other Policies and Procedures received 1. DAP Airlines “PROPOSAL (Preliminary) FOR PREVENTIVE MEASURES AND DEVELOPMENT OF
PROTOCOLS FOR SANITARY BIO‐SECURITY Traffic of Passengers CHILE – ANTARCTICA”, April 2020. Available from the COMNAP webpage at: https://www.comnap.aq/wp‐content/uploads/2020/06/COVID‐Procedure‐DAP‐April2020.pdf See also: https://dapairline.com/en/antarctic‐adventure/.