Yellowknife (June 23/03) - Global warming is making the age-old dream of an ice-free shipping lane through the Arctic look like a sure thing.

If the Arctic does open to international shipping, experts say there will be a debate on regulatory authority over waterways that Canada now claims as its own.

"We are talking about international shipping," said Rob Huebert, a professor at the Centre for Military and Strategic Studies at the University of Calgary.

"Who gets to decide the regulations on ship safety, ship construction and so on. Will it be Canada or the International Maritime Organization?"

Huebert said it would be better if Canada set the rules because IMO regulations are less severe.

A voyage through the Arctic Ocean would save about 4,000 nautical miles, substantially reducing time and cost of crossing from the Atlantic to the Pacific.

There is no actual Northwest Passage, but a series of straits and options for navigators can choose from.

Gary Sidock, director operational services for the Canadian Coast Guard, calls it "a function of geography. Most people consider Lancaster Sound from the east to Resolute as one end, but then there is a series of choices to make, and that will depend on weather and ice."

Sidock noted that there is the southern route through the islands, the Paulatuk route and the Prince of Wales route down to Cambridge Bay. The passage north of Banks Island is usually heavily iced.