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As the extent of sea ice covering the Arctic Ocean shrinks, commercial trawlers are moving in, rapidly expanding fishing operations into areas previously covered by multiyear ice. If this trend persists, as new research suggests, fishing activity will spread along Arctic coastal shelves, with bottom trawling becoming a major threat to the Arctic’s rich and diverse ecosystems.
Per Fauchald, an ecologist at the Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, and his colleagues argue in a new study documenting the shift in fishing activity that, with the planet continuing to warm, Arctic coastal states need to take more responsibility to protect these vulnerable areas.