Fishing Access
Fleets of large factory processors range the world for protein sources. For example, factory trawlers from east Asian ports travel 12,000 kilometers (7,500 miles) to catch krill near Antarctica. Yet international waters of the Central Arctic Ocean that were ice-free in September 2012 are only 8,000 kilometers (5,000 miles) from those ports. Without a new international fisheries agreement for the Central Arctic Ocean, there are no legal impediments to fishing there.
Roughly 40 percent of the region that was ice-free in 2012 consisted of continental shelves, margins and ridges where fish are likely to be found and where species from sub-polar seas may shift.
In 2012 more than three-quarters of the Russian maritime boundary, almost one-third of the Canadian maritime boundary, 22 percent of the Norwegian boundary, and 100 percent of the US maritime boundary were ice free. Ice is still present on Greenland's maritime boundary
VIDEO: Protecting Fisheries in the Central Arctic Ocean
Why should Arctic coastal countries work together to develop a fisheries agreement to protect the international waters of the Central Arctic Ocean?
Connect with Us
Get email updates on the latest news and actions we are taking to protect the Arctic
Languages
A Closer Look at the Central Arctic Ocean
Read about why a fisheries accord is needed to protect the international waters of the Central Arctic Ocean.
Download PDF of booklet »Read about why research is needed to assess the biological productivity of the Central Arctic Ocean.
Download PDF of booklet »