Environment & climate
Fish stocks and climate have been well studied in the Nordic Seas, and much Nordic cooperation has been conducted over the years. However, the expected effects of climate change calls for developing new approaches. The CLIFFIMA network has drawn on existing Nordic competence to drive a truly multidisciplinary approach towards studying and preparing for the challenges that will face fisheries in the future
Climate change and fish – a changing world
The warming of the Earth to historically high temperatures now appears to be inevitable. Although the effects of climate variability are actually very well studied, the conditions expected in the near future will put previously unseen pressures on biological and societal systems, the outcomes of which will be difficult to predict given the already complex nature of these systems.
different countries in order to create a platform from which existing competence within the Nordic countries can cooperate on the challenges that now face the fishing industry due to climate change. “We have brought together an extremely diverse and multidisciplinary group of people, ranging from oceanographers and biologists to economists and social scientists,” says Jan Erik Stiansen, senior
“During the cold period of the 1960s, the mackerel was mainly confined to the North Sea and to the west of the British Isles, but today they can be found as far north and east as Svalbard and the Barents Sea” Fishing has long been one of the most
important industries in the Nordic countries in terms of both employment and as a source of food. Climate change is likely to have a profound effect on fish populations and fisheries, and so preparing for and managing the consequences of these changes will be a highly challenging and important task in the coming years. A NordForsk sponsored network called
CLIFFIMA — Climate impact on fish, fishery industry and management in the Nordic Seas — has brought together experts from 13 institutions in five
www.projectsmagazine.eu.com
Measuring climate’s impact on fish The network consists of a core group that carries out the primary work to meet the main objectives of CLIFFIMA, and an extended group that participates in meetings, seminars and conferences. The central node of the network has been the development of an ecosystem spatial database that contains data on temperature, salinity, fish abundance and distribution, commercial catch and more. The database aids
the analysis of climate-fish
relationships. As part of this work, methods and standards for digitisation of old data were and initiated and systems for data storing and exchange were developed. These tools are now available to use online.
The politics of fishing The
high-latitude
scientist at Norway’s Institute of Marine Research (IMR) and project leader. The multinational aspect of the network
is of great importance. Fisheries in the high seas typically span vast areas that cover several national exclusive economic zones, and the responsibility for managing them is often shared between countries. It is only appropriate then that in a network such as this that participants from Denmark, Norway, Iceland, Greenland and the Faroe Islands are included, as well as guests from Russia, Canada and the USA
Northeast Atlantic
covered by the network contains some of the most prominent examples in the world of how climate change is impacting marine ecosystems. This has caused problems in terms of fishery management; fish are not guided by national boundaries but rather by environmental factors, and recent movement of mackerel from EU waters into the Faroe Islands and Icelandic areas has caused disputes – just one example of how climate change and climate variability can cause changes in fish behaviour and thus have socioeconomic consequences.
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