French Southern and Antarctic Lands
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French Southern and Antarctic Lands Terres australes et antarctiques françaises (French) | |
---|---|
![]() Flag ![]() Coat of arms | |
Motto: | |
Anthem: "La Marseillaise" | |
![]() Location of French Southern and Antarctic Lands (circled in red) in the Indian Ocean (light blue) | |
Sovereign state | France |
Territorial status | 6 August 1955[1] |
Capital | Saint Pierre, Réunion (headquarters, not geographically assigned) 43°00′S 67°00′E / 43.000°S 67.000°ECoordinates: 43°00′S 67°00′E / 43.000°S 67.000°E[2] |
Largest settlement | Port-aux-Français |
Official languages | French |
Government | |
Emmanuel Macron | |
• Prefect, Administrator Superior | Charles Giusti[3] |
• Secretary General | Thierry Dousset[4] |
Legislature | Advisory Council of the TAAF |
Area | |
• Total | 439,666.4 km2 (169,756.1 sq mi) |
Population | |
• Estimate | 200~400 scientists and military personnel[5] No permanent population[6] |
Currency | Euro (€) (EUR) |
Time zone | |
Driving side | right |
ISO 3166 code | |
Internet TLD | .tf |
Website | taaf![]() |
The French Southern and Antarctic Lands[7] (French: Terres australes et antarctiques françaises, TAAF) is an Overseas Territory (French: Territoire d'outre-mer or TOM) of France. It consists of:
- Adélie Land (Terre Adélie), the French claim on the continent of Antarctica.
- Crozet Islands (Îles Crozet), a group in the southern Indian Ocean, south of Madagascar.
- Kerguelen Islands (Archipel des Kerguelen), a group of volcanic islands in the southern Indian Ocean, southeast of Africa, approximately equidistant between Africa, Antarctica and Australia.
- Saint Paul and Amsterdam Islands (Îles Saint Paul et Amsterdam), a group to the north of the Kerguelen Islands.
- The Scattered Islands (Îles Éparses), a dispersed group of islands around the coast of Madagascar.
The territory is sometimes referred to as the French Southern Lands (French: Terres australes françaises) or the French Southern Territories,[8] usually to emphasize non-recognition of French sovereignty over Adélie Land as part of the Antarctic Treaty System.[6]
The entire territory has no permanently settled inhabitants. Approximately 150 (in the winter) to 310 (in the summer) persons are usually present in the French Southern and Antarctic Lands at any time, but they are mainly made up of military personnel, officials, scientific researchers and support staff.[9]
On July 5, 2019, the French Austral Lands and Seas were inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.[10]
Administration[]
The French Southern and Antarctic Lands have formed a territoire d'outre-mer (an overseas territory) of France since 1955. Formerly, they were administered from Paris by an administrateur supérieur assisted by a secretary-general; since December 2004, however, their administrator has been a préfet, currently Charles Giusti,[3] with headquarters in Saint Pierre on Réunion Island.
The territory is divided into five districts:
District | Administrative centre | Population | Area | EEZ | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Winter | Summer | (km2) | |||
Adélie Land | Dumont d'Urville Station | 30 | 110 | 432,000 | — |
Crozet Islands | Alfred Faure | 25 | 45 | 352 | 567,475 |
Kerguelen Islands | Port-aux-Français | 70 | 110 | 7,215 | 563,869 |
Saint Paul and Amsterdam Islands | Martin-de-Viviès | 25 | 45 | 61 | 502,533 |
Scattered Islandsa | Saint Pierreb, Réunion | 56 | 56 | 38.4 | 640,400 |
TAAF | Saint Pierrec, Réunion | 206 | 366 | 439,666.4 | 2,274,277 |
a According to new law 2007-224 of February 21, 2007, the Scattered Islands constitute the TAAF's fifth district.[11] The TAAF website does not mention their population. The data are not included in the totals.
b The Îles Éparses principal station is on Tromelin Island. The headquarters of the district chief lies beyond the TAAF, in Saint Pierre on Réunion Island.
c The Territory's principal station is Martin-de-Viviès on Amsterdam Island. The capital and headquarters of the territorial administrator lies beyond the TAAF, in Saint Pierre on Réunion Island.
Each district is headed by a district chief, who has powers similar to those of a French mayor (including recording births and deaths and being an officer of judicial police).
Because there is no permanent population, there is no elected assembly, nor does the territory send representatives to the national parliament.
Geography[]
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![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/TAAF-CIA_WFB_Map.png/300px-TAAF-CIA_WFB_Map.png)
Adélie Land (in Antarctica) and Banc du Geyser and Bassas da India (in the Îles Éparses district) are not shown.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a9/Pringlea_antiscorbutica_Mayes_fake.jpg/220px-Pringlea_antiscorbutica_Mayes_fake.jpg)
The territory includes Amsterdam Island, Saint Paul Island, the Crozet Islands, and the Kerguelen Islands in the southern Indian Ocean near 43°S, 67°E, along with Adélie Land, the sector of Antarctica claimed by France, named by the French explorer Jules Dumont d'Urville after his wife.
Adélie Land (about 432,000 km2 or 167,000 sq mi) and the islands, totaling 7,781 km2 (3,004 sq mi), have no indigenous inhabitants, though in 1997 there were about 100 researchers whose numbers varied from winter (July) to summer (January).
Amsterdam Island and Saint Paul Island are extinct volcanoes and have been delineated as the Amsterdam and Saint-Paul Islands temperate grasslands ecoregion. The highest point in the territory is Mont Ross on Kerguelen Island at 1,850 m (6,070 ft). There are very few airstrips on the islands, only existing on islands with weather stations, and the 1,232 km (766 mi) of coastline have no ports or harbors, only offshore anchorages.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Kerguelen_VolcanDuDiable.jpg/220px-Kerguelen_VolcanDuDiable.jpg)
The islands in the Indian Ocean are supplied by the special ship Marion Dufresne sailing out of Le Port in Réunion Island. Terre Adélie is supplied by L'Astrolabe sailing out of Hobart in Tasmania.
However, the territory has a merchant marine fleet totaling (in 1999) 2,892,911 GRT/5,165,713 tonnes deadweight (DWT), including seven bulk carriers, five cargo ships, ten chemical tankers, nine container ships, six liquefied gas carriers, 24 petroleum tankers, one refrigerated cargo ship, and ten roll-on-roll-off (RORO) carriers. This fleet is maintained as a subset of the French register that allows French-owned ships to operate under more liberal taxation and manning regulations than permissible under the main French register. This register, however, is to vanish,[when?] replaced by the International French Register (Registre International Français, RIF).
Flora and fauna[]
Designations | |
---|---|
UNESCO World Heritage Site | |
Official name | French Austral Lands and Seas |
Criteria | Natural: (vii), (ix), (x) |
Designated | 2019 (43rd session) |
Reference no. | 1603 |
State Party | ![]() |
Region | Western Europe |
Official name | Réserve Naturelle Nationale des Terres Australes Francaises |
Designated | 15 September 2008 |
Reference no. | 1837[12] |
Economy[]
![]() | This section does not cite any sources. (December 2020) |
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/49/French_South_Antarctic_Territory_Product_Exports_%282019%29.svg/290px-French_South_Antarctic_Territory_Product_Exports_%282019%29.svg.png)
The territory's natural resources are limited to fish and crustaceans. Economic activity is limited to servicing meteorological and geophysical research stations and French and other fishing fleets.
The main fish resources are Patagonian toothfish and spiny lobster. Both are poached by foreign fleets; because of this, the French Navy, and occasionally other services, patrol the zone and arrest poaching vessels. Such arrests can result in heavy fines and/or the seizure of the ship.
France previously sold licenses to foreign fisheries to fish the Patagonian toothfish; because of overfishing, it is now restricted to a small number of fisheries from Réunion Island.
The territory takes in revenues of about €16 million a year.
Codes[]
The French Southern Territories (i.e. the TAAF excluding Adélie Land) have been given the following country codes: FS (FIPS) and TF (ISO 3166-1 alpha-2).
See also[]
- Administrative divisions of France
- French colonial empire
- French Fifth Republic
- List of French islands in the Indian and Pacific oceans
- List of French possessions and colonies
- Outline of France
- Overseas France
References[]
- ^ Government of the French Republic (6 August 1955). "Loi n° 55-1052 du 6 août 1955 conférant l'autonomie administrative et financière aux Terres australes et antarctiques françaises". legifrance.gouv.fr (in French). Retrieved 19 October 2019.
- ^ French Southern and Antarctic Lands in Geonames.org (cc-by)
- ^ Jump up to: a b Government of the French Republic (16 September 2020). "Décret du 16 septembre 2020 portant nomination du préfet, administrateur supérieur des Terres australes et antarctiques françaises - M. GIUSTI (Charles)". legifrance.gouv.fr (in French). Retrieved 28 August 2021.
- ^ Government of the French Republic (6 March 2020). "Arrêté du 6 mars 2020 portant nomination du secrétaire général des Terres australes et antarctiques françaises". legifrance.gouv.fr (in French). Retrieved 6 April 2020.
- ^ TAAF Collectivity. "Présentation des territoires". taaf.fr (in French). Retrieved 19 October 2019.
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Antarctica :: French Southern and Antarctic Lands". CIA.gov/Library/Publications/The-World-Factbook. CIA. 20 May 2020. Retrieved 10 October 2018.
- ^ "List of countries, territories and currencies". Interinstitutional style guide. Publications Office. 2008-06-12. Retrieved 2008-06-29.
- ^ "French Southern Territories". ISO.org. ISO. 26 November 2018. Retrieved 12 July 2020.
- ^ "The TAAF do not have any permanent population." "The French Southern and Antarctic Lands". French Southern and Antarctic Lands administration. Archived from the original on 26 May 2017. Retrieved 31 May 2016.
- ^ "Five sites inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List". UNESCO. 5 July 2019.
- ^ "Les îles Éparses". Archived from the original on May 2, 2007. Retrieved 2007-03-03.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
- ^ "Réserve Naturelle Nationale des Terres Australes Francaises". Ramsar Sites Information Service. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
External links[]
![]() |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to French Southern and Antarctic Lands. |
![]() |
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for French Southern and Antarctic Lands. |
- Official website
Wikimedia Atlas of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands
- French Southern and Antarctic Lands – official French website (in English)
- French Southern and Antarctic Lands. The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency.
- French Southern Territories at Curlie
- Southern & Antarctic Territories
- Crozet Archipelago
- Kerguelen Archipelago
- Terre Adélie
- French Southern and Antarctic Lands
- 1955 establishments in France
- 1955 in Antarctica
- Dependent territories in Africa
- East African countries
- France and the Antarctic
- Geography of Antarctica
- Geography of Overseas France
- Island countries of the Indian Ocean
- Overseas France
- Ramsar sites in France
- Southeast African countries
- Special territories of the European Union
- States and territories established in 1955
- Territorial claims in Antarctica
- World Heritage Sites in France