Norway

IWC 2009 - whale conservation bloc not playing its hand

Posted by jossc — 24 June 2009 at 2:02pm - Comments

Sara Holden, our International whales campaign coordinator, blogs from the 61st International Whaling Conference in Madeira, Portugal. Even though for the first time in years the anti-whaling nations have a decent majority on the IWC, genuine protection for whales still remains low on the agenda.

As metaphors go, how about this? The IWC meeting is being held in a casino - and anyone betting on a good outcome for the whales would be unlikely to win. Equally aprt, just a few minutes before the opening of the 61st International Whaling Commission meeting, a large rat was seen scuttling through the hotel and out the door. Not a bad illustration of what's going on here.

Article tagged as: cetaceans, iceland, IWC, japan, norway, oceans, whale sanctuaries, whales, whaling

Corals in deep trouble

Posted by Willie — 24 March 2009 at 11:28am - Comments

Rainbow Warrior documenting cold coral formations off the Norwegian coast, March 2009

Rainbow Warrior documenting cold coral formations off the Norwegian coast

To most people, the word 'coral' conjures up images of clear, shallow tropical seas, glistening white sandy beaches beneath a blazing sun, and an array of colourful fish that would resemble the cast of Finding Nemo. Sun-drenched places like the Great Barrier Reef in Australia immediately spring to mind.

Article tagged as: coral reefs, EU fisheries, norway, rainbow warrior

Not quite the cod wars

Posted by Willie — 8 December 2008 at 6:02pm - Comments

The Norwegian coastguard captured this footage of the Prolific discarding up to 80% of its catch of endangered fish

Norwegian coastguards filmed this UK trawler discarding 80% of its catch of endangered fish just outside Norwegian waters earlier this year

Every year the EU and Norway get together to agree how to share out fishing quotas in their adjacent waters (remember, Norway is not a member of the EU, and has it's own exclusive fishing zone, unlike EU countries). They are gathering this week, and it always happens before the annual quota-haggling meeting of the EU Council in Brussels, where the EU decide and divide on quotas for fish in EU waters.

Usually they do their best to ignore scientific advice, and amazingly all of the fisheries ministers seem to manage to go back home claiming to have won a 'good deal' for their respective fishing industries.

Article tagged as: common fisheries policy, discards, EU, norway, quota

World's whales and dolphins may face growing sonic threat

Posted by Willie — 12 June 2008 at 2:06pm - Comments

A dead dolphin - the victim of bycatch - lying on a beach

In Chile, the world's scientists are already meeting in advance of the 60th International Whaling Commission (IWC), which will be held there in late June. At this time of year, the eyes of the world turn to the deadlocked struggle between pro-conservation and pro-whaling countries as they clash over the future of whaling at the IWC meetings. And recent events have not been going well for the whalers - in recent weeks we have seen just how desperate the pro-whaling nations are to play down not only the recent scandal of stolen whale meat in Japan, but also the saga of exporting whale meat from Iceland and Norway. Both stories highlight the extent to which the whalers are routinely flouting not only international opinion but also the global ban on commercial whaling and the trading of whale meat.

Article tagged as: cetaceans, chile, cornwall, dolphins, iceland, IWC, japan, madagascar, norway, oceans, whales

At last some action on bottom trawling

Posted by jossc — 9 May 2008 at 4:05pm - Comments

Very few orange roughy and a lot of bycatch, including several seastars, urchins, and numerous unwanted fish, in the net of the New Zealand deep sea trawler Recovery II in international waters in the Tasman Sea.

Bottom trawling, possibly the most destructive fishing method yet devised by man, is to be regulated across the whole North Atlantic ocean. The process, which involves dragging nets weight down by metal girders across the seabed, is notorious for its wastefulness. Besides legitimate target species such as cod, plaice and sole, vast quantities of corals, sponges and other deep sea creatures are destroyed as bycatch. The devastation caused is so great that Greenpeace has been calling for some time for a moritorium (suspension of activity) on bottom trawling. Now it looks as though some progress may be being made.

Article tagged as: bottom trawling, canada, coral reefs, destructive fishing, EU, iceland, NAFO, norway, russia, UN

Seafood giants join forces to combat pirate fishing in the Barents Sea

Posted by jossc — 31 May 2007 at 3:06pm - Comments

September 2005: Greenpeace activists disrupt the IUU fishing activities of the factory trawler 'Murtosa' in the Barents Sea

September 2005: Greenpeace activists disrupt the IUU fishing activities of the factory trawler 'Murtosa' in the Barents Sea

If you've been following our oceans campaign over the past year or so, you'll know that many fish stocks around the world are in a dangerously depleted state. And while we've had some success here in the UK persuading major retail chains to take a responsible attitude about where the seafood they sell comes from, far too many of the fish we eat still come from unsustainable sources - either from destructive and wasteful fishing methods like beam trawling, or from illegal 'pirate' fishing.

Article tagged as: barents sea, cod, haddock, IUU, norway, oceans, pirate fishing, sustainable seafood

It's quite simple: stop battering cod

Posted by jossc — 2 May 2007 at 11:02am - Comments

Follow the crew of the Arctic Sunrise on their campaign for Marine Reserves in our North Sea Tour blog

The Arctic Sunrise is currently in Bergen, on the west coast of Norway, to stock up on essential supplies and for some crew changeovers. I'm one of a five-strong contingent from the Greenpeace UK office who arrived here late on Sunday night after a 30-hour ferry trip from Newcastle and I'll be your webmaster for the second half of our North Sea Marine Reserves Tour.

Article tagged as: arctic sunrise, cod, marine reserves, north sea, norway, oceans

Setting sail from Norway

Posted by Willie — 2 May 2007 at 10:47am - Comments

Follow the crew of the Arctic Sunrise on their campaign for Marine Reserves in our North Sea Tour blog

It's half past eight at night, and we've just left Bergen. It's still shorts and t-shirt weather on the deck of the Arctic Sunrise, and many of the crew are out enjoying the scenery as we pass snow-capped mountains en route back to the North Sea.

Article tagged as: arctic sunrise, cod, marine reserves, north sea, norway, oceans
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