Adaptation Actions for a Changing Arctic: Perspectives from the Barents Area

33

Chapter 2 · Status of the natural and human environments

Million tonnes

Iron ore Other bulk

10

Iron ore Other bulk

Coal Apatite concentrate Chemical products Iron ore Piece goods Colored metals

Pulp wood Sawn wood

Oil products

Forest/paper products

5

Paper pulp Sawn wood

2

Forest products Bulk

Oil and bulk Paper/pulp raw-material Cement Paper/cellulosa in containers

Apatite concentrate Coal Aluminum Scrap metal

Ore Minerals Piece goods Steel Sawn products Containers

Paper Forest products

Steel products in containers Bulk for steel Scrap iron Gas

Figure 2.15 Industrial ports and shipped goods in the Barents area (ÅF-Infraplan, 2005).

Unlike many marine fish stocks, the Barents Sea fish stocks are generally in good health. In Russia, the main goal of fisheries management, as defined by the Federal Fisheries Act, is the ‘protection and rational use’ of aquatic biological resources. The Russian system does not have an explicit environmental policy for the fisheries, but a number of Federal requirements apply to the protection of the environment. In the Barents Sea area, the Joint Norwegian-Russian Fishery Commission plays a key role in managing shared stocks.This commission coordinates a number of cooperative research projects, focused on enhancing understanding of the Barents Sea ecosystem and factors driving the dynamics of the most important commercial species. Total Allowable Catches (TACs) are based on recommendations by this commission.Management plans for ecosystem-based management of the Barents Sea also exist (e.g. Norwegian Ministry of the Environment 2001, 2006, 2011). These plans cover the Norwegian EEZ and the fisheries protection zone around Svalbard, and provide a framework for the sustainable use of natural resources and goods derived from the Barents Sea-Lofoten area, including the identification of valuable areas and setting of objectives for species management to be implemented through protected areas management. In spring 2014, a contract was signed by the Russian State Company Sevmorgeo ASA and the Russian Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment stipulating that Russian institutions, under the leadership of Sevmorgeo, must prepare an action plan for managing the resources in the Russian part of the Barents Sea, using an ecosystem-based approach (Bokhanov et al., 2013) (see Figure 2.16). In Norway, it has been noted that more efficient harvesting and the development of more high-end products have increased the value of fish landed. Increasingly sophisticated fishing technology creates more business-oriented fishermen, and a younger generation with more education and higher expectations now constitute the primary cohort of fishers in Norway (Nordic Council of Ministers,2011).However,there has

Fisheries thus constitute amajor economic sector inNorway and Russia, and much of its produce is for export (see Figure 2.15). The bulk of the Norwegian fish has been exported to countries such as France and Russia (Regional Council of Lapland et al., 2007, however, exports to Russia are currently limited by an export embargo). Internationally, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS; United Nations, 1982, 1995) establishes the basic legal framework for marine areas under which all sea fisheries must operate. This entails among other things, delimitation and constitution of maritime zones, including EEZs. To enhance the protection of common marine ecosystems, states throughout the world adopt regional seas agreements, also encouraged by UNCLOS. The Barents Sea, part of the Arctic Ocean and the North-East Atlantic are covered by the OSPAR Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic. In addition, the 1992 Convention on Biological Diversity applies to both Barents marine and terrestrial ecosystems. Other prominent global conventions applicable to the marine area and shipping are the 1973 Convention on the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL 73/78) and the 1974 International Convention on the Safety of Life at Sea. Straddling and highly migratory fish stocks are also covered by a dedicated UN Agreement (1995). In the field of fisheries management for shared living resources, states are encouraged to cooperate or even establish regional fisheries management organizations (RFMOs) for particular areas (primarily high seas) or fish stocks. In the North-East Atlantic and the Barents Sea the best example of an RFMO is the North-East Atlantic Fisheries Commission (NEAFC), which regulates fisheries in NorthAtlantic high seas and produces (upon state’s request) recommendations for its parties’own EEZs. Since 1974/76, the Joint Russian-Norwegian Fisheries Commission has provided management advice on the most important fish stocks in the Barents and Norwegian seas, including quotas and minimum sizes for jointly managed live marine resources.