Abstract
Abstract Misund, O. A., and Olsen, E. 2013. .Lofoten–Vesterålen: for cod and cod fisheries, but not for oil? – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 70: 722–725. Over the last decade, the most controversial issue regarding the management of Norwegian marine waters has been about opening the Lofoten–Vesterålen areas for offshore oil and gas exploration. This paper outlines the political and management processes and reviews the arguments for and against. Our conclusion is that these valuable areas should not be opened for such activity because of their high biological significance as the main spawning grounds for northeast Arctic cod (Gadus morhua) and other important fish stocks in the northeast Arctic waters.
Highlights
In a recent interview with the Norwegian business newspaper, the chief executive officer (CEO) of TOTAL expressed scepticism about offshore oil exploration in areas off Lofoten –Vesteralen on the Norwegian continental shelf (Dagens Næringsliv, Norway, 1 December 2012)
A few days after the article in Dagens Næringsliv, the managing director of TOTAL, E&P Norway A/S explained that the CEO’s astonishing statements “were given in a global context” and added that TOTAL shared the viewpoint of other companies active in Norway—that there is a need for access to new areas for the offshore oil industry on the Norwegian continental shelf (Dagens Næringsliv, Norway, 5 December 2012)
Despite such good prospects for value creation and new jobs, the issue of opening the Lofoten – Vesteralen areas is so controversial that the Minister of Petroleum and Energy concluded that the areas would not be opened for offshore oil exploration by the present government
Summary
The most controversial issue regarding the management of Norwegian marine waters has been about opening the Lofoten – Vesteralen areas for offshore oil and gas exploration. This paper outlines the political and management processes and reviews the arguments for and against. Our conclusion is that these valuable areas should not be opened for such activity because of their high biological significance as the main spawning grounds for northeast Arctic cod (Gadus morhua) and other important fish stocks in the northeast Arctic waters.
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