Management of shared and straddling fish stocks, biological diversity and climate change: A perspective on the legal regime of the cooperation in the Barents Sea.

Abstract

The Barents Sea is one of the world’s most productive oceans, and is home to at least 20 million nesting seabirds during the summer time. The Barents Sea is also inhabited by 21 species of marine mammals and is an important feeding ground for a range of large whales. This ocean is important both as a spawning area for a number of important fish species, and is also a very important harvesting area for the Norwegian and the Russian fishing industry, and the people living by the coast of the two countries. The major commercial fisheries in the Barents Sea target cod, haddock and saithe (ground fisheries) and Norwegian spring- spawning herring, capelin and blue whiting (pelagic fisheries). The harvesting is predominated by Russia and Norway, and the two countries have three main shared stocks, namely: cod, haddock and capelin. The most important of these fish stocks (commercially) is the Arcto- Norwegian Cod stock.

A new study by Norwegian marine scientists shows that the Barents Sea is heating up much faster than previously thought. The reason is a rapid climate change that has not been seen since the last ice age. An important part of the Arctic is transitioning to the Atlantic climate. An ice free Barents Sea, also in the north, affects social sectors such as fisheries, management, petroleum, tourism and research. Commercial fish stocks may be more prevalent, and marine scientists have shown that southern fish species such as cod already occupy the northern Barents Sea. But, a completely ice free Barents Sea, without Arctic water, can also have unfortunate consequences. As the southern species of fish come further north, this leads to increased competition for the Arctic species. How this will affect the entire ecosystem including the commercial species is not known.

In addition to the climate change effects of the Barents Sea there are other stressors to the marine environment in the area such as fisheries, oil and gas exploitation, pollution, etc. and issues of governance in the Barents Sea involve growing needs for improved mechanisms to address the interplay among various elements of the complex of sectoral regimes applicable to the region and for sharpness in responding to rapid changes in the conditions prevailing in the environment of the Barents Sea.

The questions that my thesis rises revolves around is the legal cooperation on shared and straddling fish stocks, biological diversity and climate change impacts in the Barents Sea, and how Russia and Norway is fulfilling their obligations to protect and preserve the marine environment in the Barents Sea. The main question in connection with this is if the cooperation is sufficient enough to handle the challenges the Barents Sea is facing, both now and in the future.