By Rebecca Bowe

Jan. 7 (GNT) — Industrial fishing in all US waters north of the Bering Strait is banned until further notice, the North Pacific Fishery Management Council ruled in a unanimous vote on Feb. 5. The precautionary measure aims to protect Arctic marine ecosystems, which are in a precarious position due to the destabilizing effects of global climate change.

Walrus are among the key species threatened by lose of sea ice. Commercial fishing in the Arctic could further effect walrus populations. Photo courtesy of US FWS.

Spanning some 200,000 square miles north of Alaska, the protected area encompasses US waters of the Chukchi Sea and Beaufort Sea. Since commercial fishing has never existed in this region, which is frozen for much of the year, the ban signifies a rare move to preserve uncharted territory before industry moves in, rather than after the fact.

“The cumulative effect of commercial fishing and shipping, as well as open-ended oil and gas development, could be devastating to this highly fragile system if not done correctly,” said Josh Reichert, managing director of the Pew Environment Group. “Rarely are we given a chance to put an area’s value as an ecosystem ahead of its commercial potential. Too often we get it wrong by depleting resources first and then backpedaling to return a place to its former grandeur.”

Global climate change has caused the Arctic to warm twice as fast as the rest of the planet, resulting in an unprecedented 40 percent loss of summer sea-ice cover. To commercial fishing interests, the suddenly ice-free waters present a new economic opportunity, especially with northward migrations of fish populations suited for warmer waters. But opening the gates to commercial fishing couldn’t come at a worse time, scientists argue, as the effects of climate change are already crippling fragile Arctic ecosystems.

For marine mammals such as polar bears, walrus and ice seals, the shrinking platforms of sea ice translate to a loss of critical habitat. Scientists and policy makers fear that commercial fishing could put food pressure on these already troubled species. The disappearance of these key species could, in turn, disrupt the entire food chain, leaving more species vulnerable. According to a letter to the NPFMC drafted by a team of marine scientists, “Recent sea ice losses threaten to fundamentally transform marine food webs in the Arctic.”

Nor are marine creatures the only ones who would be affected by expansion of commercial fishing into the Arctic. Subsistence fishing is central to the economy and culture of indigenous communities living along Alaska’s northern coast, and commercial fishing in the region could devastate traditional fishing areas.

Conservation organizations, including Audubon Alaska, Oceana, the Ocean Conservancy and the Pew Environment Group applauded the Council’s move to protect the Chukchi and Beaufort seas.

“Today’s decision signals a new day in the Arctic, where science comes first and where we think about the consequences of our actions before we take them,” said Janis Searles Jones, vice president of the Ocean Conservancy. “This proactive decision by the Council removes one source of additional stress, giving the Arctic, its peoples and animals a better chance to adapt to the changes.”

The National Marine Fisheries Service is expected to approve the Arctic commercial-fishing ban and issue final regulations to protect the Arctic later this year. However, because the ban was approved in part because of a lack of in-depth information about Arctic marine fish stocks and potential ecosystem effects, it could be lifted at some point in the future if new information is produced showing a viable way to conduct commercial fishing there.

Meanwhile, the 200,000 miles under U.S. control represents just a small portion of Arctic waters. So far, no other nations have taken such preventative steps to protect marine life from overexploitation in light of the debilitating effects of climate change.

Some species found in the Arctic, including the polar bear, bowhead whale and spectacled eider (a kind of sea bird) are listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act.

According to a report issued for the United Nations-led World Summit on Sustainable Development, 75 percent of the major marine fish stocks are either depleted, overexploited or being fished at their biological limit.

GreenNewsToday.org

Jan. 15 (GNT) – Lisa Jackson, Barack Obama’s choice to head the Environmental Protection Agency, seemed on her way to a smooth confirmation yesterday as she appeared for hearings before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.

Lisa Jackson, Barrack Obama's choice to head the EPA. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.

Ms. Jackson, 46, who has worked as a career employee at EPA 15 years, most recently served as head of New Jersey’s Department of Environmental Protection. Jackson’s committee hearing lasted more than four hours.

Signaling her support for Jackson in the opening statement of the hearing, committee chair Sen. Barbra Boxer (D-CA) railed against the Bush administration’s approach to the EPA, saying, “the EPA must rely on scientists, not special interests. The EPA needs to be woken up from its deep and nightmarish sleep. With new leadership, I am confident we can wake up EPA.”

Its was a theme repeated throughout the hearing. Responding to concerns from Senators in both parties that the EPA had become politically driving and unresponsive to legislators and the public, Jackson repeatedly assured the committee that science and the rule of law would be the guiding principal at EPA.

The committee members outlined in great length what they believed have been failed policies on issues ranging from global warming to EPA’s inability to regulate levels of perchlorate pollution in drinking water, and urged quick action be taken to restore their own and the public’s faith in the EPA.

Extracting Jackson’s commitment to review topics from the defeated California Tailpipe Emissions Standards, to the cleanup of uranium mining sites on the Navaho reservation, senators ticked off a laundry list of the nation’s most impacted sites.

Jackson was confronted about transparency at the EPA by Sen. Klouchar (D-MN), who criticized the EPA under the Bush administration for lacking transparency and hiding scientific evidence. Sen. Klouchar pressed the issue and asked Jackson for her own ideas to restore the public faith in the EPA.

“As far as transparency, the president-elect has made it clear that he has an unprecedented level of commitment to transparency in government, and to opening the doors of government and government decision-making,” stated Jackson. “If I am confirmed I would be proud to uphold the president elect’s commitment on my part. I would make sure the staff understands the committment to transparency as well.”

When asked to outline her views on climate change, Jackson replied, “We know that manmade emissions are contributing to climate change, and we know these conditions are worsening. Time is not our friend in this matter. CO2 lasts in our atmosphere for decades — sometimes longer.”

Jackson continued, “There is a need to act… Not only for our country but for the world, which has been waiting for our leadership on this issue.”

One of the most pressing issues facing Ms. Jackson was broached by Sen. Merkley of Oregon, who inquired about the EPA’s defeat of the California tailpipe emissions standards, which were adopted by Oregon and several other states.

In December of 2007, the EPA prevented California tailpipe emissions standards from being adopted by refusing to grant waivers under the Clean Air Act for California to regulate carbon emissions from vehicles.

Current EPA administrator Stephen Johnson overruled the opinion of the agency’s legal and technical staff and rejected California’s request, a move criticized by many as politically, not scientifically, motivated.

The California emissions standards had called for a cut tailpipe emissions by 30 percent by 2016.

In response to Sen. Merkley’s concerns, Jackson promised a review of the issue and stated she would “let science be the guide in making the determination, and let the rule of law.”

Ms. Jackson, latter answering a question by Sen. Tom Udall (D-NM) said she was committed to personally visiting uranium mining sites on the Navajo Reservation, but cautioned about what progress could be made. “The scope of the problem is such that progress will have to be incremental.”

Sen. Udall responded characterizing the issues of pollution on the Navajo reservation as issues of environmental justice, calling the situation a tragedy and disaster.

Jackson has faced criticism from some corners about her tenure as head of the EPA in New Jersey, but faced few questions about her time in that role.

She closed the hearing stating, “If I am confirmed, I will continue to do that which I have always prided myself on. I would never claim that we’re perfect, but I believe that New Jersey’s environment is better off because of my tenure there. I would like to be able to say that at the EPA, that the country is better off because of my tenure there.”

Source: GreenNewsToday.org