Student: Marissa Weileder
Graduation date: May 2019
Type: Concentration (single major)
Date approved: November 2016
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Summary
The Arctic is becoming increasingly more accessible with the melting of the Arctic ice caps. As accessibility increases, new opportunities for Arctic fisheries emerge (Millerd 2011). The Arctic region refers to the Arctic ocean and adjacent seas with seasonally varying ice cover, surrounded by a treeless permafrost in Alaska, Canada, Finland, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Russia and Sweden (Vylegzhanin 2011). It contains significant stocks of living marine resources which provide an optimal environment for Arctic fisheries to thrive. However, predicted changes in temperature, precipitation and ice cover may affect arctic aquatic ecosystems and the fishing industry that pursues them. Understanding the interaction between climate change and Arctic fisheries may increase our potential to cultivate resilient fisheries in the future (Reist et al. 2006). This concentration seeks to understand the influence of climate change on Arctic fisheries and strategies of adaptation for climate change in the Arctic.
To understand how fisheries function, it’s necessary to understand what a fishery is and how it is managed. The complex process integrates fish biology, food web and predator/prey relations, habitat needs, assessment of fish stock status, and socioeconomic needs of commercial fisherman and law enforcement issues. The real issue is how to manage such a wide range of things; many countries have set up a government-led department called a “Ministry of Fisheries” while other countries have jurisdiction over the parts of the ocean adjacent to their coast, otherwise known as an exclusive economic zone (EEZ), and therefore control fisheries within those EEZs. There have been four ways of management created which guide input and output, investments, and whether or not to function directly through limited entries and catch quotas or indirectly through vessel licensing and catching techniques (Cochrane 2002). An example of a management plan in action is the Fishery Management Plan for Fish Resources of the Arctic Management Area (Arctic FMP), approved in 2009 by the North Pacific Fishery Management Council (composed of 15 members appointed by the Secretary of Commerce) that prevents commercial fishing of finfish, molluscs, crustaceans and all other marine and plant life (North Pacific Fishery Management Council 2016).
To understand fisheries even more deeply, let’s look at a wide range of human and biophysical elements at play in Arctic fisheries. Policies that can influence Arctic fisheries are set mainly at an international and national level. For example, the five states surrounding the central Arctic Ocean–Canada, Denmark, Norway, Russia and the US–met on July 16th, 2015 to sign a declaration to prevent unregulated commercial fishing in the high seas central area of the Arctic Ocean (Department of State 2015). In addition, there are various technologies used by fishermen, including boats, nets and lines, and software tracking systems. In terms of the market, consumer demand for seafood largely controls the pressure to catch fish and the price at which it is sold. The businesses and companies that buy fish from fisheries and sell for a profit likewise contribute to the pressures and controls of the market. Central to the fishing industry are factory workers, the fisherman, and executives that oversee the operation. The issue of climate change introduces many other political actors and processes to Arctic fisheries. Between the anthropogenic emissions, climate activists, and international policies such as the European Emission Trading System (Ellerman and Buchner 2007), situating Arctic fisheries among these contentious negotiations and differing values further complicates the relationships between the markets, ecosystems, and people in an international arena. These key players impact the ability of Arctic fisheries to adapt to changes in the climate.
Arctic Char is one of the most abundant fish species in the Arctic, as well as Arctic Cod, American Eel, Atlantic Mackerel and Atlantic Salmon. A few decades ago, in Scotland, little was known about Arctic Char and even now, new populations are still being discovered. During the spring, Arctic Char live in freshwater ecosystems and migrate to saltwater ecosystems during the fall and winter (Reist et al.,2006). It is believed that about 258 lakes in Scotland held some form of Arctic Char, but that only 142 currently are present with at least 12 of those 258 now extinct. It’s also predicted that Sweden will lose 73% of its Arctic char population by 2100 (Hein et al. 2012). In Ireland, the population analysis of Arctic Char only reports 74 species. In 2004, 25 percent of those 74 were estimated as extinct (Maitland et al. 2007), while the status of about 20 others is wholly unknown. Some higher profile extinctions in Lake Owel and Lake Dan have made it clear that it’s necessary to assess and understand the techniques of their survival. Although no concrete answer as to why some species are going extinct was given, some possible ideas were suggested such as eutrophication, ocean acidification, the introduction of alien species to Arctic Char habitats, and exploitation. Climate change was also mentioned, in terms of rising sea levels and temperatures and changes in precipitation, wind and water circulation (Maitland et al. 2007).
By looking at human adaptations to climate change, we can gain insight as how to foster a way of thinking that creates a more resilient future for Arctic fisheries. During the 1990’s, the Inuvialuit people of the small community of Sachs Harbour in Canada’s Western Arctic observed climate-induced changes in their community and adapted to these changes through alteration of their fishing and hunting practices. They observed the shortened extent of the sea ice, the (more frequent and intense) weather events, decreased permafrost depth and increased soil erosion which affected where and when they could hunt and fish. The Inuvialuit people adjusted the timing of their seasonal calendar according to shorter and warmer springs and changing rates of melting ice and snow. More exposed ground and inconsistant snow conditions mean families must travel along coastal sea ice rather than on inland paths to get to viable fishing locations, posing a serious safety concern. ATVs and open water fishing techniques were also incorporated into their changing practices. Changing geographies and technologies in the Inuvialuit adaptation to climate impacts is useful for understanding how physical system changes impact human culture. This situated example may serve as a guide for analyzing community-level decision making and highlights the importance of indigenous people and their body of knowledge in the broader network of Arctic fisheries. (Berkes and Jolly 2002).
A third situated context is in the North Atlantic, near Iceland and the North Sea. Overexploitation set apart the Northeast Arctic cod stock, but management measures introduced in 1990 brought the stock of fish back to safe biological limits. The management measure found that the size of the spawning stock should be no less than 500,000 tons and that this goal could be reached through a rate of exploitation of around 17–30%, with fishing mortality rates at about 20-40%. Therefore, spawning stock size of 500, 000 tons would be the limit reference point and the mortality rate would be the target reference point. Northeast Arctic Cod are naturally found in the waters north of Norway and Russia. Within this context, Norway presents a management strategy for cod stock in the future. The main objectives focus on sustainable harvesting, increased profitability and the role of the fishery as employer of labor in rural districts. These objectives are fundamental in most of the world’s fishery nations. There are, of course, natural variations in cod stock and the biological and economic yield of the fish depends largely on the rate of exploitation. This context is a great example of how overfishing of fish populations can be analyzed and thought about through way of policy by the countries that most often consume the fish and use it within their economy as a source of jobs and income. There are many roads to look at when examining climate change and how the Arctic fishing industry is affected by climate change and overfishing and many different actors play a key role within climate change and Arctic fisheries (Nakken et al. 1996).
Bibliography
Berkes, Fikret. Jolly, Dyanna. 2002. “Adapting to Climate Change: Social-Ecological Resilience in a Canadian Western Arctic Community.” Conservation Ecology 5 (2): 1-15.
Buchner, K. Barbara. Denny A. Ellerman. 2007. “The European Union Emissions Trading Scheme: Origins, Allocation, and Early Results.” Review of Environmental Economics and Policy 1 (1): 66–87.
Cochrane, K.L. 2002. “A Fishery Manager’s Guidebook: Management Measures and their Application.” FAO Fisheries Technical Paper 424: 231p.
Department Of State. The Office of Website Management, Bureau of Public Affairs. 2015. “Arctic Nations Sign Declaration to Prevent Unregulated Fishing in the Central Arctic Ocean.” Press Release|Media Note. U.S. Department of State. July 16.
Hein, Catherine L., Gunnar Öhlund, and Göran Englund. 2012. “Future Distribution of Arctic Char Salvelinus Alpinus in Sweden under Climate Change: Effects of Temperature, Lake Size and Species Interactions.” AMBIO 41 (3): 303–12.
Magdalena, Muir A.K. 2010. “Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing in the Circumpolar Arctic.” Arctic 63 (3): 373–78
Maitland, P. S., I. J. Winfield, I. D. McCarthy, and F. Igoe. 2007. “The Status of Arctic Charr Salvelinus Alpinus in Britain and Ireland.” Ecology of Freshwater Fish 16 (1): 6–19.
Millerd, Frank. 2011. “Arctic Fisheries: Governance Challenges.” http://lcerpa.org/public/media/LCERPA_commentary_2011-01.pdf.
Nakken, Odd, Per Sandberg, and Steinshamn. 1996. “Reference Points for Optimal Fish Stock Management.” Marine Policy 20 (6): 447–62.
North Pacific Fishery Management Council. 2016. “Arctic Fishery Managment.” http://www.npfmc.org/arctic-fishery-management/.
Reist, James D., Frederick J. Wrona, Terry D. Prowse, Michael Power, J. Brian Dempson, Jacquelynne R. King, and Richard J. Beamish. 2006. “An Overview of Effects of Climate Change on Selected Arctic Freshwater and Anadromous Fishes.” Ambio 35 (7): 381–87.
Reist, James D., Frederick J. Wrona, Terry D. Prowse, J. Brian Dempson, Michael Power, Günter Köck, Theresa J. Carmichael, Chantelle D. Sawatzky, Hannu Lehtonen, and Ross F. Tallman. 2006. “Effects of Climate Change and UV Radiation on Fisheries for Arctic Freshwater and Anadromous Species.” Ambio 35 (7): 402–10.
Vylegzhanin, Alexander N. 2011. “The Contemporary Legal Framework of the Arctic Ocean: Are There Impacts of Diminishing Sea Ice?” Rivista Di Studi Politici Internazionali 78 (3 (311)): 379–91.
Questions
- Descriptive: Which aspects of climate change affect arctic fisheries? What climate policies (such as the Kyoto Protocol and the European Emission Trading System) are currently in place, and what is the future prognosis for Arctic climate? What are the dominant fish species in the arctic, and which are marketable by the fishing industry? What is the level of intensity with which those fish species are being caught? What are the current population trends of dominant arctic fish? How does an abundant or dwindling fish stock affect the surrounding oceanic ecosystem?
- Explanatory: How do our human actions exacerbate or alleviate current climate change? What incentives do different stakeholders have to either exploit or conserve fish resources?
- Evaluative: What would be the effect of overfishing on predator and prey relations? How effective is localized (i.e. in cities like Portland and counties like Multnomah) activism for climate change targeted at ocean issues, and who typically tends to participate in that activism? What are the possible consequences if we don’t reduce our emissions and continue to deplete our resources such as water, oil and coal? What are the problems or benefits of different fishing technology such as nets, lines, dredges, or trawls to catch fish?
- Instrumental: To what extent can selective consumer pressure affect fishing practices, fish populations and fishing regulations in the future? What fishing technology results in the best yields and least by-catch? What future climate policies could be used and/or created to secure a more stable future for arctic fisheries? What future policies regulating fisheries could be created to secure a more stable future?
Concentration courses
- ENVS 460 (Topics in Environmental Law and Policy, 4 credits), fall semester 2018. -My concentration relies heavily on understanding current and future climate change policies and fishery management policy, so understanding issues of environmental law, past and present, with greatly add to my knowledge and understanding of policy for my concentration.
- GEOL 270 (Issues in Oceanography, 5 credits), spring semester 2018. -Concentration focuses on ocean policies and processes of the ocean, and this course ties in those things, as well as many othe interesting and dynamic topics.
- GEOL 170 (Climate Science, 5 credits), fall semester 2017. -Concentration directly studies climate change, climate policies, implications of the climate and this course is studying all aspects of the climate and our world, so this course should prove very useful for me.
- HIST 261 (Global Environmental History, 4 credits), fall semester 2017. -Studying the relationship between humans and their environment from past to present will allow me to understand how we interact with our world and how those interactions shape and guide our choices when it comes to the oceans, fish and arctic fisheries possibly (relating the history to current interactions).
- BIO 114 (Origins of Life in the Universe, 4 credits), spring semester 2018. -Understanding the processes of life on Earth as it was created will give me an important understanding and base knowledge of how the oceans and our interactions with it began.
- Math 123 (Calculus and Statistics for Modeling the Life Sciences, 4 credits), fall semester 2018. -This course introduces students to foundational quantitative skills relevant to solving problems in the life sciences, which will greatly enrich my ability to interpret, work with and understand information I encounter working with climate change and Arctic fisheries
Arts and humanities courses
- PHIL 215 (Philosophy and the Environment, 4 credits). Pre-approved A&H course; no justification required.
- HIST 239 (Constructing the American Landscape, 4 credits) -Concentration looks at advocacy for Arctic fisheries, as well as examining all aspects of climate change. This course examines the social construction and make up of the world as we know it, and it seems as though it would add important dynamics to thinking through different perspectives for my concentration.