Changing climate changes Barents Sea
A warmer climate might seriously change the eco-system of the Barents Sea, a new Norwegian research report concludes. Less sea ice will open new areas for petroleum activities, shipping and commercial fishing, while ice-dependent animals will face a battle for survival.
The Barents Sea has over the last few years been ice-free in summer. In the course of the next decades, the area might be ice-free also in winter, the researchers say.
The report written by the Norwegian Marine Research Institute and the Norwegian Polar Institute sums up existing knowledge on today’s and the future climate situation in the Barents Sea, including effects on the eco-system, business and society.
The spawning grounds outside Lofoten have already been replaced by new areas further north. The researchers believe the cod still will have northern Norway as its primary spawning areas. However, the haddock might move further north to the Novaya Zemlya, Spitsbergen and Franz Josef Land, the report reads. The report is written by a working group of experts working as part of the Norwegian NorACIA programme.
The report is a consequence of the Norwegian government’s wish to get an exclusive report on the consequences of climate change in the Barents Sea, a press release from the Marine Research Institute reads.
Read the report here (in Norwegian)
