Legal mechanisms for protecting the marine environment of the Arctic from pollution: Russian legislation and international standards

The subject of this study is a set of legal mechanisms aimed at protecting the marine environment of the Arctic from pollution by ships. The analysis focuses on the relationship and interaction between the norms of Russian national legislation (primarily criminal and administrative) and international legal standards. Key instruments such as the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the MARPOL 73/78 Convention, the IMO Polar Code, as well as Article 252 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and Article 8.17 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation are examined in detail. Special attention is given to the issues of implementation and enforcement of these norms in the specific conditions of the Arctic: fragmentation of enforcement, the extreme difficulty of proving violations in harsh climatic conditions, existing exceptions for military and fishing vessels, as well as the conflict between economic interests in the development of the Northern Sea Route and ecological imperatives. The study evaluates the need for deep integration of international and national mechanisms and the development of comprehensive measures – from enhancing monitoring to tightening sanctions – to ensure the real effectiveness of environmental protection regimes in the region. The methodology includes comparative legal and formal-legal methods for norm analysis, as well as a case study method using incidents in the Arctic (the "Nordvik" tanker, the spill in Norilsk in 2020), which allows for the identification of collisions and enforcement issues. The scientific novelty of this research lies in the comprehensive examination of criminal and international legal mechanisms for holding accountable those responsible for marine environmental pollution by vessels specifically in the Arctic region. Particular attention should be paid to the significant body of literature on environmental protection and maritime law issues; the problems of law enforcement in the Arctic region, taking into account its climatic specifics, transportation challenges, and unique international status, have so far been addressed only fragmentarily. The work proposes to compare the norms of Russian criminal legislation (particularly, Article 252 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) with international legal obligations arising from the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 1982, the MARPOL 73/78 Convention, and the Polar Code.