INCHEON, KOREA—The third Conference of Parties (COP) of the Central Arctic Ocean Fisheries Agreement (CAOFA) concluded this week in Incheon, Korea, marking a significant step forward in the protection of one of the planet’s most vulnerable marine environments.

The CAOFA is an international accord signed by nine countries and the European Union to prevent unregulated fishing in the high seas portion of the Central Arctic Ocean. It is designed to proactively protect a highly sensitive and poorly understood marine environment by gathering scientific and Indigenous knowledge about the region and understanding how it is being impacted by climate change before any exploratory fishing takes place.

Currently, no fishing is permitted in the Central Arctic Ocean, with the Agreement committing to no commercial fishing until at least 2037. The primary focus of this COP meeting was to adopt an Exploratory Fisheries Protocol, as the text of the Agreement required this to be agreed upon within three years of the Agreement coming into force.

There is a pressing need to establish robust enforcement and accountability measures governing any exploratory fishing in the Central Arctic Ocean, ensuring it is conducted solely for scientific purposes and does not disrupt vulnerable marine ecosystems. Parties were not able to agree to a set of Conservation Management Measures at this meeting.

“Despite efforts to pass a comprehensive Exploratory Fisheries Protocol, several outstanding issues remain,” said Susanna Fuller, VP of Conservation and Projects at Oceans North and a delegate at the meeting. “Given the lack of information and the need for an abundance of caution before any fishing occurs, we are glad to see that countries resolved to take the time to get it right.”

Parties did pass a measure meeting the terms of the Agreement, stating that no exploratory fishing would be permitted until full conservation and management measures are established. They committed to completing work on defining those measures by the next COP in 2025.

In April 2024, a detailed science implementation plan was agreed upon, setting out a comprehensive body of work to be completed that would inform the specifics of any exploratory fishing. This includes mapping key ecosystems, identifying vulnerable and sensitive habitats, and collecting Indigenous knowledge, as required by the Agreement.

Less disruptive methods of studying ocean ecosystems exist and can help preserve fragile ecosystems, avoiding the bycatch and habitat destruction often associated with exploratory fishing. These methods provide accurate and comprehensive data on biodiversity and ecosystem health, facilitating better-informed conservation and management decisions while safeguarding marine biodiversity.

“It’s encouraging to see broad consensus and belief by the Parties in the spirit of the CAOFA, that this sensitive ecosystem must be understood before industrial activity can take place here. It is so rare we have the opportunity to proactively protect an entire ecosystem,” added Fuller.

For more information, please contact:

Alex Tesar
Communications Manager
Oceans North
[email protected]