Summary: Conference on Fisheries Management & Climate Change in the NE Atlantic and the Baltic Sea

It is important to arrange this seminar on climate change to identify the need for knowledge and the views and suggestions concerning how to cope with some of the upcoming challenges. 

The questions that need to be answered are: What must we prepare for and what can be done? 

It is difficult to sum up impressions from this seminar. There have been many interesting subjects. However, most presentations were from the Nordic countries and Norway. More contributions from the EU and the southern part of the North Atlantic would have been welcomed. 

We have discussed many important issues, but perhaps the most important issue in years to come has not been discussed at this conference – the impact of human beings:

• The growth in human population
• The increased need for food
• The increase in demand for and use of fossil fuels  

What extra dimensions are added? How can we deal with this problem?  

The history of marine resource management started at the end of the last long decadal low temperature period and has therefore developed during a period of increased warming of our sea areas. Constant historical fluctuations in temperature have demonstrated that we and our ecosystem, until now, have been able to adapt to changes. 

However, there are several new parameters we have not experienced before. The unexpected increase in temperature the last decade, the evident influence observed in the Arctic and the decrease in sea ice in the area give rise to concern.   

The crucial questions are:

• For how long will we remain within what is historically normal?
• Will we experience shifts, “tipping points” beyond our knowledge?
• How can we cope with changes when we lack historical reference points?  

To deal with this problem we must use and extend the need of a precautionary approach to protect the environment from depletion of living resources and the increase in greenhouse gases.    

How can the industry contribute to cut emissions?  

There is one arena for competition and another for cooperation. To operate in the same arena for competition, we need to develop common global regulations, taxes and subsidies on emissions.  

In the arena for cooperation we must develop a comprehensive economic policy in the North Atlantic states to develop common goals and design common policy instruments. We must emphasise regional cooperation and find a system for best practise. This will be crucial in order to reduce emissions. 

It is also requires regional and global scientific cooperation through common agreements, research programmes and management systems than can handle the coming changes.

ICES is a vital part of our management system. The question is whether this system is adequate for the upcoming management challenges. I think so. But - there must be a closer cooperation between the national management systems, the industry and ICES. This will make us better. 

This must be discussed in months to come in negotiations with the Nordic countries, the EU and the Russians. 

Finally what are the knowledge requirements? To identify the upcoming changes we must intensify monitoring of the oceans. Not only the living resources. The need for oceanographic data is also crucial - nationally, regionally and globally.  

Policies should respond to knowledge and thereby define the needs for new knowledge. 

The purpose of this seminar was to identify challenges. My reflections these days have been:

“Interesting presentations that need to be used in our everyday thinking”.