INTERNATIONAL MARITIME ORGANIZATION E IMO SUB-COMMITTEE ON SAFETY OF NAVIGATION 52nd session Agenda item 3 NAV 52/INF.9 26 May 2006 ENGLISH ONLY ROUTEING OF SHIPS, SHIP REPORTING AND RELATED MATTERS Submitted by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Executive summary: Action to be taken: Paragraph 3.1 Related documents: 1 INTRODUCTION SUMMARY This document provides information about the nature resources and environmental values in the area of Vardø - Røst in the Barents Sea. NAV 52/3/6 and NAV 52/3/6/Corr.1 1.1 This document is submitted in accordance with paragraph 4.10.5 of the Guidelines of the organization and method of work of the MSC and MEPC and their subsidiary bodies, as amended (MSC/Circ.1099 - MEPC/Circ.405), and provides additional information to document NAV 52/3/6 and NAV 52/3/6/Corr.1 submitted by Norway. 2 NATURAL RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENTAL VULNERABILITY 2.1 The Barents Sea is one of the world s most productive and least polluted sea areas. From a global perspective, the Barents Sea stands out as one of the world s most important eco-regions because of its special qualities as a highly productive Arctic environment, and the fact that it has natural resources of international value as well as a variety of wildlife and habitats. This area is one of WWF s priority marine eco-regions. 2.2 Norwegian spring-spawning herring are among the world s largest fish stocks and spend its first years in the Barents Sea, before migrating into the Norwegian Sea. The world s last large population of cod spawn around Lofoten and nurse and grow up in the Barents Sea. This cod stock represents half of the cod on the world market. Capelin lives all its life stages here, and is a key species providing food for other fish, marine mammals and seabirds. Mainland Europe s largest sea bird nesting cliff is on Røst with more than 400,000 nesting pairs of puffins. The world s largest coldwater coral reef, the Røst Reef, was discovered outside Lofoten in 2002, and is one of several hundred coral reefs in the area. The total Norwegian population of orcas whales are born and spend the winter in the Vestfjorden, inside of the Lofoten Islands. Marine mammals are represented with seventeen species of whale and dolphin, and six species of seal. The Barents Sea is also home to one of Norway s most endangered animals - the bowhead whale. In addition, otters, walrus and polar bears are dependent on the clean and productive Barents Sea. We also find several thousand square kilometres of kelp and a large number of sponges species. For reasons of economy, this document is printed in a limited number. Delegates are kindly asked to bring their copies to meetings and not to request additional copies.
NAV 52/INF.9-2 - 2.3 The Lofoten area Lofoten is an area in a class of its own, as it is the spawning area for both cod and herring, as well as the fact that large and important colonies of seabirds are to be found on Røst, Værøy and Lofotodden. The Vestfjorden is also a winter and calving area for the total Norwegian population of orcas whales (killer whales). On the continental shelf and along the edge of the continental shelf outside Lofoten, there are large areas covered with coral reefs. The world s largest coldwater coral reef is outside of Røst. On the outer edge of Lofoten there are unique sandy beaches. White tailed eagles, eider ducks, many types of auk, as well as European shag and great cormorants nest in the area. 2.4 The Vesterålen area Vesterålen is an important spawning area for haddock and herring, and is an area where sperm whales congregate at Bleiksdjupet. Fish eggs and larvae from Lofoten drift through Vesterålen on their way to the Barents Sea. During migration periods there are numerous ducks and wading birds resting in this area, and also nesting areas for Northern gannet. We find large colonies of kittiwake and shag, as well as a large population of harbour seals. There are coral reefs on the continental shelf and along the edge of the shelf. The coral reefs at Steinavær are said to be Norway s most beautiful corals. 2.5 Lopphavet and the Tromsø floe On the Tromsø floe, large whirlpools in the ocean currents ensure that herring, cod and haddock eggs and larvae are collected together in large concentrations for parts of the year. Also, the edge of the continental shelf is an important spawning area for haddock. Large communities of sponges and coral reefs can be found here. On the islands and along the coast, there are important nesting areas for eider duck, black guillemot, herring gull, great black-backed gull, lesser black-backed gull, white tailed eagle, puffin and auk. 2.6 The North Cape and the Coast of Finnmark The coast of Finnmark is a spawning area for capelin, the most important species of fish in the Barents Sea ecosystem, as it provides food for several other species. The cliffs on the coast of Finnmark have important nesting colonies for seabirds, such as guillemot and puffin. The largest remaining guillemot colony on mainland Norway can be found on Helmsøya. Along the coast and in the fjords, there are important wetland areas that are resting and nesting areas for ducks, geese and wading birds. The Varangerfjorden is the most important wintering area for the extremely rare Steller s duck. More information on the Barents Sea s natural resources can be found in WWF s report from 2003: The Barents Sea Ecoregion - A Biodiversity Assessment. 2.7 Vulnerability report - fish and oil spill On assignment for WWF Norway, the Norwegian Institute of Marine Research has produced the report Valuable areas for cod, haddock, herring and capelin in the Lofoten - Barents Sea area (February 2005). The report shows valuable areas for fish stocks in the Barents Sea at different phases of development, including the egg and larvael stages in which the fish is at its most vulnerable to oil pollution. See annex, figure 1.
- 3 - NAV 52/INF.9 2.8 Vulnerability report - natural resources and oil spill On assignment for WWF Norway, Det Norske Veritas (DNV) has produced the report Vulnerable areas in the Barents Sea (April 2005). The report describes different natural resources vulnerability to oil pollution and includes the data from the report written by the Institute of Marine Research. See annex, figure 2. 2.9 Environmental Threats Shipping, overfishing and petroleum activity are seen as the major threats to the environment in the Lofoten - Barents Sea area. An oil spill in the area would be an environmental catastrophe for the wildlife, including the fish stocks, and would have major effects to the local trade and industry which are mainly based on small scale fisheries and tourism. 2.10 Mitigating threats - necessity of risk reducing measures WWF is in favour of routeing ship traffic far away from the coast, to secure nature, avoid conflicts between fisheries activity and risks of collisions, and to gain enough time to establish oil spill combating responses in case of a situation where a ship is in an emergency or in need of assistance. WWF regards the establishment of a ship routeing and vessel traffic separation system as one of the most important of several necessary measures to reduce environmental risks in this vulnerable area. 3 Action requested of the Sub-Committee 3.1 The Sub-Committee is invited to take note of the information provided in this document. *** References : DNV 2005. Vulnerable Areas in the Barents Sea. Det Norske Veritas. Report for WWF Norway The Norwegian Institute of Marine Research 2005. Aglen, A., gjøsæter, H., Holst, J.C., Klungsøyr, J. & Olsen, E. Valuable Areas for Cod, Haddock, Herring and Capelin in the Lofoten - Barents Sea Area. Report for WWF Norway. WWF 2003. The Barents Sea Ecoregion, A bidodiversity Assessment. WWF Norway. Miljø- og ressursbeskrivelse av området Lofoten - Barentshavet (An Environmental and Resource Description of the Lofoten - Barents Sea Area). Lars Føyn, Erik Olsen, Cecilie H. von Quillfeldt (eds). The Norwegian Institute of Marine Research, Norwegian Polar Institute and The Directorate of Cultural Heritage. 2002. WWF 2005. Petroleum Free Zones in the Barents Sea. WWF Norway. All reports can be found at www.wwf.no.
NAV 52/INF.9 ANNEX Spawning and egg Larvae Figure 1: The most valuable areas for cod, haddock, herring and capelin in the Lofoten-Barents Sea area. The diagram is a composite picture of egg and spawning areas (left) and larvae areas (right) for the four species. The degree of the colour red reflects the extent of overlap between the species: the light red areas indicate a small degree of overlap while the dark red areas indicate a greater degree of overlap. With regard to time, the diagrams cover the breeding areas in the 1st and 2nd quarters (February to May), while the larvae areas stretch from the 2nd to the 3rd quarter. The map is produced by the Norwegian Institute of Marine Research (IMR) for WWF. Figure 2: Distribution of vulnerability to acute oil spills in the Lofoten Barents Sea Area. The map is produced by Det Norske Veritas for WWF.