The Role of Regional Fisheries Bodies in North Atlantic Fisheries

No abstracts are to be cited without prior reference to the author.

Today, most of the world’s commercial fish stocks are reduced toa non-sustainable level. The regulation of high seas fisheries practiced by distant water fishing nations (DWFN) gains in importance in sustainable fisheries management. Regional Fisheries Bodies (RFBs) deal with international cooperation in the optimal sustainable utilization of aquatic resources in their regional regulatory areas. Special meaning conveys the management and scientific research for straddling and highly migratory fish stocks in international waters outside the exclusiveeconomic zones (EEZ). RFBsdiffer greatly in their functions. For instance, the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO) has a management mandate whereas the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) act in a purely advisory capacity. Both RFBsare significant for the development of fisheries management structures in Newfoundland and Iceland.