Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke has approved the plan in August which establishes an orderly process to consider requests to develop fisheries in the Arctic. NOAA said that the plan provides time for science to catch up to changing Arctic conditions, specifically global warming and the loss of sea ice. Chris Krenz, Arctic project manager for conservation group Oceana, told that they need a rush of scientists into the Arctic, not an armada of cargo ships, oil platforms and fishing trawlers.
The North Pacific Fishery Management Council started looking at management options for the Arctic three years ago. It was feared that the loss of sea ice would open up areas of the Arctic where previously there had been no commercial fishing. The council ultimately decided to take a proactive, precautionary approach. It voted to prohibit commercial fishing until more is known about the Arctic marine environment.
As for plan it governs commercial fishing for all stocks of finfish and shellfish in federal waters, except Pacific salmon and Pacific halibut because they are managed under other authorities. The plan does not affect fisheries for salmon, whitefish and shellfish in Alaskan waters near the Arctic shore. It does not affect subsistence fishing and hunting in the Arctic. It is obvious that the plan will prohibit industrial fishing in nearly 200,000 square miles of U.S. waters in the Beaufort and Chukchi seas. Dave Benton, the alliance’s executive director, said other nations are interested in exploring the potential of the central Arctic for fishing, and having the United States in a leadership role and closing commercial fisheries north of the Bering Strait sets a good example.
