As commercial fishing is becoming viable in the Central Arctic Ocean due to melting sea ice, over 2,000 scientists from 67 countries have banded together to urge the world governments to create an international agreement regulating fishing activity in this vulnerable area. The melting ice has opened up as much as 40% of the previously-inaccessible area, meaning that industrial fisheries could soon move in and begin operations in the region.

The scientists, who have gathered as part of the International Polar Year Conference taking place this week in Montreal, are asking for more time to study the fragile ecosystems of the region before any commercial fishing is allowed to begin. Over 60% of the participating scientists come from Canada, the U.S., Russia, Norway and Greenland/Denmark — countries that have an Arctic coast. The remaining 40% are scientists from the international community, spanning over 62 countries.

“We, the undersigned scientists, call on Arctic governments to take a lead in developing an international agreement to address fisheries in the central Arctic Ocean, based on sound scientific and precautionary principles, and starting with a catch level of zero as a reflection of the state of understanding of the fisheries ecology of the region,” they wrote in an open letter released through the Pew Environmental Group.

Photo by Nick Russill: Flickr

Tags: arctic fish habitat, arctic fisheries

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