Global warming could spark 'fish wars' across the world

Global warming is causing fish to migrate northward to colder waters faster than regulators can allocate new fishing quotas, potentially sparking conflicts across the world.

That is according to a study led by researchers at Rutgers University in New Jersey, which forecasts that new fisheries will appear in more than 70 countries due to climate change. This has led to fears that international disputes such as the ongoing ‘mackerel war’ between Iceland and the EU could become more frequent, resulting in trade embargoes and unsustainable fishing practices.

However, the researchers argue that lower greenhouse gas emissions, such as those outlined in the Paris Agreement, would reduce the potential for conflict and fractured international relations.

“We have a chance to avoid conflict over fisheries that could escalate international tensions, threaten our food supply and reduce profit and employment worldwide,” said the study’s lead author, Malin Pinsky.

Along with the Iceland/EU dispute, the researchers highlight how lobster fishers in the US and Canada have now come into conflict due to species moving north from New England.

The study warns that migrating fish as a result of climate change is “inevitable” to some extent, and that governing bodies such as the one overseeing EU fisheries must revamp their rules in response.

Pinsky said that the current rules are based on the notion that particular fish species live in certain waters and don’t move much. “Well, they’re moving now because climate change is warming ocean temperatures,” he added.

The Antarctic conservation body CCAMLR provides an example of how governing bodies might be redesigned to share information about fish stocks and how they are changing.

The study also suggests that governments could agree to trade fishing permits or quotas across international boundaries.

“We need international agreements for the collaborative monitoring and sharing of fisheries as they move,” Pinsky continued. “Avoiding fisheries conflicts and overfishing ultimately provides more fish, more food and more jobs for everyone.”

Read the full report here: bit.ly/2JQaCS0

Image credit: Getty