News archive

Lis Jørgensen, Gunnstein Bakke and Alf Håkon Hoel have published a paper in the journal Progress in Oceanography. The paper is titled “Responding to global warming: New fisheries management measures in the Arctic”.

The paper discusses the cooperation between the Institute of Marine Research (IMR) and the Directorate of Fisheries in Norway in responding to a request from the Ministry of Fisheries for improved management measures for fisheries in the Arctic.

Due to climate driven loss of sea ice, new areas have become accessible to fishing vessels, and it is important to ensure that valuable biodiversity is not negatively affected by bottom fishing gear such as trawls. The IMR has conducted annual ecosystem surveys in the Barents Sea since 2004, and for more than a decade those surveys have also included sampling of benthic biota, resulting in a unique information base on vulnerable habitats. The Fisheries Directorate has created map-based tools for identifying these areas.

“A key finding here is that cost-efficient, large-scale mapping and monitoring of seabed ecosystems is important for the development of area-based regulations of fishing activities.” (Jørgensen, Bakke and Hoel, 2020)

Following up on a 2011 regulation that introduced a preliminary ban on fishing with bottom gear in deep waters (below 1000 meters), the amended regulation for Norway´s northernmost seas in areas around Svalbard also applies in shallower waters. However, no fishers have applied for permission to fish in the 10 years since the first regulation was adopted, so the “preliminary” ban seems to be rather permanent. More than 440.000 km2 is now subject to preliminary protection, and more than 3000 km2 is permanently protected.

In a wider perspective, the measures discussed here constitutes “other effective area-based measures” (OECMs) that are one of the mechanisms that can be used to meet the Aichi targets of conservation of 10% of the oceans by 2020.

The paper is available from Science Direct.

MARA has recently been involved in the project “The GATOR method”. The project has developed resources to support student learning in qualitative and quantitative methods (including GIS), and is a collaboration between the Department of Social Sciences and the Norwegian College of Fishery Science at UiT.

The project aims to support student learning, and inspire students to use qualitative and quantitative methods. In 2020, the project has published two open access datasets about COVID and other social and economic indicators (municipal and country level), made a podcast series (MARA member Kari participates in episode 6), made teaching videos in statistics and GIS (will be made available on Youtube spring 2021), and won the education award at the Faculty of Humanities, Social Sciences and Education.

MARA members affiliated with the project are associate professor Keshav Prasad Paudel, associate professor Signe Annie Sønvisen, PhD candidate Kari Elida Eriksen and research assistant Silje Steinsbø.

Resources

• Aarskog, K.N. (2021) Bruker koronadata for å gjøre statistikk spennende. Available from: https://uit.no/nyheter/artikkel?p_document_id=714226 (Hentet: 2021-01-13)
• Haugseth, T.M. (2020) Jonas Stein fikk ærespris for formidling. Available from: https://en.uit.no/nyheter/artikkel?p_document_id=712407
• Solvang, Ø.; Eriksen, K.E.; Stein, J.; Brattland, C. (2020) "Covid-19 Country Level Social Science Dataset". V2. Available from: https://doi.org/10.18710/VMUP44.
• Solvang, Ø.; Stein, J.; Brattland, C. (2020), "Covid-19 Municipal Level (Norway) Social Science Dataset". V2. Available from: https://doi.org/10.18710/NMKI2B.
• The Stein Rokkan Research Lab for Quantitative Social and Political Science (06.10.20) “Gators metode” – en ressurs for å støtte studenters læring om kvantitativ metode. Available from: https://site.uit.no/rokkangruppen/2020/10/06/nye-ressurser-for-studenter-som-vil-laere-seg-kvantitativ-metode/
• The Stein Rokkan Research Group for Quantitative Social and Political Science. Available from: https://dataverse.no/dataverse/rokkan
• UiT Norges arktiske universitet (n.d.) Gators metode. Podcast-spilleliste. Available from: https://soundcloud.com/uitpodcast/sets/gators-metode

MARA has a new open access publication in the Journal of Environmental Planning and Management. The paper describes the changing relationship between government and industry in the regulation of offshore waste from oil and gas activities in Norway.

Drilling waste was not a matter of concern in the early years of petroleum activity on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. Waste matter such as drill cuttings, drilling mud and produced water was discharged to sea without any form of regulation. This changed immensely from the late 1970s to the early 2000s. The article provides a detailed historical overview of how offshore waste became an increasingly complex governance object, through four phases of government-industry collaboration.

“The leading role of the industry presupposes high levels of expertise on environmental effects, but also requires that the controlling government agencies possess similar knowledge to audit the companies.”

The paper shows that the involvement of the industry has been vital in establishing more environmentally friendly practices. The increasingly leading role of the industry toward the fourth phase presupposes high levels of expertise on environmental effects, but it also requires that the controlling government agencies possess similar knowledge to audit the companies. Here, the authors argue, lies a weakness of the system: government agencies have fewer resources to maintain the level of expertise compared to capital-intensive industry partners.

“The paper is relevant for academics, industry and policy actors working in this field.”

The paper shares relevant reflections about strengths and weaknesses of active industry involvement in environmental governance and is relevant for academics, industry and policy actors working in this field.

The work was part of the Barents Sea Drill Cuttings Research Initiative (BARCUT) project, funded by Vår Energi (former Eni Norway). Vår Energi was not involved in conducting this research or the analyses in this paper. The paper is co-authored by Maaike Knol-Kauffman, Ann-Magnhild Solås (former MARA, currently employed at Nofima) and Peter Arbo.

MARA supervises a number of master students every year. Here is a presentation of this year’s graduates.

Ida Marie Jensen: Conflict management in the coastal zone - a study of conflicts of interests in the coastal zone in Karlsøy municipality

Ida has studied the planning process and conflicts of interest in the coastal zone in Karlsøy municipality. The aim of the thesis is to gain insight into the background of the conflict, how differing (different?) interests are balanced in the planning process, and how coastal zone planning secures legitimacy. The main findings are that overlapping use of areas causes conflict, and balance and legitimacy depend on the actors’ perceptions of the planning process.

Supervisor: Bjørn-Petter Finstad

Joshua Nyarko Boampong: An Assessment of Land use/landcover and Shoreline Changes in the Coastal zone of Greater Accra region, Ghana

The main objective of Joshua’s research is to assess coastal transformations of the coast of Greater Accra region of Ghana using GIS and remote sensing. He studies three parameters: shoreline changes, land use changes and landcover changes. Joshua’s results show that the average rate of shoreline retreat is 4.66 m/year, with major retreats occurring on the eastern coast of the region between 1986 and 2018. Significant decrease in landcover (vegetation) is observed in areas closer to the coast of Greater Accra, but mangrove areas in the region have remained stable between 1996 and 2017. His map of mangrove areas is one of the first detailed mangrove maps for this area. Further, his research shows that built-up areas have increased close to the coast of Greater Accra between 1669 and 2017, spread to the center and peri-urban areas, to occupy previously vegetated areas of the land between. The methodology of the research shows that freely available spatial data can be useful for coastal research in data poor countries.

Supervisor: Keshav Prasad Paudel and Kari Elida Eriksen

Kolbrún María Elfarsdóttir: The Atlantic mackerel (Scomber scombrus) conflict in the Northeast Atlantic

Kolbrún‘s thesis studies the Atlantic mackerel (Scomber scombrus) conflict in the Northeast Atlantic with focus on the Icelandic perspective. She focuses on international negotiations and negotiations within the North-East Atlantic Fisheries Commission (NEAFC), what criteria of quota allocation is discussed and how they are valued. Kolbrún’s main findings are that the criteria of allocation discussed are the same in the international negotiations and within NEAFC, and according to the legal framework in UNCLOS and UNFSA. Her study also shows that Iceland has strong influential interest groups that seem to put constraints on the international negotiations.

Supervisor: Alf Håkon Hoel

Rósa Olsen: Recruitment of fishers in The Faroe Islands. A study of recruitment systems and mechanisms in the Faroese fishing fleet

Rosa studies recruitment to fisheries in the Faroe Islands. Her results show that recruitment to fisheries in the Faroe Islands partly happens through the skippers’ personal networks, partly through socialisation in the local community, and partly through other networks. The different vessel groups in the Faroe Islands recruit fishers differently, and the larger vessels recruit from the whole country. A decent income seems to be an important factor, but Rosa’s results also indicate that it is important to develop an interest for fisheries through the local community. As in other fishing nations around the North Atlantic, specialisation and rationalisation of the fishing fleets weaken the ties between the fisheries and local communities. Weaker ties between fisheries and local communities may have negative impact on future recruitment of fishers.

Supervisors: Signe A. Sønvisen and Jahn Petter Johnsen

Runar Hansen: What affects large coastal vessels’ choice of landing port? A study of relations and affiliation to local communities

Runar has studies what factors may affect where large coastal vessels land their catch. His research shows that there is no single factor (like the price of one species of fish) that determines where vessels choose to land. It depends on fish abundancy, when the season is, and the vessel’s total quotas in different fisheries. Hence, the choice about where to land is a trade-off between several factors. Furthermore, relations between buyer and seller, as well as ties to the local community, plays an important role.

Supervisor: Jahn Petter Johnsen

Sofie Krogh Rasmussen: Recruitment to fisheries in Lebesby Municipality. How has the regulatory system affected employment in fisheries in a local community in Lebesby?

Sofie has studied recruitment to fisheries in Lebesby municipality in Troms and Finnmark county. Lebesby is one of the municipalities that has had growth in the number of fishers. Sofie’s research shows that recruitment to fisheries still happens through local communities and through primary socialisation. In contrast to before, today there is a higher consciousness about how the school and education can contribute to develop interest for the fisheries. Due to quota prices, it is challenging for younger fishers to establish themselves in the closed and permitted fisheries, but a king crab quota and a coastal fisheries quota for smaller vessels without permits, together with support from a fisheries fund make it possible for young people to establish themselves as fishers in the open group. The fishing fleet in Lebesby consists today mostly of smaller vessel, fishing without permits. The opportunities in this vessel group have contributed to the growth in the number of fishers.

Supervisor: Jahn Petter Johnsen

Trude Elisabeth Martinsen Knutsen: In the same boat - an study of the organizational process in The Norwegian Fishermen’s Association

Trude’s thesis is a study of the latest organizational process in The Norwegian Fishermen’s Association. The aim is to gain understanding of the process and why it did not result in organizational changes. The main discovery is that the structure of the organization prevents change and development. Trude also uncovers a number of other supporting causes for how the process ended without success, as well as experiences the organization might make use of in the future.

Supervisor: Bjørn-Petter Finstad

Vetle L. Ommundsen: Mapping and spatial analysis of change in fishing behaviour in the Barents sea 2011-2018

Vetle uses Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and hotspot analysis to map spatial and temporal variations in fishing behaviour for trawl and longline fishing vessels in the Barents Sea in the period from 2011 to 2018. The study is based on VMS and logbook data from Norwegian fishing vessels. In his results, Vetle finds huge variations in the fishing behaviours of the two gear groups and fish species, depending on season and year. He also finds that the mobility of the fishing fleet is connected to seabed and topography.

Supervisor: Keshav Prasad Paudel

Andrea Asplund: A visitor that has come to stay? The case of pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) in Norway

Supervisor: Alf Håkon Hoel

Grethe Lilleng

Supervisor: Signe Annie Sønvisen

Joakim Berntsen: Markedsadgang for atlantisk laks fra Chile til USA

Supervisor: Alf Håkon Hoel

Kristoffer Andreassen: EUs markedsadgang for fisk og sjømat til Japan og Sør-Korea

Supervisor: Alf Håkon Hoel

Congratulations to all our candidates, and we wish you the best in the future!

The PRISMAS project, led by Maaike Knol-Kauffman, recently started up. Here, Maaike writes about the aim and scope of the project:

It is in the polar areas that marine systems are most drastically affected by climate change. As a consequence of climate change, new and remote areas are becoming accessible to us, leading to increased maritime traffic, and a stretching and surpassing of limits in terms of maritime operational seasons and areas, as well as in entrepreneurial initiatives. This raises strong concerns about Search and Rescue and emergency response capacities. The increase in maritime activity also puts pressure on the improvement of Arctic weather and sea ice forecasting services.

In PRISMAS, a team of social and natural scientists from the University of Tromsø, the University Centre in Svalbard and the Norwegian Meteorological Institute will study the dynamics of maritime activities around Svalbard with the aim to deliver policy-relevant knowledge to provide guidance for mitigating risk and enhancing safe navigation.

We will do so by:

1. Providing a comprehensive understanding of past and projected change
2. Developing a holistic overview of safety and preparedness capacities in Svalbard waters, and analyze the extent to which these are efficiently supported by forecasting infrastructures; and
3. Assessing risks related to navigating in Svalbard waters through performing predictability studies on hazardous ice and temperature conditions.

Read more about the backdrop for PRISMAS in this opinion piece in Nordnorsk debatt and The Fram Centre (in Norwegian).

Participants from MARA include project leader Maaike Knol-Kauffman and Peter Arbo. The project will run from April 2020 to December 2022.

Professor Petter Holm has won the 2020 UiT Education Award for his long engagement with educational quality at UiT. Petter has worked with education at The Faculty of Biosciences, Fisheries and Economics, the Result centre at UiT, and at The Norwegian College of Fishery Science (NFCS).  Petter led the SIMFISH project, which has been an important part of integrating game-based learning at NFCS.

A more comprehensive overview of Petters educational engagement can be read in this Norwegian article on the UiT website.

Mara staff is involved in projects around the world. Professor Jahn Petter Johnsen has recently visited Memorial University of Newfoundland (MUN) where he and associate professor Signe Sønvisen are involved in a project about recruitment and retention in the fisheries sector.

This is a part of the Ocean Frontier Institute (OFI) where The Norwegian College of Fishery Science is a partner. In addition to the work with the project Johnsen also gave a talk on Norwegian aquaculture to researchers at MUN/OFI. 

Johnsen with some of his audience. From left Dr. Barbara Neis (MUN)  Dr.Edgar McGuinness (NTNU), Dr. Jahn Petter Johnsen (UiT), Mina Bjerke Kleiv (UiT, exchange student at MUN) and Dr. Joel Finnis (MUN).

On the 27th-28th of January, MARA had visitors from Indonesia in relation to the project Sustainable Marine Aquaculture Development in Indonesia (SMADI).

Indonesia is the second largest aquaculture producer in the world (after China). The country has a several thousand years of experience with freshwater and brackish water aquaculture, and long experience with multi-trophic aquaculture. The SMADI project aims to contribute to increase production of marine fish through establishment of sustainable marine aquaculture production and industry.

From the 27th to 31st of January, a delegation from the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries (MMFA) in Indonesia visited Norway. The visit included a visit to NCFS where Jahn Petter, Bjørn and Signe introduced the Norwegian coastal zone planning and management; as well as the possibilities and challenges in Norwegian aquaculture. In Tromsø, they also met with the County Council, the Directorate of Fisheries and SINTEF.

We thank the delegation for their visit, and look forward to further cooperation!

The delegation consisted of: Erna Yuniarsih (MMFA), Adi Geraldi (MMFA), Lazuardi F. Nizar (MMFA), Akhmad Suuri (MMFA), Rahima (Norwegian Embassy, Jakarta).

Bjørn Hersoug, Erna Yuniarsih, Adi Geraldi, Lazuardi F. Nizar, Akhmad Suuri and Rahima. Photo: Signe Annie Sønvisen

The project is financed by the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Jakarta (see also their Instagram account).

February 20, 2020

MARA participated at Arctic Frontiers this year, at three sessions.

Maaike-Knol Kauffman and Jelmer Jeuring gave the presentation

“Weather and sea ice services in the European Arctic: Using a participatory mapping approach to understanding maritime users’ knowledge and information needs”

The presentation was a part of the Salienseas-project, and presents their newest research on the same topic.

Photo: Alexandra Stocker (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)

Maaike and her former master student Alexandra Stocker presented Alexandra’s master thesis in the presentation

«Sea Ice Variability: Implications for the Development of Maritime Activities around Svalbard»

Photo: Maaike Knol-Kauffman (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)

Finally, Alf Håkon Hoel partook in organizing the panel

 “Arctic Resilience Side Event and Panel - Convened by Joel Clement and Alf Håkon Hoel”

And participated in a panel in

“Sustainable Fisheries Management - Organised by Marit Reigstad and Alf Hakon Hoel, UiT – the Arctic University of Norway”

Photo: Nathan Mertz (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch, animals feeding on plastic, illegal fisheries and coral bleaching are some of the topics that have dominated the discourse about the world oceans in the past few years. Research institutions, organisations and states are working on solutions, and next year marks the beginning of the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development. Considering all this, what will the ocean agenda look like in 2020?

Professor Alf Håkon Hoel brings us along on a journey from the United Nations to Norway, and from law to sustainability in this week’s featured opinion piece from The Fram Centre.

Read the opinion piece “The Ocean Year 2020” (in Norwegian) at The Fram Centre’s website.

Foto: Jahn Petter Johnsen (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)

26th November 2019

MARAs Peter Arbo recently contributed to the Norwegian anthology "Geografi, kunnskap, vitenskap: Den regionale UH-sektorens framvekst og betydning" (2019), with the book chapter "Universitet og region - en sammensatt relasjon".

Universities are currently facing more complex challenges and expectations than before. In Norway there are now universities throughout the country, and in this chapter Arbo explores the relation between university and region in Norway. What advantages and disadvantages do regions face when hosting a university? How is the region important for the university? What transformations are happening in this relation? The chapter sheds light on a topic that is particularly relevant today, with the conflict surrounding Nord university and its closing of the Nesna and Sandnessjøen campuses.

Peter Arbo has written chapter 4: Universitet og region - en sammensatt relasjon. The chapter abstract is available in English.

The book is published Open Access, and the chapters can be downloaded from Nordic Open Access Scholarly Publishing (Cappelen Damm Akademisk).

Researchers from the University of Umeå, UiT The Arctic University of Norway and the Norwegian Meteorological Institute have published and article in the journal Polar Geography.

The article explores how the Norwegian Meteorological Institute need to develop weather and sea-ice services through dialogue with maritime users, to provide the services Norway's maritime sector needs.

MARAs Maaike Knol-Kauffman is second author.

The article is available from Taylor and Francis Online (open access)

June 2019

The MARE conference is one of MARA's big highlights throughout the year. This year, ten of our members participated at the conference. MARA's members contributed with 11 presentations, led three sessions and our professor emeritus Svein Jentoft held the keynote speech.

Tuesday 25.06.19

• KEYNOTE: Life Above Water: Small-scale fisheries as a human experience (Svein Jentoft)
• SESSION: Monitoring and digitization in the marine domain
  • Acceptance of aquaculture growth by non-aquaculture industry stakeholders (Jahn Petter Johnsen og Signe Annie Sønvisen)
• SESSION: Shaping and regulating coastal and marine tourism experiences
  • Toward valuable weather and sea ice services for the marine Arctic (Maaike Knol)
• SESSION: Acquaculture and the ocean frontier
  • Acceptance of aquaculture growth by non-aquaculture industry stakeholders (Jahn Petter Johnsen og Signe Annie Sønvisen)

Wednesday 26.06.19

• SESSION: Critical turn in marine spatial planning- whence and whither?
  • The Ontological Politics of Industry Driven Marine Spatial Planning in India (Kevin St. Martin, prof. II)
• SESSION: Indicators and methods for governance and wellbeing
  • Using game-based learning to understand fisheries: The Case of the Overnight Closure of the Norwegian Inshore Cod Commons in 1989. (Jørn Weines)

Thursday 27.06.19

• SESSION: Ecosystem services
  • Introducing the ecosystem service concept in Norwegian coastal governance: gradual change or shallow reform (Ingrid Kvalvik, prof. II)
• SESSION: Theorising the implementation of marine policies and plans (1) (Chair: Gunnar Sander)
  • The application of a framework for implementation studies in studying implementation of ecosystem-based management plans (Gunnar Sander)
• SESSION: The socio-cultural pillar: engaging communities in fisheries management
  • Still missing? Communities in fisheries management (Svein Jentoft)
• SESSION: Theorising the implementation of marine policies and plans (2) (Chair: Gunnar Sander)

Friday 28.06.19

• SESSION: Brainstorming a social scientific research agenda for the Blue Economy
  • Brainstorming a social scientific research agenda for the Blue Economy (panel discussion member: Maaike Knol)
• SESSION: Containing the trawl industry: global experiences compared (Chair: Maarten Bavinck, prof. II)
  • Global experiences in managing trawl fisheries – Lessons for sustainable fisheries management (Tara Lawrence, Maarten Bavinck, prof. II)
  • Social conflict over shifting technologies obscure environmental degradation due to trawl fishing – cases from Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra (Maarten Bavinck, prof. II)