---

---

Global International
Waters Assessment
Regional assessments

---

---

Global International
Waters Assessment
Regional assessment 13
Faroe Plateau
Greenland Institute of Natural Resources
GIWA report production
Series editor: Ulla Li Zweifel
Report editor: UNEP Collaborating Centre on Water and Environment (UCC-Water)
Contributors: Søren Anker Pedersen, GINR (Compiler and editor),
Jesper Madsen, NERI (Co-editor), Mogens Dyhr-Nielsen, UCC-Water (Co-editor)

---

Global International Waters Assessment
Faroe Plateau, GIWA Regional assessment 13
Published by the University of Kalmar on behalf of
United Nations Environment Programme
© 2004 United Nations Environment Programme
ISSN 1651-940X
University of Kalmar
SE-391 82 Kalmar
Sweden
United Nations Environment Programme
PO Box 30552,
Nairobi, Kenya
This publication may be reproduced in whole or in part and
in any form for educational or non-profi t purposes without
special permission from the copyright holder, provided
acknowledgement of the source is made. No use of this
publication may be made for resale or for any other commercial
purpose whatsoever without prior permission in writing from the
United Nations Environment Programme.
CITATIONS
When citing this report, please use:
UNEP, 2004. Pedersen, S.A., Madsen, J. and M. Dyhr-Nielsen, Faroe
Plateau, GIWA Regional assessment 13. University of Kalmar,
Kalmar, Sweden.
DISCLAIMER
The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors
and do not necessarily refl ect those of UNEP. The designations
employed and the presentations do not imply the expressions
of any opinion whatsoever on the part of UNEP or cooperating
agencies concerning the legal status of any country, territory,
city or areas or its authority, or concerning the delimitation of its
frontiers or boundaries.
This publication has been peer-reviewed and the information
herein is believed to be reliable, but the publisher does not
warrant its completeness or accuracy. This particular report in the
GIWA Regional assessments series has been edited by the UNEP
Collaborating Centre on Water and Environment (UCC-Water).

---

Contents
Preface 9
Executive summary
11
Regional defi nition
12
Boundaries of the region
12
Physical characterstics
13
Socio-economic characteristics
19
Conclusion
23
Assessment 24
Freshwater shortage
24
Pollution
25
Habitat and community modifi cation
27
Unsustainable exploitation of fi sh and other living resources
28
Global change
31
Priority concerns for further analysis
31
Causal chain analysis
32
Introduction
32
Immediate causes
32
Root causes
33
Conclusions
33
Policy options
35
Defi nition of the problem
35
Establishing of policy option
35
Identifi cation of the recommended policy option
36
Conclusions
38
References 39
Annexes 43
Annex I List of contributing authors
43
The Global International Waters Assessment
i
The GIWA methodology
vii
CONTENTS

---

List of figures
Figure 1
The Faroe Islands. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Figure 2
Faroese waters may be defined as the ocean area within the Faroese fishing zone. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Figure 3
At depths about 600-800 m, there is a large difference in temperature (and salinity) between the two regimes on either side of the ridge.

There is, however, an overflow of cold water across the ridge that influences conditions in the Atlantic sect. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Figure 4
Relative variability in calculated new primary production, number of attending guillemots, recruitment of 2 year-old cod and haddock

and mean weight of 2-5 year-old cod and haddock during 1990-1999. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Figure 5
Fishing area regulations in Division Vb. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Figure 6
The Faroe demersal spawning stock biomasses (SSB) of cod, haddock, and saithe. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
List of tables
Table 1
Total Faroese catch by species in Faroese waters, ICES area Vb*, 1998-2001.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Table 2
Total catch in Faroese waters by nation, ICES area Vb*, in 2001. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Table 3
Scoring table for the Faroe Plateau region. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Table 4
Conclusions and recommendations on Human Health impacts of contaminants in the Faroe Islands. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

---

Preface
Globally, people are becoming increasingly aware of the degradation
A number of selected experts participated in the task team meeting.
of the world's water bodies. The need for a holistic assessment of
Other selected experts were unable to attend to the meeting. The
transboundary waters in order to respond to growing public concern
experts consulted for input and reviews of this report are presented in
and provide advice to governments and decision makers regarding
Annex 1. Jákup P. Joensen from the Food, Veterinary and Environmental
management of aquatic resources has been recognised by several
Agency of the Faroe Islands was coordinator for the editorial process.
international bodies focusing on global environment. To compile a
The report was peer-reviewed by Dr. Henrik Sparholt and Dr. Raphael
global overview, the Global International Water Assessment (GIWA) has
V. Vartanov.
been implemented by the United Nations Environment Programme

(UNEP) in conjunction with the University of Kalmar, Sweden
The report has been compiled and edited by:
(www.giwa.net).
Søren Anker Pedersen, GINR (Compiler and editor)
Jesper Madsen, NERI (Co-editor)
The importance of the GIWA has been underpinned by the UN
Mogens Dyhr-Nielsen, UCC-Water (Co-editor)
Millennium Development Goals adopted by the UN General Assembly
in 2000 and the Declaration from the World Summit on Sustainable
Development in 2002. The development goals aim to halve the
proportion of people without access to safe drinking water and basic
sanitation by the year 2015. The Johannesburg Plan of Implementation
encourages the application by 2010 of the ecosystem approach, and
stresses the importance of maintaining productivity and biodiversity
of marine and coastal areas, including protection of the marine
environment from the impacts of land-based activities
This report presents the results of the GIWA assessment of Faroe Plateau,
GIWA region 13. The report is the Faroe contribution to GIWA and it is
funded by the Danish Environmental Protection Agency as part of the
environmental support programme DANCEA ­ Danish Cooperation for
Environment in the Arctic.
The report is based on the GIWA Methodology: "STAGE 1: Scaling and
Scoping" and "Causal chain analyses" (see www.giwa.net).
The task team meeting was held 8 October 2003 at Fiskirannsóknarstovan
(Fisheries Research Laboratory) in Tórshavn, Faroe Islands.
PREFACE
9

---

---

Executive summary
The Faroe Islands are situated on a shelf in the North Atlantic Ocean and
sources like fi sh, whales and seabirds. Also, traces in the commercially
surrounded by a number of important fi shing grounds. The climate is
important fi sh stocks may jeopardize this important source of income to
strongly aff ected by the North Atlantic Current and frequent passage
the Faroe economy. The toxic substances are carried over far distances
of cyclones. For a subarctic region, the Faroes enjoy fairly high winter
by water and air from the industrial areas in Europe, North America and
temperature, seldom remaining below zero for any prolonged length
Asia. There is an urgent need to continue to address these pollution
of time.
problems in the appropriate international fora.
All islands are small with very small rivers, and only the surrounding
Another important concern is the unsustainable exploitation of
marine waters are of international signifi cance. In the surface, the area
fi sh. The severe depletion ­ and subsequent recovery ­ has been a
is covered by the warm, saline Atlantic waters that fl ow past the Faroes
combination of climatic/oceanographic variability, but overexploitation
into the Norwegian Sea. Only in the Northernmost part do one fi nd
of an ecosystem under stress has exaggerated the problem. Due to
cold, less saline water masses.
the economic signifi cance, there is consensus on the importance of
sustainable management of marine resources, and the Faroes have
The waters around Faroe Islands are important nursery areas for larvae
introduced strict regulations to ensure sustainable fi sheries.
of many commercially important fi sh stocks. The productivity of the
Faroese waters was very low in the late 1980s and early 1990s. From
However, basic scientifi c understanding of the complex interaction
1992 onwards the conditions have returned to more normal values. A
between climatic variability and recommended catch quotas is not
very clear relationship, from primary production to the higher trophic
complete. This problem is further compounded by the potential impacts
levels (including fi sh and seabirds) has been observed in the Faroe shelf
of global warming. There is a need for the international community to
ecosystem, and all trophic levels seem to respond quickly to variability
promote more research focus on the Atlantic ecosystems, in order to
in primary production in the marine waters.
understand, predict and adapt to the potential future changes.
The Faroe human population of a little less than 50,000 is highly
This report is funded by the Danish Environmental Protection Agency
dependent on the marine resources. The standard of living is
and is joint eff ort by almost 20 experts from the Faroe universities and
comparable to the Scandinavian countries, but the economy is strongly
research institutes. The contents and views do not necessarily refl ect
correlated to the fi shery sector, including aquaculture. Tourism is an
the views and policies of the contributory organizations or the United
increasingly important source of income, and there are possibilities of
Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
a future oil and gas production, similar to the oil fi nds in UK.
The experts have identifi ed pollution with toxic chemical as the presently
most serious international water concern. Due to bio-accumulation
in the tissue of marine species, impacts on public health may be
signifi cant, due to the high reliance on traditional indigenous food
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
11

---

Regional defi nition
This section describes the boundaries and the main physical and
Boundaries of the region
socio-economic characteristics of the region in order to defi ne the
area considered in the regional GIWA assessment and to provide
Location and geography
suffi
cient background information to establish the context within
The Faroe Islands are situated in the North Atlantic Ocean, between 61°
which the assessment was conducted.
20' and 62° 24' northern latitude, and 6° 15' to 7° 41' western longitude.
The islands are located approximately 430 kilometres to the south east
of Iceland, and 300 kilometres to the north of Scotland.
Vidoy
Faroe Islands
Fugloy
Kalsoy
Svinoy
Eysturoy
Bordoy
Iceland
Streymoy
Vagar
Mykines
Tórshavn
Nolsoy
Skopunarfjordur
Sandoy
Faroe Islands
Suduroy
0
20 Kilometres
Elevation/Depth (m)
2 000
Shetland
1 000
Islands
500
100
0
-100
-200
-500
-1000
-2000
GIWA border
0
200 Kilometres
United Kingdom
© GIWA 2004
Figure 1
The Faroe Islands.
12
GIWA REGIONAL ASSESSMENT 13 FAROE PLATEAU

---

The Faroe Islands consist of 18 mountainous islands situated in the North
pressure systems can move further south around the islands than
Atlantic at about 62°N and 7°W. The islands extend over 113 km from
normal, bringing in cold air from the north and a lengthy period of
north to south and 75 km from east to west, and the total land area is
sunny winter weather.
1 399 km2 (sea area is 274 000 km2) (Figure 1). The highest points, almost
890 metres above sea level, are on the northern islands. Seventeen of
Despite their sub-arctic location, the Faroe Islands enjoy mild winters
the islands are inhabited. The capital, Tórshavn, is situated on the largest
(lows averaging 4.1°C in February) and cool summers (with average
island, Streymoy (376 km2), located in the south of the principal cluster
highs of 11.1°C in August).
of the northern islands.
Average air temperatures remain above zero throughout the year in all
The archipelago is volcanic in origin, forming part of the Wyville-
parts of the islands, and temperatures seldom remain below zero for any
Thompson ridge, which stretches in a north westerly direction from the
length of time, though there is a high incidence of frost.
British Isles to Greenland. The geological origins of the islands can be
divided between the period of volcanic activity during which the basalt
The sky is typically overcast (the overcast value averages 78%) and
Plateau developed, and the subsequent period of erosion, including
rainfall levels are high. Precipitation is recorded on an average of
glacial formation during periods of ice age, which has given the islands
280 days annually, and rainfall averages 1 461 mm annually.
their current distinctive features.
Weather patterns are subject to abrupt and violent changes, and
The Faroese fj ords are oriented along a northwest to southeast trend,
extreme wind forces are regularly recorded. Frequent sea fogs fi ll the
arising from the system of fi ssures through which the basalt Plateau
valleys and low-lying coastal zones.
was formed. The northern-most islands are characterised by very steep
and high cliff s, with gently sloping terraces covered for the greater part
The off shore waters in the Faroe Islands region are modifi ed by the
by low-lying vegetation. Another distinctive feature of the Faroese
surrounding oceanic water masses, which infl uence ambient water
coastline is the large number of gullies (gjógv), with steep walls that
temperatures. Two major surface water currents transport water into
provide safe nesting areas for seabirds. The rapid coastal erosion on
the region. The Gulf Stream carries warm Atlantic water from the
the west facing cliff s has led to the formation of stacks and skerries that
southwest and divides around the north and south of the islands. The
are also safe nesting areas.
second current (the East Icelandic Current) fl ows from the direction
of Iceland in the northwest, bringing cold, plankton-rich water. The
The majority of the Faroese shoreline is exposed to the direct action of
average surface water temperature is relatively stable, averaging
the sea and there are few bays or sheltered lagoons. High cliff s are a
between 10-11°C in the summer and 6-7.5°C in the winter.
dominant coastal feature and areas of sandy beach are rare, as are sand
dunes, which are only present on the island of Sandoy. Safe anchorages
The maritime climate is also a result of the cold East Icelandic Current
are available in the narrow sounds between the islands and in fj ords.
(polar current), which splits into two currents from eastern Iceland
towards the Faroe Islands. The mixing of the water masses from this
and the warm Gulf Stream causes a relatively big diff erence in the sea
temperatures around the islands, and this in turn causes local variations
Physical characterstics
in the climate.
Climate
Freshwater
The climate in the Faroe Islands is strongly aff ected by the warm North
The Faroe Islands hold in most places plenty of unpolluted freshwater in
Atlantic current and frequent passage of cyclones, which, depending on
several lakes and streams. According to Christoff ersen (2002) the Faroe
the location of the polar front, mainly come from southwest and west.
Islands are inhabited by the same groups of freshwater organisms as
The climate is characterised by mild winters and cool summers.
found elsewhere in the region, because of the similar (though not
identical) pre-glacial history. However, overall diversity seems to be
The high pressure over the Azores sometimes shifts towards the Faroe
lower than in neighbouring areas, such as Shetland and Iceland, most
Islands. This can result in stable summer weather lasting several weeks,
likely due to the presence of dispersal barriers.
with quite high temperatures. In winter, on the other hand, the low
REGIONAL DEFINITION
13

---

Today's most important anthropogenic eff ects are those of untreated
Fishing zone
wastewater and the agricultural practice of fertilisation of hay fi elds.
The few studies so far conducted on lake chemistry indicate that
Iceland
-500 m depth
eutrophication does occur (Christoff ersen, 2002), but not at levels
N
O
R
W
E
G
I
A
N

S
E
A
observed elsewhere (e.g. in Scandinavia).
During the 20th century the water level of a number of lakes was raised
by damming of outlets to produce hydroelectric power and to ensure a
suffi
cient drinking water supply. The eff ects of such regulations include
fl ooding of wetlands and changes in the aquatic food webs due to
Faroes
the immediate disturbances as well as to changes in catchment size
and the retention time of the lake water (Jensen et al., 1983). Some of
these lakes are used for aquaculture smolt production which leads
FAROE BANK
Shetland
to eutrophication and diffi
culties in controlling fi sh-diseases. The
present-day and early historic biodiversity and ecology of Faroese
A
T
L
A
N
T
I
C

O
C
E
A
N
streams, ponds and lakes ought therefore to be investigated and
0
100 Kilometres
© GIWA 2004
described in detail before more marked and widespread changes
Figure 2
Faroese waters may be defi ned as the ocean area
occur, and the results obtained will be a useful tool in the hands of
within the Faroese fi shing zone.
(Source: Jákupsstovu et al., 2003)
water management authorities when implementing water protective
measures (Christoff ersen, 2002).
waters that fl ow past the Faroes into the Norwegian Sea. Only in the
On the fi ve largest islands there are some 40 mountain lakes containing
northernmost part are Faroese surface waters aff ected by cold, less
brown-trout (Salmo trutta). Sea trout is to be found in most of the water
saline, Arctic water masses that are carried into the area by the East
courses from mid June. Salmon (Salmo salar) and sea-trout can be
Icelandic Current.
caught in the bigger lakes on the islands. A natural population of Arctic
char (Salvelinus alpinus) occurs in "Leynavatn" only. Salmons, trout's
The relatively homogeneous character of the surface waters disappears
and Arctic char are exploited by sports fi shing only, and there are no
at greater depths. In the Atlantic sector, southwest of the ridge, warm
imminent threats to these fi sh stocks from overfi shing or pollution (A.
(and saline) water extends to great depths while the northeastern sector
Reinert, Fiskaaling, Faroe Islands, pers. comm.)
is dominated by cold (<0°C) and less saline water from around sill level
and down to the bottom. At depths below the sill, the two regions
Oceanography and the marine ecosystem
therefore exhibit quite diff erent characteristics (Figure 3).
The following description of the physical oceanography and marine
ecosystem of the Faroese Plateau is from a recent comprehensive
In mostly all directions out from the Faroes, we therefore fi nd warm,
description given in Dam et al. (2000) and Jákupsstovu et al. (2003). For
saline Atlantic water in the upper layers and cold, less saline water at
detailed descriptions see e.g. Hansen et al. (1998), Olsen (1998, 2001),
depth. In between, water from the East Icelandic Current may often be
Hansen and Østerhus (2000), Bloch et al. (2001), Gaard et al. (2002),
identifi ed as a salinity minimum, especially on the eastern side of the
Hoydal and Dam (2003).
Faroe Plateau.
Faroese waters are divided into two parts by a series of ridges that are
This introduces an east-west asymmetry, especially at intermediate
part of the Greenland-Scotland Ridge (Figure 2). On both sides of the
depths. The interface between the warm upper layers and the colder
ridge, bottom depths exceed 1500 m while the ridge itself has typical
layers below is typically found at some 400-600 m depth, but may
sill depths around 500 m. The Atlantic sector, southwest of the ridge,
vary considerably which introduces large variations of the bottom
includes a number of banks. Northeast of the ridge, the Norwegian Sea
temperature at these depths.
extends to depths more than 3000 m in the Faroese area.
As a whole, Faroese waters exhibit a fairly diverse and fairly variable
In the surface, most of the area is covered by warm, saline Atlantic
character. Both the characteristics and the fl ow patterns, in the surface,
14
GIWA REGIONAL ASSESSMENT 13 FAROE PLATEAU

---

500 m depth contour
Iceland
Cod weight at age 2-5
N
O
R
W
E
G
I
A
N

S
E
A
Less than 0°C
Haddok weight at age 2-5
Faroes
Haddok recruitment (2 years)
More than 6°C
FAROE BANK
Shetland
e scale
tiv
Cod recruitment (2 years)
Rela
A
T
L
A
N
T
I
C

O
C
E
A
N
0
100 Kilometres
© GIWA 2004
Figure 3
At depths about 600-800 m, there is a large diff erence
in temperature (and salinity) between the two regimes
Guillemots
on either side of the ridge. There is, however, an
overfl ow of cold water across the ridge that infl uences
conditions in the Atlantic sector.
PP index
(Source: Jákupsstovu et al., 2003)
as well as at depth, are determined by the thermohaline ventilation
processes, occurring further north in the Arctic Mediterranean. These
processes generate the cold waters that fl ow past the Faroes at depth
and the compensating infl ow of warm Atlantic water in the surface.
How these processes will change with global climate change will
1990
1992
1994
1996
1998
2000
determine the sea climate of Faroese waters in the future.
Year
Figure 4 Relative variability in calculated new primary
Productivity
production, number of attending guillemots,
recruitment of 2 year-old cod and haddock and
The Faroe Islands are surrounded by a shelf, which is approximately
mean weight of 2-5 year-old cod and haddock
described by its 200 m bottom contour. The 200 m bottom contour
during 1990-1999.
occupies about 21 000 km2, and the width of the shelf varies greatly
(Source: Gaard et al., 2002)
around the islands (Figure 2). It is only about 12 km wide east of the
southernmost island and approximately 50 km wide in the northwest
onset of off -shelf stratifi cation, and least pronounced or non-existing
direction. In some areas the topography is smooth with a well-defi ned
in the autumn, when the stratifi cation is broken down.
shelf break, and in others it is irregular or continuously sloping without
a shelf break.
The water inside the front occupies a special role in the Faroese marine
ecosystem (Gaard et al., 2002) and is an important nursery area for
Because of strong tides, the on-shelf water is well mixed throughout the
larvae of many commercially important fi sh stocks. The productivity
year, while the off -shelf water can be stratifi ed in the summer season. In
of the Faroese waters was very low in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
winter the cooling is on the other hand more effi
cient on the shelf. This
This applies also to the recruitment of many fi sh stocks, and the growth
creates a temperature front, not only in the summer season, but also
of the fi sh was poor as well. From 1992 onwards the conditions have
throughout most of the year, except for the period October/November.
returned to more normal values, which is also refl ected in the fi sh
The temperature front is most pronounced in the spring before the
landings. A very clear relationship, from primary production to the
REGIONAL DEFINITION
15

---

higher trophic levels (including fi sh and seabirds) has been observed
There exist several local self-sustained fi sh stocks in the area (Faroe
in the Faroe shelf ecosystem, and all trophic levels seem to respond
Plateau cod, Faroe Bank cod, Faroe haddock, Norway Pout, small redfi sh
quickly to variability in primary production in the ecosystem (Figure 4;
etc.); others perform limited migrations in and out of the area but are in
Gaard et al., 2002; Steingrund et al., 2003).
assessments/management regarded as local stocks (saithe, halibut, ling,
tusk etc.) while many others belong to stocks with a wider distribution
Benthos
area (golden redfi sh, deep-sea redfi sh, blue ling, Greenland halibut etc.)
Most recently, benthos investigations were performed in Faroese waters
or are stocks migrating to and/or through Faroese waters (herring, blue
during the BIOFAR programme initiated in 1988 to cover the EEZ at
whiting, mackerel, horse mackerel, salmon, blue-fi n tuna etc.).
depths from 100 ­ 1000 m depth (Nørrevang et al. 1994, Sørensen 2003,
Tendal et al. (in press)). This was a joint inter-Nordic eff ort with cruise-
Seabirds
participants from Denmark, Iceland, The Faroe Islands, Norway and
Nearly 2 million pairs of seabirds breed in the Faroe Islands (Olsen, 2003).
Sweden. The material collected was worked up mainly by specialists
As seabirds begin breeding only at 5-12 years of age there is also a very
from these and other countries bordering the NE-Atlantic, but also by
large number of sub-adult birds. In total there may be about 5 million
some from USA. The two main objectives were to generate a list as
Faroese seabirds with a total biomass around 3 000 tonnes, consuming
complete as possible of benthic invertebrate species (macrofauna), and
about 300 000 tonnes/year. Four of the 21 species make up 95% of the
to obtain a survey of species distribution in relation to various physical
total biomass. These are the fulmar (Fulmarus glacialis) (48%), puffi
n
parameters, especially current, temperature, salinity and depth. In 1995,
(Fratercula arctica) (21%), guillemot (Uria lomvia) (17%) and kittiwake
the BIOFAR programme was extended to cover also shallow waters from
(Rissa tridactyla) (9%). The fulmar is the most abundant and widespread
0-100 m.
species of seabird in the North Atlantic and numbers have increased
dramatically over the last 250 years although the reason is unknown. It
Both earlier literature and the more than 100 scientifi c papers so far
seems clear that the fulmar nested, really for the fi rst time in the Faroes,
published in connection with BIOFAR confi rm that the fauna is mainly
some time between 1816 and 1839. Many of the seabirds migrate or
boreal-arctic with many distribution patterns following water mass
disperse from the Faroese waters after the breeding season but the
characteristics (bibliography in Bruntse and Tendal 2001). Biologically
fulmar is in Faroese waters all year round (Olsen, 2003). The Fulmar in
important results are the demonstration of hyperbenthos being rich
the Atlantic has shown one of the most remarkable rang expansions
and abundant all around the Faroes, and of big concentrations of
and population explosions known in seabirds, yet the reason for the
biomass dominated by one or a few large-sized species of corals or
increase are still unclear. Explanations include the provision of extra
sponges in many places on or near the shelf margin (articles in Bruntse
food for fulmars, fi rst in the form of off al from whaling fl eets and later
and Tendal 2001; Tendal et al. (in press)).
as discarded fi sh from trawlers.
Fish
Marine mammals
The fi sh fauna in Faroese waters is diverse mainly due to the special
During the last two centuries 27 marine mammal species have been
bottom typography and the very diff erent water masses in the area.
recorded in Faroese waters: seven pinniped and 20 cetacean species
The fi sh fauna is mainly boreal but occurrence of arctic as well as
(Bloch, 1998; Bloch et al., 2001). Grey seal (Halichoerus grypus) and
of Mediterranean species illustrate the composite nature of the
harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) are the only species occurring
area (Reinert, 2003). About 18 fi sh species have their north westerly
permanently inshore in Faroese waters.
boundary at the Faroes. In total, about 170 diff erent fi sh species have
been recorded for the area. The commercially most important fi sh
The Faroese grey seal population seems to be related to grey seals
species are: cod (Gadus morhua), haddock (Melanogrammus aeglefi nus),
from the Scotland-Orkney area (Mikkelsen et al., 2002). The following
saithe (Pollachius virens), tusk (Brosme brosme), ling (Molva molva), angler
species are observed off shore year round as well as migrating: Fin whale
fi sh (monkfi sh) (Lophius piscatorius), Greenland halibut (Reinhardtius
(Balaenoptera physalus), minke whale (B. acutorostrata), sperm whale
hippoglossoides), redfi sh (Sebastes spp.), blue whiting (Micromesistius
(Physeter macrocephalus), bottlenose whale (Hyperoodon ampullatus),
poutassou), herring (Clupea harengus), mackerel (Scomber scombrus),
long-fi nned pilot whale (Globicephala melas), killer whale (Orcinus orca),
halibut (Hippoglossus hippoglossus), silver smelt (Argentina spp.), blue
and white-sided dolphin (Lagenorhynchus acutus). Of the remaining 18
ling (Molva dypterygia), and others.
species, some migrate into and stay only temporarily in Faroese waters:
Harp seal (Phoca groenlandica), hooded seal (Cystophora cristata), blue
16
GIWA REGIONAL ASSESSMENT 13 FAROE PLATEAU

---

whale (B. musculus), sei whale (B. borealis), humpback whale (Megaptera
the smell of broken specimens. Up to 50 different large sponge species
novaeangliae), bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus), and white-
have been recorded from Faroese ostur areas. Up to 242 different
beaked dolphin (L. albirostris).
species, especial y filter and suspension feeders have been found in
association with the ostur and it is quite likely that they provide an
The long-finned pilot whale was the topic of an international study
important recruitment area for different fish species such as redfish
in the period 1986-1988 where 40 pods containing 3 470 whales
Sebastes spp.
were examined (Desportes et al., 1994). The long-finned pilot whales
around the Faroes are different in morphometry than the long-finned
Natural resources
pilot whales around Newfoundland (Bloch and Lastein, 1993). The
With very little cultivated land, sheep rising is important, and in fact, the
population size of the pilot whale in the northeastern Atlantic is around
name Faeroe Islands is said to mean "Sheep Islands". About 80 000 sheep
778 000 (Buckland et al., 1993) where the hunting pressure taken by
graze on the Faroese mountainsides - free-range animals in the true
the Faroe Islands is 0.1 % on average (Bloch, 1994). From the Faroese
sense of the word. In places difficult to access they are only in touch with
catch statistics dating back to 1584 and unbroken from 1709 until today,
humans twice in their lifetime: when they are let loose as lambs and when
both the pilot whale and the bottlenose whale are shown to have a
they are herded together as ful y-grown animals. The principal natural
cyclic occurrence in Faroese waters of around 100 years length and
resources consist of shel fish, fish, whales, a wide variety of bird-life, smal
correlated with climatic variation (Bloch and Lastein, 1995; Bloch et al.,
quantities of coal, and (possibly) offshore hydrocarbon deposits.
1996). Experiments with satellite tags have shown that the pilot whale
dives to around 800 m. depth and can travel about 200 km/day (Heide-
Fisheries
Jørgensen et al., 2002; Bloch et al., 2003).
The Faroe Islands are located within the International Council for the
Exploration of the Sea (ICES) Fisheries Statistical Area Vb, which covers
The Faroe Bank area
about 190 200 km2. The fish species of major commercial value and
The Faroe Bank is located approximately 75 km southwest of the
cultural importance include demersal, deep-water and pelagic species
Faroe Islands (Figure 2). Due to the smal -size of the Faroe Bank and its
(Table 1).
position as a geographical y wel -defined and self-contained ecosystem
Table 1
Total Faroese catch by species in Faroese waters, ICES
surrounded by an oceanic environment, it is a very suitable area for
area Vb*, 1998-2001.
marine biological studies. The topographic and hydrographic features
Total catch 1998-2001 (tonnes live weight)
Species
on the Faroe Bank have led to the existence of a fairly isolated ecosystem.
1998
1999
2000
2001
This isolation largely determines the character of the populations of fish
Blue whiting
12 752
35 356
60 967
126 915
and other organisms on the Bank (Magnussen, 2002, 2003; Reinert, 2003;
Saithe
24 148
32 439
34 353
44 500
Schmidt et al., 2003; Steingrund, 2003).
Cod
24 987
20 157
20 684
26 768
Haddock
20 509
17 753
14 110
14 246
Greater silver smelt
17 167
8 186
6 388
9 952
Bottom trawl surveys around the Faroe Islands have demonstrated that
Mackerel
2 171
1 270
4 790
5 888
there are large differences in the distribution pattern for several of the
Redfish
5 721
6 191
5 720
5 332
species living on the Faroe Bank as compared to the Faroe Plateau. For
Other
4 134
5 159
4 102
4 740
example, megrim (Arnoglossus laterna) only occurs on the Bank, whereas
Scal ops
4 751
5 993
3 989
4 053
squid and poor cod, which are common on the Bank, are scarce on the
Greenland halibut
3 462
3 873
4 344
3 485
Plateau. In contrast, plaice is common on the Faroe Plateau but rare on
Ling
2 848
2 487
1 909
2 200
Monk fish
1 866
2 548
2 215
2 006
the Faroe Bank.
Tusk
1 346
1 676
1 282
1 787
Blue ling
1 054
1 745
1 503
1 565
Between 200 and 500 m the reef-forming coral Lophelia pertusa is
Prawns
119
410
31
161
present al around the slope of the bank. Lophelia formations themselves
Lobster
56
79
73
51
host about 300 associated taxa and they may function as a nursery and
Herring
13 825
454
0
25
recruitment area within the more barren surroundings. Large sponge
Norway pout
1 515
1 511
0
0
Horse mackerel
188
132
250
0
accumulations are found on the northeastern and on the southeastern
Salmon
5
-
-
-
slope of the bank. The sponge accumulations are cal ed "ostur" (cheese-
Total
142 624
147 419
166 710
253 674
bottom) referring to the shape and consistency of the sponges and to
Note: ICES area Vb = Føroya Banki and continental shelf. (From Hagstova, 2003)
16
GIWA REGIONAL ASSESSMENT 13 FAROE PLATEAU
REGIONAL DEFINITION
17

---

Cod, haddock, saithe and other demersal stocks form the economically
Sea bird hunting
most important component of the Faroese fi shing industry. The
Seabirds are caught for local consumption. Fulmars and puffi
ns are the
landings of cod, haddock and saithe, were at a historically low level
most important species and it is estimated that 50 000-100 000 birds
during the late 1980s and early 1990s that caused a severe economic
are caught each year from each of these populations.
crisis for the fi sh industry and the entire Faroese society. The landings
recovered rapidly during the mid 1990s due to improved recruitment
Whale hunting
and growth (ICES, 2003). Changes in primary production in the marine
In contrast to the fi shery, which has enormous economic importance,
ecosystem and in the food availability for cod was most probably the
whaling is a non-commercial hunt only intended for domestic use,
driving force behind the collapse of the cod stock in 1991 as well as its
however still of economic value. Whaling does, however, represent a
rapid recovery in 1995 (Steingrund et al., 2003).
valuable food source, which in the period 2000-2003 with an annual
catch of between 539 and 917 pilot whales provided on average between
The fi sheries in the Faroe area can be characterised as multigear and
2.5 and 4.5 kg of whale meat per person, the actual consumption
multispecies, targeting demersal, deep-water and pelagic species using
however, is assumed to be uneven, see also Table 4, p. 26 ( Museum of
hand lines, long lines, gillnets, purse seine and various trawl gear types
Natural History's archive). The catch is organised according to laws and
(Reinert, 2001a). Before 1960, all foreign vessels were allowed to fi sh
regulations adjusted from time to time, and the conservation of marine
around the Faroe Islands outside the 3-nm zone. Since the introduction
mammals in the Faroe Islands is managed through membership in the
of the 200 nm fi sheries zone in 1977, the demersal fi shery by foreign
North Atlantic Marine Mammal Commission (NAMMCO).
nations has decreased and Faroese vessels now take most of the
demersal catches (Table 2).
The average annual catch over the last 400 years of the diff erent species
is 845 pilot whales, 2 bottlenose whales and 60 white-sided dolphins
Table 2
Total catch in Faroese waters by nation, ICES area Vb*,
as the most common and regularly taken species (Bloch, 1996a, and
in 2001.
Faroese Museum of Natural History archive).
Total catch in Faroese waters 2001 (tonnes live weight)
Species
Faroes
Faroe
UK/
France
Norway
Other
Total
catch
Islands
Germany
The pilot whale is a small toothed whale found in large schools in the
(%)
North Atlantic. The Faroese pilot whale catch is a traditional, communal,
Blue whiting
126 915
-
4 537
47 340
261 134
443 211
27
Other
153 791
309
2 841
137
8 831
165 980
93
non-commercial hunt aimed at meeting the community's need for
Saithe
44 500
1 303
840
56
226
46 925
95
whale meat and blubber. The pilot whale catch proceeds as follows: A
Cod
26 768
337
11
601
20
27 736
97
school of pilot whales, observed near the coast, is driven into a fj ord and
Haddock
14 246
135
6
347
0
14 733
97
beached, preferably on a fl at stretch. Only a limited number of beaches
Tusk (Ling, Blue ling)
5 552
130
398
4 051
7
10 138
55
(23) are approved for whaling and authorised by law. The whales are
Redfish
5 332
168
198
16
20
5 734
93
killed by cutting the spinal cord and in the same cut, the arteries
Total
377 104
2 381
8 831
52 546
270 237
714 385
53
supplying the brain are cut (Bloch, 1996b). The authorities distribute
Note: * ICES area Vb = Føroya Banki and continental shelf. (From Hagstova, 2003)
the meat and blubber according to traditional rules, the main rule being
equal shares for all the inhabitants of the district.
The main components of the pelagic fi sheries (both foreign and
domestic fl eets) comprise blue whiting, Atlanto-Scandian herring and
Mariculture
mackerel. Blue whiting is caught from the Barents Sea to the Strait of
The production especially of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) and to a
Gibraltar, and the stock was perceived to be relatively constant since the
minor extent the rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) has increased
early 1980s, although estimates of abundance are imprecise. Since the
rapidly during the last two decades to more than 45 000 tonnes in
end of the 1990s the spawning stock biomass has increased signifi cantly
2002 (Hagstova, 2003). The demand for freshwater smolt production
to 4.3 million tonnes in 2003, a record high value (ICES, 2004a). In Faroe
is secured by placing the tanks in artifi cial streams or, less desirable,
waters (ICES area Vb and IIa) blue whiting is caught primarily by Russian,
directly into natural sections of rivers. The pharmaceuticals used in the
Icelandic, Faroese and Norwegian vessels, and Faroes caught about 27%
industry are regulated and subject to controls. The smolt is vaccinated
of the 2001 catch (Table 2). The Faroese catch of blue whiting in 2002
and its skin disinfected before being transferred into cages, to reduce
was around 500 thousand tonnes (or 31%) of a total 1.6 million tonnes
the risk of disease. In the mid 1990s, epidemics of the BKD (kidney
taken in the North Atlantic (ICES, 2003a).
disease) were the most severe medical problem (Dam et al., 2000). The
18
GIWA REGIONAL ASSESSMENT 13 FAROE PLATEAU

---

other main indication treated with pharmaceuticals is the salmon lice
to advice issued by ICES. Denmark is, on behalf of the Faroes and
(Lepeoptherius salmonis and Caligus elongates). The origin of the breed
Greenland, a member of ICES, NEAFC and NAFO. Denmark has ratifi ed
of Atlantic salmon now in production in the Faroes was roe imported
the agreement on protecting the North Atlantic salmon under NASCO
from Norway in the period 1978-1984.
on behalf of both the Faroe and Greenland.
The Environmental Department at the Food and Environmental
Agency is the central body of administration of the Environmental Act
Socio-economic characteristics
and the new Marine Environmental Act. The coastguard, the Faroes
Inspection and Rescue Service, oversees compliance with the Marine
Political structure
Environmental Act.
The Faroese descend from Norwegian and Celtic settlers, who arrived at
least as early as the 9th Century A.D. Most of the legislative and executive
Population
governmental powers lie with the Faroese authorities, the Løgting
In 2002 the Faroe Islands had a population of about 47 350 ­ an increase
(parliament) and the Landsstýri (executive branches of government) in
of 5 500 since 1977 (Hagstova, 2003). In 2002 the capital, Tórshavn, had
Tórshavn, the capital. Environmental protection, including protection
a population of 18 420 corresponding to slightly less than 40% of the
of the marine environment, is under Faroese jurisdiction, and is
entire population.
administered by the Ministry of Interior. The Faroese Maritime Authority,
the Faroese coast guard and the Marine Rescue Coordination Centre
Recent population change has been characterised by migratory
(MRCC) lie with the Ministry of Fisheries and Maritime Aff airs.
movements. In the 1970s and 1980s there was a steady immigration,
largely consisting of Faroese expatriates returning because of improved
The Faroes as a political entity can be described as a miniature of a
employment opportunities and rising real incomes. Net immigration
Nordic democracy. Being a self-governing territory under the state
was relatively small up to the beginning of the 1980s but increased
sovereignty of Denmark, there is a division of powers between the
relatively sharply in the years 1984-89 as a consequence of a high level
Faroes and Denmark within the framework of the home rule system.
of economic and employment activity. In 1993 the migratory fl ows
Some areas of relevance to the administration of marine aff airs still are
reversed and the population fell by 1 956 (over 4%) in two years. Since
under Danish authority. Foreign aff airs and defence are administered
1996 the fl ow has changed again, and the population level at the end
from Copenhagen, though the Faroese Government maintains its own
of 1999 was higher than the pre-crisis level.
Foreign Service as a department under the Faroese Prime Minister's
Offi
ce. The Faroese Foreign Service maintains three missions abroad,
The characteristics of population and demographic change lie at the
in Brussels, Copenhagen and London. The missions in Brussels and
heart of the social and economic development. There is agreement
London respectively are organised as part of the Danish embassies
across the Faroese political spectrum on the goal of retaining viable
there. Denmark is represented by a High Commissioner in Tórshavn.
populations on all of the currently inhabited islands (Anon., 2001). This
is not an easy task, because employment opportunities are scarce on
The Faroes are not a member of the European Union (EU), and decide
the remote islands and the delivery of key services such as education
themselves what international obligations entered by Denmark shall
and special health care is expensive.
apply to them. In 2002 the Faroes obtained associated membership of
the International Maritime Organization (IMO), and there are plans for
Although the buoyant economic conditions of the past four to fi ve years
further Faroese engagement in international relations.
have encouraged net inwards migration to the Islands, within the region
itself the long-term trend shows a continual move from the peripheral
Under the provisions of the Home Rule Act of 1948 Danish legislation
islands towards the centres of economic activity in urban and peri-
on joint (Danish Realm) matters passed by the Danish parliament (the
urban areas of Tórshavn, Runavík (Eysturoy) and Klaksvík (Borðoy).
Folketing) must be ratifi ed by the Faroese parliament to be applicable
to the Faroes.
Population projections prepared by Hagstova Føroyar (the Faroese
Statistical Offi
ce) for the period 2000 to 2024 indicate a potential
The fi shery in the Faroese waters is regulated by the Faroese Ministry
population increase of approximately 26% over that period due to birth
of Fisheries and Maritime Aff airs which sets the quotas with reference
rate and migration. The majority of that growth is projected to occur
REGIONAL DEFINITION
19

---

in the urban and peri-urban areas around Tórshavn, south Esturoy and
The inability of the Faroese suppliers to infl uence the traded prices
Klaksvík, and the projected growth rates for Sandoy and Suðuroy are
of their principal exports;
signifi cantly below average.
The possibility of risks posed to fi sh stocks and to the image of
Faroese products by overfi shing, disease and pollution.
Economy and business
The Faroe Islands use the Danish currency and are part of the Danish
Since 1995 the Faroese economy has grown rapidly, due particularly to
currency area, although they have their own notes.
strong growth in fi sheries and aquaculture. From 2000 to 2001 exports
increased by 12% to 4.1 billion, while imports fell by 3.5%, resulting in a
The Faroe Islands is an industrialised country with a standard of living
surplus of DKK 211 million on the balance of trade. About 80% of exports
comparable with the other Nordic countries. The economy is mainly
from the Faroe Islands go to EU countries. Of this, Denmark accounts
founded on the fi shing industry and sea farming. In addition there are
for 25% and the UK for 18%. In the last few years, the Faroe Islands have
subsidies from Denmark that tend to diminish in importance with the
turned a net foreign debt into a net credit balance, although with a big
development of the Faroese economy.
diff erence between the private and the public sector. At the end of 2001
the private sector had a net credit balance of more than DKK 5 billion,
Any economy based on only two industries is bound to be vulnerable to
while the public sector's net foreign debt stood at almost DKK 3 billion.
the cyclical change in those industries, especially when both are related
Unemployment has fallen sharply in the last few years and is now
to the fi shing industry. Prices and catches are volatile and these have
around 3%.
left their mark on the economic history of the islands. This vulnerability
is partly encountered by a geographically spreading of the catches all
The subsidy from Denmark steadily grew over the years up to 2002.
over the North Atlantic area and in other seas as well, such as the Barents
During the depression years of 1991 - 1994, the Danish state transfer in
Sea, which is made possible by fi shery agreements between the Faroes
percentage terms increased to almost a quarter of the Gross Domestic
and Norway, the EU and the Russian Federation.
Product (GDP), but by 2002 it had decreased to about 8% of GDP
as a result of the Faroese Government's policy to reduce economic
The Faroese economy can be characterised as a mono-economy that
dependency upon Danish subsidies. Prior to the economic depression,
is very dependent on the fi shing industry. This statement is supported
the Faroese Gross National Income (GNI) per capita was above the
in the export account, of which fi sh products on average account for
Danish GNI per capita, due to the Danish Government subsidy. Now
more than 95% of the export value (Anon., 2003a). The fi gure may be
the GNI per capita is lower.
somewhat exaggerated due to incomplete export statistics for non-
fi sh products.
More than a quarter of GDP comes from the fi shing and fi sh processing
industries. The fi shing industry is also the basis for other sectors, such as
Eff orts to diversify the economy have been made, but so far without
shipyards and industries equipping the fi shing industry.
any notable success. Since nearly all the fi sh products are exported,
the Faroese economy is very sensitive to the market. Consequently, the
The Faroese fi shing industry
export income can fl uctuate signifi cantly from one year to the next
Fishing is the most important industry in the Islands and contributes
because of changes in catch and price, and these fl uctuations spread
over one quarter of national income. Most of the output is exported,
quickly throughout the economy.
making the industry and the Faroese economy highly susceptible to
fl uctuations in catch and to the world price of fi sh. The industry is a
The current level of reliance upon fi shing and fi sh processing leaves the
major employer particularly in peripheral regions.
Islands exposed to external economic conditions. A variety of indicators
point to the vulnerability that such exposure imposes upon the Faroe
The shipyards in the Faroes do most of the repairing of the Faroese
Islands, arising from (Anon., 2001):
fi shing vessels. In addition the shipyards also do some repairing of
The high level of dependence upon foreign trade;
vessels from Iceland and occasionally from Greenland. From time to
The degree of dependence upon the export earnings of a narrow
time the shipyards also engage in constructing of fi shing and special
range of products;
vessels. There has been a longstanding desire to diversify the Faroese
The extent to which the principal export industry (fi shing) is
economy but until now with no major eff ect. For the time being a
exposed to externally controlled regulation;
committee is investigating how to establish a research environment
20
GIWA REGIONAL ASSESSMENT 13 FAROE PLATEAU

---

covering biotechnology and IT with the intention to boost development
gradually from 1993 to 1997. The export value, however, did not increase
in those two industrial areas.
as much because a large portion of the export was unprocessed fi sh.
Over a fi ve-year period, this has changed partly because of more local
Before the mid-1970s, the Faroese fi shery was mainly based on fi shing
processing, but more specifi cally because of a general increase in world
in foreign waters. The extension of national fi shing boundaries,
market prices, especially for cod (Anon., 2003a).
however, necessitated to a signifi cant degree a re-organisation of the
Faroese fi shing industry towards exploiting the resources in Faroese
Fisheries management
territorial waters. Today, about 40% of the fi sh export value still comes
Quotas (TAC) were introduced by law in 1994, but by June 1996 the
from fi shing in foreign and international waters, although most of the
quotas were replaced by a new fi sheries management system which
fi shing in foreign waters is reimbursed by reciprocal rights in Faroese
regulates the fi shery by "Fishing Days" and area closures (see chapter
territorial waters.
2.4). The new system focuses on viability and takes into account the
diff erences in fi shing gear and relative size of the vessels. The number
The harvesting sector is the largest in terms of income and employment
of Fishing Days in a fi shing year (commencing on 1 September) is set
but the recent relatively high levels of profi tability have been insuffi
cient
by law on the recommendation of an advisory board, comprised of
to encourage investment in modern vessels. The Faroese fi shing fl eet
representatives from in and around the industry. The recommendation
comprises around 670 vessels but the majority of the catch is taken
is based on estimates of the fi sh stocks and the level of fi shing eff ort.
by the 182 vessels larger than 20 GRT. The sector is considered to be
Each ship within each group thus gets a certain number of fi shing days
overcapitalised but there is reluctance to encourage fl eet reduction
in which it may fi sh. Fishing days are partly tradable.
because this will lead to a concentration of fi shing activity and a
concomitant reduction of employment opportunities.
The advantages of a fi shing-days system compared to a quota system are
mainly that vessels can take all their catch ashore rather than throwing
Before World War 2 subsidies to the Faroe fi shing industry came from
fi sh overboard and furthermore curtails the fraudulent practice of
the Danish Government. After 1948 and the establishment of the
landing fi sh under a false name. The disadvantages are mainly that
Faroe Home Rule political competence and responsibility for subsidies
the system may not be effi
cient in protecting specifi c species. Also,
to the fi shing industry have been transferred from Danish political
there is a need to take into account technological improvement over
authorities to Faroese political authorities. From the 1950s subsidies
the years and reduce the number of days accordingly; this is tends to
have been given to shipbuilding and to a prize guarantee on fi sh for
be diffi
cult to achieve due to heavy resistance from the industry and
the fi shing fl eets. From 1998 fi shing vessels do no longer receive direct
the political system.
support; however, they are supported indirectly by a guarantee from
the "Råfi skefonden" (a Fishing Foundation established in 1975) to the
Although there has been signifi cant restructuring within the fi shing
fi shermen of a minimum salary and daily support as well as a secured
industry, there still is an over capacity of vessels. Other means, such as
salary during illness. Beginning in the early 1970s, the fi shing industry
limiting the number of fi shing days and encouraging fi shing of other
also became increasingly subsidised and this twisted the market forces
species are being used to diversify and, hence, reduce the capacity
in unfortunate ways. Finally in 1992, the subsidies were replaced by a
indirectly. Restrictions are also enforced by limiting and banning fi shing
capital subsidy and later in 1998, removed altogether. Now the fi shing
in specifi c areas for longer or shorter periods. This is especially useful for
industry relies very little on subsidies, although some indirect measures
the protection of spawning and young fi sh.
have been introduced instead.
Aquaculture
In the late 1980s, a condemnation plan was initiated whereby the ship
The fi sh farming industry is a relatively new industry in the Faroe Islands.
owners were paid to give up their fi shing vessels. The intent of this plan
It started in the early 1980s and has since emerged into the second
was to increase the catch for each remaining vessel and in the end,
most important contributor to the Faroese economy. Production
increase the competitiveness and the total catch. During the crisis in the
has been volatile over the years. In 2002, the production was around
fi rst half of the 1990s, many vessels were sold out of the Faroese fi shing
45 000 tonnes and the export value DKK 943 million, which corresponds
fl eet. This resulted in a capacity reduction of around 30%.
to 23% of total export. The production was just below the record year
Approaching the mid-1990s, the cod stock turned out to be in better
of 2001, but prices have remained low and hence the value was about
shape than previously estimated and the catch of cod increased
the same.
REGIONAL DEFINITION
21

---

In the early 1990s, the industry was in distress and the number of
fi sheries, farming today accounts for only about 1% of the Faroe Islands'
licenses went from 60 to about 15 through a series of mergers and
gross national income at factor cost. With a view to increasing the self-
acquisitions. Vertical integration took place such that companies now,
suffi
ciency of the Faroe Islands, the government is providing grants for
wholly or partly, own the production from smolt to processing factory.
investments in farming.
This also allowed for larger permits and a foundation for better planning
in production, less strain on the environment and a better fi nancial
Energy and oil expectations
result. The boom in the industry has also attracted foreign investments,
The joint municipal company SEV is responsible for the production and
but foreign ownership has hitherto been restricted by law to 33% of
sale of electricity on the Faroe Islands. In 2001, production amounted
equity. This may now change as the political system is now reviewing
to about 230 million kWh. Of this, more than 30% was based on
the rules of ownership in this sector.
hydroelectricity, while the remainder was produced at diesel-driven
plants. Recently a certain development is occurring in the fi eld of wind
The fi sh farming industry conducts research to improve the quality and
generated power production. Of the electricity sold in 2001, 33% went
effi
ciency of production. There is also ongoing research in the farming
to domestic users, 35% to industry, agriculture, and fi sheries, 14% to the
of other species of fi sh, mainly cod and halibut, but so far this has not
service sector, and the remainder to street lighting etc.
proven to be commercially viable. The public owned company P/F
"Fiskaaling" gets an annual support from the Faroe Government of 1.5
Since a number of oil fi nds in British territorial waters close to the
to 2 million USD mainly to carry out research to develop and improve
Faroese border in the 1990s, there has been a reasonable presumption
aquaculture of fi sh and shellfi sh. Thereby the aquaculture industry gets
that there is oil in the Faroese off shore territory, and the fi rst licensing
an indirect economic support being able to use the research results and
round was held in the spring of 2000 (Anon., 2001). The fi rst licences for
improvements developed by P/F "Fiskaaling", however, this is the only
exploration and production of hydrocarbons in the subsoil off the Faroe
public economic support to the Faroese aquaculture industry. For the
Islands were granted in August 2000.
time being the Aquaculture industry experiences a crisis. Nevertheless,
recently more than 20% of the value of exported fi sh products from the
The fi rst three exploration wells were drilled in the summer and autumn
Faroe Islands came from the aquaculture industry.
of 2001. In one of these, oil was found. An evaluation programme is
now being carried out to determine whether this fi nd is commercially
The tourism industry
viable.
The Faroese tourist industry is the third largest export earning activity
although its contribution to employment and regional economy is
The possibility of developing an oil industry in Faroese waters has been
small. Increasing demand for holidays in remote areas and for niche
steadily progressing since 1993. Uncertainty prevails about the type
tourism activities generally demonstrate that a potential exists if
and scale of activity that will actually emerge if and when oil is found.
facilities are improved (Anon., 2001).
This uncertainty breeds a variety of diff ering reactions, but overall there
appears to be an expectation within the Islands that oil will be found,
For many years, eff orts have been made to develop the tourist industry
and found in suffi
cient quantity to exert a profound long-term impact
in order to diversify the Faroese economy (Anon., 2003a). A few years
upon Faroese society, the environment and the regional economy
ago, a goal of 50 000 tourists per year was set. In 2002 about 44 000
(Anon., 1997; 2001).
tourists visited the Faroe Islands. About 17 000 of these come to visit
family and friends. The direct income eff ect of the tourism industry
A comprehensive energy policy for the Faroe Islands, including how
is estimated to be about DKK 150 million. Given the progress that has
to increase the amount of energy produced from renewable resources
taken place to date and anticipated in the future, tourism will slowly
such as wind and waves, is under way being formulated by a committee
become a more reliable source of income for people throughout the
established by the Faroese Prime Minister. For example there has been
islands (Anon., 2003a).
established formal cooperation with bodies in Scotland (waves) and
Iceland (hydrogen).
Agriculture
Farming in the Faroe Islands is quite insignifi cant. Until the end of the
Transport and communications
19th century, farming was the Faroe Islands' main industry, but with the
The geography of the island group and the topography of the
economic and industrial development since then, particularly within
individual islands makes it an expensive challenge to provide good
22
GIWA REGIONAL ASSESSMENT 13 FAROE PLATEAU

---

and appropriate transport and communication services. In the past
Conclusion
access between settlements frequently involved either travel by boat
or traversing precipitous mountain and cliff paths.
The Faroese economy is almost totally dependent of the sea and the

production in the sea. This fact, naturally, has created a great interest
In recent decades the islands have developed a modern and integrated
in the variability in the surrounding sea, and how for example climate
transport infrastructure. The islands have approximately 450 kilometres
couple to variability in the productivity of marine resources and socio-
of paved highway. The majority of settlements are directly linked to
economy.
the road network, and a number of extensive road tunnels have been
constructed. The three largest islands, Vágar, Streymoy and Eysturoy,
As has been the case in the past, and is evident in many other small
are linked by a bridge and a sub-sea tunnel. Another sub-sea tunnel
island economies, the demographics of the Faroe Islands are subject
is currently under construction to link the islands of Eysturoy and
to signifi cant migratory fl ows. The most recent economic crisis led to
Borðoy. Responsibility for road maintenance is divided between the
a period of sustained net emigration from 1989 to 1995. That position
municipalities and the Faroese Ministry of Trade and Industry, the latter
has reversed and the rate of net immigration is accelerating markedly.
having charge of maintaining the arterial routes.
Between 1995 and 1999 the total population increased by 2019 persons
(4.7%), approximately half of this increase being accounted for by net
Some of the more remote villages and inhabited islands are provided
immigration.
with helicopter services for both passengers and light cargo. There are
12 helipads situated in diff erent parts of the islands.
Many of the Islands' municipalities operate small ports for inter and intra
island passenger and cargo services, and larger ports are situated at
Tórshavn, Klaksvík, Tvøroyri, Runavík and Fuglafj ørður. Scheduled ferry
services transport passengers and cargo between settlements along
the shoreline and between the islands, and `ro-ro' ferries operate on
the major inter-island routes. Chilled and frozen cargo services operate
across most parts of the archipelago.
There are regular, year-round sea transport links with a variety
of European ports, mainly in Denmark, United Kingdom and the
Netherlands, and the Faroe Islands are used as a transit port for goods
and passengers travelling to and from Iceland.
The islands have one airport situated on the island of Vágar. The airfi eld
is managed by the Civil Aviation Administration of the Danish Ministry
of Transport. The majority of international passenger arrivals on the
Faroe Islands travel by air, and Vágar Airport handles approximately
4 000 incoming fl ights annually, the majority originating from Denmark,
but scheduled services also operate from Reykjavik, Oslo, Aberdeen and
London Stansted.
Constructing roads, tunnels, and harbours is costly because of the
diffi
cult topographical conditions. Since an economic downturn at the
beginning of the 1990s, the number of motor vehicles has increased by
almost 1 000 and now stands at 21 000 motor vehicles, of which 16 000
are cars and 3 500 lorries and vans.
REGIONAL DEFINITION
23

---

Assessment
Table 3
Scoring table for the Faroe Plateau region.
This section presents the results of the assessment of the impacts
Assessment of GIWA concerns and issues according
The arrow indicates the likely
of each of the fi ve predefi ned GIWA concerns i.e. Freshwater
to scoring criteria (see Methodology chapter)
direction of future changes.
T
T
C
C
Increased impact
shortage, Pollution, Habitat and community modifi cation,
A
A
0 No known impacts
2 Moderate
impacts
IMP
IMP
T
T
No changes
C
C
Unsustainable exploitation of fi sh and other living resources,
A
A
1 Slight
impacts
3 Severe
impacts
IMP
IMP
Decreased impact
Global change, and their constituent issues and the priorities
t
s
i
t
y

n
t
a
l

*
*
identifi ed during this process. The evaluation of severity of each
a
c
t
s
u
Faroe Plateau
e
n
impac
p
m
ore
m
m
n
i
m
o
Sc
y
*
*
*
issue adheres to a set of predefi ned criteria as provided in the
c
t
s
c
t
s
v
i
r
o
a
l
t
h
e
r
c
h
erall
chapter describing the GIWA methodology. In this section, the
En
impa
E
c
onomic
He
Ot
impa
Ov
Priorit
Freshwater shortage
0*
0
0
0
0
5
scoring of GIWA concerns and issues is presented in Table 3.
Modification of stream flow
0
Pollution of existing supplies
0
Changes in the water table
0
Pollution
2*
1
3
1
2
1
T
C
A
Freshwater shortage
IMP
Microbiological pollution
1
Eutrophication
0
Chemical
2
The Faroes holds plenty of unpolluted water in the lakes.
Suspended solids
0
Solid waste
0
Thermal 0
Environmental impacts
Radionucleid
0
Modifi cation of stream fl ow
Spills
1
Not a problem in the Faroe Islands.
Habitat and community modification
1*
1
0
0
1
4
Loss of ecosystems
1
Modification of ecosystems
2
Pollution of existing supplies
Unsustainable exploitation of fish
2*
1
0
0
2
2
No pollution of existing water supplies.
Overexploitation
2
Excessive by-catch and discards
1
Changes in the water table
Destructive fishing practices
2
Decreased viability of stock
0
No evidence that extraction of water from aquifers exceeds natural
Impact on biological and genetic diversity
0
replenishment.
Global change
1*
0
0
0
1
3
Changes in hydrological cycle
1
Socio-economic impact
Sea level change
0
Increased UV-B radiation
0
Economic impacts
Changes in ocean CO source/sink function
0
2
No known impact.
*
This value represents an average weighted score of the environmental issues associated
to the concern.
** This value represents the overall score including environmental, socio-economic and
Health impacts
likely future impacts.
*** Priority refers to the ranking of GIWA concerns.
No known impact.
24
GIWA REGIONAL ASSESSMENT 13 FAROE PLATEAU

---

Other social and community impacts
ß-HCH), DDT (o,p-isomers and metabolites) and toxaphene (incl. total
No known impact.
toxaphene and 5 single parlars).
Conclusions and future outlook
The highest mercury concentrations were found in pilot whale muscle,
Freshwater shortage is not an issue of major concern for the Faroe
with 3 mg/kg in adult males. Next highest mercury concentrations
Islands at present.
were found in black guillemot livers, and in sculpin livers. The mercury
concentrations in the three years of sculpin samples spanned a wide
range from 0.1 mg/kg to almost 1.5 mg/kg varying among the age-
groups but more markedly between the years. Then comes black
T
C
A
Pollution
IMP
guillemots eggs with mercury concentrations around 0.5 mg/kg, and
Arctic char with a mercury level around 0.2 mg/kg.
Environmental impacts
Microbiological pollution
The highest mercury concentrations exceed Danish residue guideline
Microbiological pollution is connected with discharge of domestic and
concentrations, as the highest guideline concentration is 1 mg/kg
to a lesser degree with industrial wastewater. In most cases there are
(Anon., 2003b).
small-scale outlets draining the overfl ow from sewage tanks. However,
at localities where this wastewater is discharged to a recipient with
The changes over time of environmental background concentrations
limited water exchange, this discharge may lead to locally signifi cant
of mercury for long-fi nned pilot whales are unknown. However, trends
microbial pollution, which renders the water unfi t for most uses.
of increasing mercury concentrations with time has been found in
museum specimens of black guillemot in the Faroe Islands (Somer and
Eutrophication
Appelquist, 1974; Appelquist et al., 1984, 1985), similar to what has been
Eutrophication can occur locally, but is considered a minor problem.
found in other seabird species foraging in the North-East Atlantic waters
(Monteiro and Furness, 1995).
Chemical pollution
Heavy metals and Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs)
The mercury concentration in soft tissue from pilot whales can be
Analyses for contaminations with heavy metals and POPs have been
traced back to 1977. The data available reveal diff erences in mercury
made as part of the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Program (AMAP)
concentrations between pods as well as individual diff erences, and a
on the Faroe Islands in the period 1997-2001 (Larsen and Dam, 2003;
trend in the mercury concentration is not discernable (Dam and Bloch,
Olsen et al., 2003).
2000). It is assumed however, that the overall increase in anthropogenic
mercury emission which may be traced in sediments and peat samples
In the period 1997-1998 the following species were analysed from
in many places on the northern hemisphere (Fitzgerald et al., 1998;
the marine environments: Blue mussel (Mytilus edulis), queen scallop
AMAP, 1998) is refl ected in the pilot whales as it is in for example
(Clamys opercularis), cod (Gadus morhua), fulmar (Fulmarus glacialis),
Beaufort Sea Beluga (AMAP, 2002).
grey seal (Halichoerus grypus), pilot whale (Globicephala melas) and
from freshwater environments: brown trout (Salmo trutta) and Arctic
The highest concentrations of POPs were found in pilot whale
char (Salvelinus alpinus) (Larsen and Dam, 2003).
blubber.
In the period 1999-2001 analyses have been made on the following
With the persistent organic pollutants there is growing evidence that
species from the marine environments: Short-horn sculpin
the restrictions on their use that were put into action some decades
(Myoxocephalus scorpius), black guillemot (Cepphus grylle), and pilot
ago have had an eff ect. There have been marked reductions in the last
whale, and from the freshwater environment: Arctic char (Olsen et al.,
decade, particularly with the pesticide DDT (Dam et al., unpublished).
2003; Hoydal et al., 2003).
Still, when the analysed biota is scrutinised with respect to chemical
pollutants, the results are often that the concentrations of pollutants
In the period 1999-2001 the analysed heavy metals were: mercury (Hg),
within them gives reason for concern as when compared to limits
cadmium (Cd), and selenium (Se) and the analysed POPs were: PCB
defi ned by food health authorities.
and organochlorinated pesticides (14 single congeners, chlordanes,
ASSESSMENT
25

---

Dioxin is an unintended byproduct in various industrial processes and is
1970s and to global fallout from nuclear weapon tests (Joensen and
also produced during incineration of wastes (Quass et al., 2000). Dioxin
Dahlgaard, 2003).
is lipid-soluble and relatively high concentrations are found in lipid-rich
fi sh species (Leonards et al., 2001; Fiedler et al., 2000). The highest dioxin
Oil spills
concentrations are found in areas infl uenced by the heavy populated
At present this is not considered a problem of concern. However,
and industrialised areas such as in the Baltic Sea (Robinson et al., 2000).
establishing environmental baselines to assess any future environmental
In recent years, a decrease in dioxin in various foodstuff has been
pollution is important in light of the on-going exploration for off shore
observed (Baars et al., 2004).
hydrocarbons around the Faroes (Anon., 1997, 2001). The exploitation of
hydrocarbons could potentially result in adverse environmental eff ects.
Solid wastes
There are two waste companies in the Faroes, which coordinate the
Socio-economic impact
collection, sorting and incineration, depositing or shipping to suitable
Economic impact
processing facilities of all the wastes produced. Solid wastes are as a
The fi sh oil derived from some pelagic species must at present be
general rule incinerated, and incinerations are equipped with fi lters to
purifi ed for dioxin and dioxin-like substances, a process which increases
hinder pollution with heavy metals. The capacity of the incineration
the expenses in the utilising of some pelagic fi sh stocks as fi sh feed in
plants is, however, becoming insuffi
cient and new emission limits are
aquaculture. The economic will be impacted for families who have to
imposed.
reduce the consumption of whale products, because the whale meat
is contaminated with pollutants.
Waste collections from ships and fi shing vessels are not functioning
optimally and waste is often dumped at sea although forbidden by law.
Human health impact
Consumption of marine food in preference to other food is generally
Thermal
considered to be healthy and below the safe limits for contaminant set by
Approximately 60% of the electricity demand is produced at mineral
the EU. However, in a few fi sh species levels of mercury above the EU safe
oil fuelled electricity plants. These plants use seawater in the cooling
limits have been found. The Faroese are known to be heavily dependent
system, which after use is discharged to sea. It seems unlikely that this
on seafood. In pilot whale the contamination levels of both POPs and
discharge should lead to any signifi cant thermal pollution except in the
mercury are above the EU safe limits. Thus the potential exposure to some
immediate vicinity of the outlets.
pollutants is very high in the Faroe human population (Table 4).
Radionuclide pollution
The Faroese diet is dominated by marine food, e.g. cod, haddock and
The Faroe Islands are subject to the radioactive pollution which stems
halibut. Seabirds are consumed in the season, especially fulmar, puffi
n
from nuclear bomb-testing and the discharge to the sea and air which
and guillemot.
occurs from accidents and regular activity of for example nuclear
Table 4
Conclusions and recommendations on Human Health
reprocessing plants in Europe. There is no anthropogenic source of
impacts of contaminants in the Faroe Islands.
radioactivity stemming from the Faroe Islands.
Human health
Exposure to methyl mercury and organochlorine compounds has been high in the Faroe Islands due to
According to studies by Joensen and Dahlgaard (2003), the average
frequent ingestion of pilot whale meat and blubber.
Cognitive deficits and other adverse effects have been demonstrated in children with prenatal exposure to
Caesium (137Cs) activity in seawater is around 1.6 Bq/m3 for both 1999
these compounds in the Faroes.
In August, 1998 the Faroese authorities issued an advisory that women who plan to become pregnant within
and 2000, with a decline from trend from 1999 to 2000 in Tórshavn/
three months, pregnant women, and nursing women should abstain from eating pilot whale meat.
Hoyvík and Kirkjubøur. The average 137Cs/90Sr concentration ratio from
Furthermore, the best way to protect foetuses against the potential harmful effects of PCBs and other
organochlorine compunds, is if girls and women do not eat blubber until they have given birth to their children.
the measurements is 1.49, which corresponds to the global fallout ratio.
The results from a dietary survey among pregnant women in 2000 ­ 2001 have revealed a dramatic reduction
in whale meat and blubber intake.
Results for 137Cs concentrations in marine biota all show low values, with
Blood analyses showed a decrease corresponding to more than one order of magnitude with regard to mercury
cod having the relatively highest value of around 0.2 Bq/kg fresh weight.
exposure. However, possibly because of their stability in the body, the PCB levels were still high and must
be considered to be a continued potential health problem in the Faroese community. The reasons for the
persistent high PCB concentrations are not fully understood, and further research is needed to elucidate this
phenomenon.
Due to the expected transport time of Technetium (99Tc) to Faroese
Because of the advantages of conducting epidemiological studies in the Faroes and because of the continuing
waters of 12-15 years, the results presented are therefore not related
exposure to organochlorine compounds, research should be continued to explore the health consequences of
the increased exposure levels.
to the latest releases from Sellafi eld, but mainly to discharges in the
(Source: Deutch and Hansen, 2003)
26
GIWA REGIONAL ASSESSMENT 13 FAROE PLATEAU

---

The species of most relevance in the Faroese diet, which have been
mercury concentrations than found in Faroese fi sh. The high mercury
analysed in the AMAP programme are (Weihe et al., 2003a): Long-
concentrations in whales are the background for the above-mentioned
fi nned pilot whale, fulmar, cod, sheep (Ovis aries), hare (Lepus timidus),
recommendations for the consumption of whale meat. Because of the
brown trout and Arctic char. The freshwater fi sh species, especially the
benefi cial eff ects of fi sh consumption, the long-term goal needs to
Arctic char, though an important part of the diet in other northern
be a reduction in the concentration of MeHg in seafood rather than a
communities, is of limited importance as food-item in the Faroes. First
replacement of fi sh in the diet by other foods. In the interim, the best
and foremost due to the limited abundance of Arctic char waters, and
method of maintaining fi sh consumption and minimising Hg exposure
secondly due to the limited catch of these fi shes, which are taken on a
is the consumption of fi sh known to have low mercury concentrations
fi shing rod by sports anglers only. Blue mussels and queen scallop have
(Committee on the Toxicological Eff ects of Methylmercury, 2000).
once been analysed for pollutants as a part of the AMAP Faroe program.
These shellfi sh species are widely used as food. However, in the Faroes
Other social and community impacts
the consumption is very limited.
No known impact. However, the issued dietary advice by the Faroese
health authorities of reduced intake of whale meat and blubber of
Most concern has been on the metals: Mercury, lead and cadmium.
especially young women may have socio-cultural impacts.
Most samples have been analysed for these metals. However, in some
matrices selenium has also been analysed.
Conclusions and future outlook
Chemical pollution is very limited in the Faroes, a consequence of
Marine food/traditional food provide benefi ts because marine mammals
their rather remote position in the North Atlantic away from the dense
and fi sh are rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA). A diet high with
populations and large industries of central Europe, and because of
PUFA has been associated with lower risk of heart disease. Whale skin
favorable ocean currents. This does not, however, make the Fareose
and other marine foods are rich in selenium. Selenium may increase the
people a `reference population' with respect to environmental pollution
body's antioxidant defense. Furthermore, high levels of vitamin A are
loads, as one would expect, because the intake of pollutants from
found in animal liver and blubber. In general, traditional diets therefore
marine mammals is marked.
provide a strong nutritional base for health (AMAP, 1998, 2002).
Dietary advice to limit the consumption of pilot whale meat was fi rst
Mercury is of both scientifi c and public concern due to the high
issued in 1977, and this was apparently also the fi rst time mercury
concentrations in e.g. pilot whales and higher predatory fi sh, where up
was ever measured in Faroese pilot whale meat. Since then, heavy
to 3 ppm Hg has been measured (Dam et al., 2000; AMAP, 1998, 2002;
metals and persistent organic pollutants in these mammals have been
Olsen et al., 2003). Furthermore, it has been shown that the present
measured. The best-studied species is probably the long-fi nned pilot
levels of mercury in sea animals may have a negative eff ect also on the
whale. Measurements of contaminants in long-fi nned pilot whales and
health of the local human populations, when these animals are used as
in the marine fauna of the Faroe Islands need to be continued in the
food supply (Grandjean et al., 1998; Deutch and Hansen, 2003).
future to keep the natural resources healthy and below the safe limits
for contaminants in human food set by for example the EU.
Realising the hazard resulting from the present contaminations
and as a consequence of the fi ndings of studies in the Faroes, new
recommendations on the consumption of whale products were issued
T
C
A
by the health authorities in 1998 (Weihe et al., 2003b). According to
Habitat and community
IMP
Weihe et al. (2003b), adults should limit their intake to one or two dinners
modification
of whale meat (corresponding to 300g whale meat) each second week.
Adults should eat blubber no more than once or twice per month. Girls
Environmental impacts
and women are best advised not to eat blubber at all before the end of
The overall judgment by the task team experts of issue 12, losses of
the reproductive period. Women who intend to get pregnant during
ecosystem or ecotones was a slight impact. However, certain coral-
the next three months, women who are pregnant or those who are
reefs of the reef-forming corals (e.g. Lophelia pertusa) were regarded
breastfeeding should not eat any whale meat at all. Livers and kidneys of
as moderately impacted (score 2) by bottom trawling. The ecological
whale should not be eaten by anyone at all (Heilsufrøðiliga Starvsstovan,
value of these habitats is, however, poorly understood. Probably there
1998). Whale meat contains about 1.9 mg mercury/kg. i.e. much higher
is no loss of entire ecosystems due to bottom trawling. However, this
ASSESSMENT
27

---

T
C
A
has not been investigated and little data exists. Issue 13, modifi cation
Unsustainable exploitation of
IMP
of bottom habitats and community structures, was assessed to be
fish and other living resources
moderately impacted, mainly due to bottom trawl fi shery.
Environmental impacts
Benthic communities
Important resources of fi sh, sea birds and marine mammals have large
The damaging impact of bottom-trawling on the benthic fauna, e.g.
distribution areas, involving the waters of several nations. This means
reef-forming coral and large sponge accumulations, are by killing the
that fi shery, hunting and other infl uences on one part of a population will
animals both directly by crunching and indirectly by stirring up the
eventually aff ect the rest of it, within as well as outside of Faroes waters.
bottom sediment and making it impossible for the benthic animals
International cooperation on conservation and management of marine
to respire and feed (Rogers, 1999; Hall-Spencer et al., 2001; Thiel
resources is thus essential. The Faroes participate actively in a number
and Kowlow, 2001). On the Faroe Plateau, two known localities are
of international organisations which give advice on a sustainable use of
inhabitated by the slow growing eight armed corals of genus Paragorgia
marine resources of the Faroe Islands, e.g. International Council for the
spp. and Primnoa spp. these are in particular sensitive to trawling. In the
Exploration of the Sea (ICES), North East Atlantic Fishery Commission
fj ords and along the edge of the plateau at around 90 m depth there are
(NEAFC), North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organisation (NASCO),
mussel beds, which are sensitive to dredging and trawling (O. Tendal,
North Atlantic Marine Mammal Commission (NAMMCO), International
Zoological Museum, University of Copenhagen, pers. comm.).
Whaling Commission (IWC), Northwest Atlantic Fishery Organization
(NAFO), and International Marine Organization (IMO).
The Faroe Bank is an important fi shing ground for the Faroese fi shery
accounting for approximately 10 % of the total annual catch within
Overexploitation
the Faroese fi sheries zone. The bank supports a unique ecosystem of
Fishery
ecological and economic importance. Many of the species like the corals
The Faroese fi shing fl eet has been regulated since the declaration
and sponges are very sensitive to physical damage and disturbance, as it
of the fi shing zone (FFZ) around the islands in 1977, initially through
is often caused by activities like trawling without proper management
technical measures (e.g. limitations on gear size, closed areas, etc). A
(Schmidt et al., 2003).
system of licences introduced in 1987 restricted entry into the fi shery
(Reinert, 2001a; ICES, 2003). This was accompanied by a limited buy-back
Sea birds
scheme aimed at reducing the total level of fi shing eff ort in the fi shery.
The increasing tourism in recent year has increased the pressure on
In 1994, following the sharp decline in cod catches, a series of individual
some local sea bird breeding locations (Olsen, 1998, 2001), but a
transferable quotas (ITQs), eff ective for ten years, were imposed on the
new law is being prepared to better protect these bird colonies from
remaining fl eet and a restrictive total allowable catch (TAC) was adopted
disturbance.
to enable cod stocks to recover. This system was abandoned in 1996 and
replaced by a system (valid for 8 years) whereby individual boats were
Socio-economic impacts
allocated a permissible number of fi shing days-at-sea. This individual
Economic impacts
eff ort quota system was supplemented by spatial control, the Faroe
No known impact
fi shing zone (ICES Division Vb) being subdivided into three concentric
zones within which access for particular kinds of fi shing vessels was
Health impacts
clearly defi ned (Figure 5)(Reinert, 2001a).
No known impact
In recent years the Faroe Islands have built up a reputation of being
Other social and community impacts
foremost in fi sheries management and sustainable fi shing. In two
No known impact
international reports prepared in 2001, the Faroes fi shing industry came
out on top of the league for its fi sheries management (Chuenpagdee
Conclusions and future outlook
and Alder, 2001) and also on the question of profi tability the Faroes
The benthic community is moderately impacted mainly by bottom
came out on top (EEC, 2002). This positive evaluation of the Faroes
trawling.
fi shing performance is based on the successful new fi shing regulation
system started in 1996 including individual transferable eff ort quotas
in days within fl eet categories. However, the fi shing system, as with
28
GIWA REGIONAL ASSESSMENT 13 FAROE PLATEAU

---

Spawning area
is that all vessels within the fl eet segment gets an equal share. The
closures
1000 m
Area
Period
small-scale coastal fi shery (fl eet segment 5B) fi shes on a common
4
1 15 feb-31 mar
6
3
2
15 feb-15 apr
j
eff ort quota. The fi shing days may be traded within fl eet segments
500 m
5
3
1 feb-1 apr
4 15 jan-15 may
2
and with some restrictions between segments. The eff ort
7
Closed areas
5
15 feb-15 apr
to trawlings
e
regulation is maintained through a fi shing license system.
6
15 feb-15 apr
h
Area
Period
7
15 jan-1 apr
200 m
a
1 jan-31 dec
4. A complex system of area closures that regulates access to
aa 1 jun-31 aug
1
b
20 jan-1 mar
the fi shing grounds for the various fl eet segments. The main
nm
c
1 jan-31 dec
c
r
12
d
1 jan-31 dec
restrictions are: The trawlers are generally not allowed to fi sh
g
s
e
1 apr-31 jan
b
f
1 jan-31 dec
within the 12 nautical mile limit and within other areas closed to
g
1 jan-31 dec
h
1 jan-31 dec
trawlers, implying that large areas shallower than 200 m are closed
i
1 jan-31 dec
o
j
1 jan-31 dec
to trawling. There are exceptions for small trawlers that are allowed
61 N
eriod
f
a
k
k
1 jan-31 dec
l
1 jan-31 dec
a summer fi shery for fl atfi sh on the plateau. The nearshore area
aa
m
1 feb-1 jun
n
31 jan-1 apr
(inside the 6 nm line) is closed to the larger long liners. Gill netters
EEZ
l
o
1 jan-31 dec
p
1 jan-31 dec
are only allowed to fi sh at depths deeper than 350 m.
r
1 jan-31 dec
s
5. A number of supplementary technical regulations such as:
1 jan-31 dec
9 W
7 W
5 W
2
l
d
d
Spawning area closures, minimum mesh sizes, sorting grids, real-
Figure 5
Fishing area regulations in Division Vb.
Allocation of fishing days applies to the area inside the outer thick line on the
time closures to protect small fi sh, and minimum landing sizes. The
Faroe Plateau. Holders of effort quotas who fish outside this line can tripple their
number of days. Long liners larger than 110 GRT are not allowed to fish inside the
Faroe Bank shallower than 200 m is closed to trawling.
inner thick line on the Faroe Plateau. If long liners change from long line to jigging,
they can double their number of days. The Faroe Bank shallower than 200 m
6. According to Faroese legislation, all discarding is banned.
depths (a. aa) is regulated seperate from the Faroe Plateau. It is close to trawling
and the long line fishery is regulated by individual day quotas.
The single trawlers that target deepwater resources (redfi sh, saithe,
any other system, must be regularly updated. Fisheries research has
blue ling, Greenland halibut, and others) are not covered by the eff ort
shown that eff ectiveness in fi shing fl eets generally increases with 2-3%
regulation, and catches of cod and haddock are limited by maximum
per year. With the Faroe fi shing day system, the aim is to fi sh as much
by-catch allocation. Similarly, the gill netters that target monkfi sh and
as possible on a permitted day, therefore huge investments are made
Greenland halibut are not included in the eff ort system their catch
to increase effi
ciency. This can be as much as 5% per year. Although
of cod, haddock, and saithe is almost nil due to the depth of fi shing
widely accepted, there is a risk for collapse of the Faroe fi shing day
and the large mesh sizes. One fi shing day by long liners is considered
system if agreement cannot be reached as to how the system should
equivalent to two fi shing days for jiggers in the same size category. Long
be updated.
liners could therefore double their allocation by converting to jigging.
Holders of individual transferable eff ort quotas who fi sh outside this line
The key elements in the Faroese fi sheries management of the demersal
can fi sh for 3 days outside for each day allocated inside the line.
stocks are:
1. A separation of the fi shing vessels into fl eet segments that are
The Faroese eff ort management system links fi shing mortality on
based on physical vessel attributes, mainly size (GRT and HP) and
the demersal stocks, i.e. that the eff ort level (number of fi shing
vessel types (trawlers, long liners etc.). The fl eet segmentation is
days) concurrently determines the fi shing mortality on all three
a central element in controlling capacity, eff ort and the fi shing
demersal stocks. The fi shery for haddock and cod are closely linked.
pattern.
The fi shery for saithe is a more directed fi shery, albeit with by-catch
2. A capacity policy aiming at maintaining the fl eet capacity at the
of cod and haddock. According to ICES (2004b) fi shing mortality for
1997 level. The capacity is in principle maintained within each fl eet
the Faroe Plateau cod in 2003 was more than twice the level that was
segment, but there are rules for allowing vessel transfers between
recommended based on precautionary principles. For haddock and
groups (e.g. in conjunction with vessel replacement). The capacity
saithe the present fi shing mortality was also above the precautionary
policy is based on vessel licenses.
level. Therefore, ICES recommends a reduction of the fi shing eff ort
3. An eff ort system that allots a total number of fi shing days for the
directed at cod and haddock in the neighbourhood of 2/3. For the
coming fi shing year to each of the fl eet segments. The total fl eet
saithe fi sheries ICES recommends that eff ort be reduced by around
segment eff ort is subsequently divided between the individual
30%. This eff ort is predicated on the present low by-catch of cod and
vessels. Except for the small-scale coastal fi shery the general rule
haddock in the saithe fi sheries. If the by-catch of cod or haddock is
ASSESSMENT
29

---

observed to increase in the saithe fi shery, then eff ort will have to be
of fi shing days and several technical measures (Reinert, 2001a,b); this
reduced proportional to the increase in by-catch rate. For Faroe Bank
means that there should be no incentives to discard fi sh in order to
cod eff ort should be reduced to the 1996-2002 level.
maximise profi t (as is often seen in TAC based management systems).
The stock of Greenland halibut in the Faroe Islands area (a stock shared
Seabirds
between Greenland, Iceland and Faroe Islands) is considered at low
Seabirds are occasionally taken as by-catch especially fulmars which
levels, and catches have routinely exceeded ICES advice (ICES, 2003).
takes bait on long lines (Dunn and Steel, 2001). The number of seabirds
The status of other demersal stocks is not so well known but deep-water
taken as by-catch in long line fi sheries at the Faroe Islands is unknown.
species like blue ling and redfi sh are considered to be overexploited and
However, the fulmar population is increasing and the fi shermen try to
are presently at low levels.
get as few fulmars as possible. Therefore by-catch of seabirds is not
considered a problem of concern.
All the pelagic stocks entering the Faroese waters are widely migrating
stocks and the proportion that enters the Faroese area might be
Marine mammals
aff ected by the size of the stocks. Therefore the Faroes will benefi t from
Some seals and whales may be lost due to sinking. However, this is not
large stock sizes. Currently the Norwegian spring-spawning herring,
of conservation concern for pilot whales (see above on whaling). Some
blue whiting and mackerel are considered stable stocks in generally
seals are shot by salmon farmers. There is no signifi cant by-catch of
good shape, but they are fi shed at or above the recommended level
marine mammals in fi shing gear.
(ICES, 2003a,b). The reason for overfi shing on the latter stocks is inability
to reach an agreement of political reasons. For blue whiting all parties
Destructive fi shing practices
want to catch as much as possible to have a good argument for getting
There will always be some impact from trawl fi shing on the bottom
a large quota when agreement is reached sometime in the future.
habitat. However, there are large areas on the Faroe Plateau closed to
all trawl fi sheries (Reinert, 2001a; ICES, 2003). During the late 1970's and
Sea birds hunting
in the 1980's when the trawl fi shery expanded to deeper waters, there
No serious overexploitation is known, and the hunting has been
were severe impacts on the bottom habitat especially coral reefs. In
regulated for centuries (Nørrevang, 1986).
recent years this problem is regarded as minor, and some areas with

corals are closed to trawling.
Marine mammals hunting
The grey seal population may be overexploited locally (Bjarni Mikkelsen,
Decreased viability of stock through pollution and disease
Museum of Natural History, Faroe Islands, pers. comm.).
No known impact.
The pilot whale is an abundant species. As a small cetacean the whale is
Impact on biological and genetic diversity
not covered by the regulations of the IWC. Working through NAMMCO,
No known impact.
Faroese and international scientists keep a close watch on the size of the
whale population. The most recent scientifi c abundance estimate based
Socio-economic impacts
on regular sightings surveys is that there are approximately 780 000
Economic impacts
animals in the North East Atlantic. The annual catch fl uctuates with
The system for management of the Faroes fi sheries has worked well and
oceanic conditions, but the long-term average catch is approximately
been a benefi t for the economy, but more experience with system is
1 000 animals, corresponding to only a small fraction of the annual
needed to draw conclusions.
natural rate of increase. Hence the catch is regarded as sustainable
(Bloch, 1994; Weihe et al., 2003a).
Health impacts
No known impact.
Excessive by-catch and discards
Fish
Other social and community impacts
Discarding is forbidden by law. However, in some fi sheries, especially
No known impact.
deep-water fi sheries there are some discarding of non-commercial
species. The management system in Faroese waters is based on number
30
GIWA REGIONAL ASSESSMENT 13 FAROE PLATEAU

---

Conclusions and future outlook
Eff ects on marine mammals and seabirds are expected mainly
The task team experts found unsustainable exploitation of fi sh and other
to concern spatial shifts in areas of food production and primary
living resources to have moderate impact. Overexploitation was assessed
productivity (changes in upwelling sites), nesting and rearing sites,
to have moderate impact. By-catch and discards were considered to have
and increases in diseases and oceanic biotoxin production (from both
slight impact, while bottom trawling was assessed to have moderate
temperature increase and current changes).
impact on the bottom habitat especially corals. In recent years the problem
with corals was regarded minor because closing of areas with corals.
Sea level change
Analyses of tidal gauges for long time changes have not been carried
out, but signifi cant changes are not observed in available material.
T
C
A
Global change
IMP
Increased UV-b radiation as a result of ozone depletion
No known impact ­ no observations.
Environmental impacts
Changes in oceanography
Changes in ocean CO source/sink function
2
Direct current meter observations since 1995 shows that the volume
No known impact ­ no observations.
transport of Norwegian Deep Water from the Greenland and Norwegian
Seas into the North Atlantic is decreasing. Extrapolation back to 1950
Socio-economic impacts
using ocean hydrography at a weather ship station in the Norwegian
Economic impacts
Sea indicates that the decreasing trend has lasted at least over the last
No known impact.
half century, with acceleration in the decreasing trend over the last
decade (Hansen et al., 2001).
Health impacts
No known impact.
Although it is suggested that this change in the ocean currents may
have some eff ect on the ecosystem, there is no evidence for a direct
Other social and community impacts
link between observed variations in the ecosystem and the decrease
No known impact.
in the deep water overfl ow.
Conclusions and future outlook
The possible impact of global changes in climate and hydrological
Changes in oceanography were assessed to have slight impact now and
cycles on marine biota and contaminant pathways in the Faroe Islands
in 2020. However, from the history it is known that even small changes in
have been described in Heide-Jørgensen and Johnsen (1998), Gaard et
climate and ocean currents can infl uence the productivity in the marine
al. (2002), OSPAR Commission (2000), and Macdonald et al. (2003).
resources and their distribution. Therefore, better understanding
and predictions of the impact of global changes on climate, ocean
The oceanographic conditions around Faroe Islands are linked to
circulation and marine productivity have high priority for the Faroese
climate variability and the changes in the distributions of atmospheric
Fisheries Laboratory now and in the future (Jákupsstovu et al., 2003).
pressures on the northern hemisphere, for example the North Atlantic
Oscillation Index (NAO-index) and the Arctic Oscillation Index (OA-
index) (e.g. Macdonald et al., 2003). Changes are expected at sea,
although the uncertainty is also greatest here as long as the fate of the
Priority concerns for
North Atlantic Current has not been clarifi ed. Warmer deep water could
further analysis
result in a redistribution of pelagic and benthic communities. Impacts
on plankton are unknown for the time being.
The Task Team agreed to prioritise the issues of concern as given in
Table 3. Hence, the major concern themes were Pollution, Unsustainable
Productivity in marine natural resources are highly dependent on
exploitation of fi sh and other living resources, and Global change
climate, sea currents, primary productivity and plankton distributions,
including their links.
which are linked (Figure 4; Gaard et al., 2002; Steingrund et al., 2003;
Jacobsen et al., 2002; Jákupsstovu et al., 2003).
ASSESSMENT
31

---

Causal chain analysis
This section aims to identify the root causes of the environmental
Immediate causes
and socio-economic impacts resulting from those issues and
concerns that were prioritised during the assessment, so that
Chemical pollution
appropriate policy interventions can be developed and focused
The Faroese health authorities have issued dietary advice in relation to the
where they will yield the greatest benefi ts for the region. In order
utilisation of pilot whales as food (Weihe et al., 2003b). The major concern
to achieve this aim, the analysis involves a step-by-step process
is the heavy metal mercury which occurs in such high concentrations in
that identifi es the most important causal links between the
the whale liver that it gives cause for concern for the pilot whale (there
environmental and socio-economic impacts, their immediate
are no indications of its impact on a population level, i.e., reproductive
causes, the human activities and economic sectors responsible
capacity etc), and these high mercury concentrations also mean that
and, fi nally, the root causes that determine the behaviour of those
liver should not be used as food. Also, on the average, the concentration
sectors. The GIWA Causal chain analysis also recognises that,
of mercury in pilot whale muscle tissue exceeds the EU limit for fi sh
within each region, there is often enormous variation in capacity
for consumption, and dietary advice to limit consumption has been
and great social, cultural, political and environmental diversity.
issued. There is also particular concern regarding the persistent, lipid
In order to ensure that the fi nal outcomes of the GIWA are viable
soluble pollutants such as PCB, DDT etc. as they occur in whale blubber
options for future remediation, the Causal chain analyses of the
which is also normally used as food, in concentrations which are above
GIWA adopt relatively simple and practical analytical models and
threshold levels in European countries. Therefore dietary advice to limit
focus on specifi c sites within the region. For further details, please
the utilisation of pilot whale meat and blubber as food has been given
refer to the chapter describing the GIWA methodology.
and with a special regard to the developing foetus, females have been
advised as a safeguard to abstain from eating pilot whale blubber.
In addition to these considerations which are limited to the utilisation
Introduction
of one particular species from the marine environment, there is cause
for concern about the present level of dioxin and PCB with dioxin-
During the task team meeting it was decided to make causal
equivalent toxicity in especially lipid rich pelagic fi sh in the North-East
chain analyses for the impact issues chemical pollution and
Atlantic Ocean. The concentration of these substances is a problem for
overexploitation.
the utilisation of these species in the fi sh feed which is produced for
the aquaculture market (Hites et al., 2004).
Chemical pollution, the other prioritised GIWA issue no. 6, was found
to have moderate impact in Faroe Plateau mainly due to the impact on
A special concern has arisen the last few years during monitoring of
human health through consumption of marine food. Overexploitation,
pollutants in seabirds because some of these species also carry high
the prioritised GIWA issue no. 14, has been reported for cod, haddock,
levels of persistent organic pollutants. The levels are such that the safety
saithe, Greenland halibut, redfi sh, blue ling, and blue whiting. However,
of continuing the utilisation of some of these seabird species for human
the task team considered the impact to be moderate.
food may be questioned.
32
GIWA REGIONAL ASSESSMENT 13 FAROE PLATEAU

---

Overall, there is a problem with the long-range transported pollutants
mercury concentrations (>1.5 ngHg/m3, the generally accepted global
in the Faroese environment. This problem is severe because such
background average) which were attributed to two potential causes:
pollutants are biomagnifi ed in the marine food chain which the
local sources and long range transport. However, detailed analysis
Faroese populations are dependent of. Fish exports are vital for the
determined that local sources were not responsible for the elevated
Faroese economy as is hunting of marine mammals and seabirds for
levels observed, and it was further determined that the elevated levels
the Faroese culture.
were caused by long-range transport from Europe, most notably from
the UK.
Overexploitation
The Faroe Plateau cod and Faroe haddock were reduced to low levels
Likewise, POPs mainly originate from the industrialised world from
during the mid-1980s to mid-1990s, due to the combined eff ect of
where POPs are transported to the Faroe Islands by air and ocean
poor recruitment and high fi shing eff ort. In the period 1993­1995, ICES
currents.
considered the populations to be well below minimum biologically
acceptable levels and consequently advised no fi shing (ICES, 2003).
Overexploitation
Both stocks have since increased due to improved recruitment and
An overall diffi
culty in fi sheries assessment is to assess changes in the
growth (Figure 6). The Faroe Bank cod stock seems to be at or slightly
stocks due to both overfi shing and environmental changes (e.g. changes
above average. The Faroe saithe has been increasing from the record
in climate and ocean currents). For the Faroe assessment the collapse
low in 1992 to above biologically safe limits in 1998­2002.
mid-1990s was also a result of fi sh leaving the area where neither the
research vessels nor the commercial fi shermen could fi nd the fi sh and
later on the fi sh came back. This is a very unusual event, which have
350 000
Saithe SSB
Haddock SSB
never so clearly been seen before and which was only recognisable in
300 000
Cod SSB
250 000
retrospect. Faroe fi sh stocks can disappear again and growth can be
200 000
reduced due to environmental changes. These changes can be diffi
cult
SSB 150 000
to detect soon enough to be of use in the management.
100 000
50 000
According to Steingrund et al. (2003) changes in primary production
0
1961 1964 1967 1970 1973 1976 1979 1982 1985 1988 1991 1994 1997 2000
in the marine ecosystem and in the food availability for cod was most
Year
probably the driving force behind the collapse of the cod stock in 1991
Figure 6
The Faroe demersal spawning stock biomasses (SSB) of
as well as its rapid recovery in 1995.
cod, haddock, and saithe.
(Source: ICES, 2003)
Changes in primary production and the coupling to higher trophic
Root causes
levels (fi sh, sea birds, and marine mammals) are to a large extent
coupled to changes in climate and ocean circulation (Figure 4; Gaard
Chemical pollution
et al., 2002; Steingrund et al., 2003). Hence, climate is a driving force for
production of marine resources and commercial harvesting on Faroe
Long-range transport
Plateau.
The heavy metals assessment in AMAP focuses on mercury, lead, and
cadmium (AMAP, 1998, 2002). Of the metals mercury pollution generate
the greatest concern because levels in the Arctic are already high, and
are not declining despite signifi cant emissions reductions in Europe
Conclusions
and North America (Macdonald et al., 2003). Coal burning, waste
incineration and industrial processes around the world emit mercury
The vast majority of chemical pollution in Faroe Islands is due to long-
to the atmosphere, where natural processes transport the metal.
range transported contaminants from outside the Islands.
Gaseous Elemental Mercury (GEM) has been measured on the Faroe
The root causes for overexploitation are: inadequate management
Islands from May 2000 through March 2001 (Hoydal and Dam, 2003).
and increasing fi shing take (mortality) due to new catch technology,
The air concentration time series shows periods with elevated
which are to be solved within Faroe Islands and they are strictly not of
CAUSAL CHAIN ANALYSIS
33

---

GIWA concern. However, climate change greatly infl uences the natural
resources and is a very important factor for Faroese ability to manage
the natural resources and the consequences for socio-economics.
Hence, the main problems for the Faroe Plateau, the biota and the
society, are chemical pollution and unpredictable eff ects of climate
change. These problems are caused by the industrialised world, and
the lack of knowledge to predict and manage the eff ects of climate
change. These problems are global international problems to be solved
in international cooperation.
34
GIWA REGIONAL ASSESSMENT 13 FAROE PLATEAU

---

Policy options
This section aims to identify feasible policy options that target
Because pilot whales, which contain high concentrations of
key components identifi ed in the Causal chain analysis in order
environmental pollutants such as mercury and polychlorinated
to minimise future impacts on the transboundary aquatic
biphenyls (PCBs), also make up an important part of the Faroese diet,
environment. Recommended policy options were identifi ed
the health eff ects of exposure to these chemicals is an important topic
through a pragmatic process that evaluated a wide range of
for research and for dietary advice.
potential policy options proposed by regional experts and
key political actors according to a number of criteria that were
Research in ecosystems and natural resources is important for several
appropriate for the institutional context, such as political
reasons. The ocean surrounding the Faroe Islands borders on the prime
and social acceptability, costs and benefi ts and capacity for
areas for deep-water formation in the North Atlantic. It is therefore of
implementation. The policy options presented in the report
major importance for the global ocean circulation, and hence for the
require additional detailed analysis that is beyond the scope
regional and global climate. In addition, the currents that result from the
of the GIWA and, as a consequence, they are not formal
exchange of huge volumes of warm and cold water in this part of the
recommendations to governments but rather contributions to
ocean mean that the area is also important in terms of marine fauna.
broader policy processes in the region.
The recent near collapse of the Faroese fi shing industry highlights
the importance of carrying out studies of the dynamics of the marine
ecosystem. It also emphasises the importance of conducting surveys of
Definition of the problem
the commercial fi sh species and the environment to foresee changes in
the fi sh productivity and geographic distributions.
Pollutants are transported to the Faroe Islands by the atmosphere
and by the marine currents. Main sources of marine pollution are the
industrialised areas in Europe. Local sources of pollutants in the marine
environment at the Faroe Islands play a minor role.
Establishing of policy option
Situated far from the European continent, the Faroe Islands environment
Chemical pollution
is generally characterised by low levels of industrial pollutants.
The main conclusion of the Human Health Programme in AMAP phase
As a result, the Faroes can provide a useful baseline reference for
2 was that the current human exposure at the prevailing levels and
other regions exposed to higher levels of pollution. Establishing
mixtures of contaminants infl uences the health of Arctic populations
environmental baselines to assess any future environmental damage
in a negative way (Deutch and Hansen, 2003). Subtle eff ects have been
is especially important in light of the on-going exploration for off shore
demonstrated to be present at a sub-clinical level. In consideration of
hydrocarbons around the Faroes. The exploitation of hydrocarbons
the potential eff ects on future generations, eff orts to reduce the entry
could result in adverse environmental eff ects.
of persistent substances into the ecosystems of the world should be
accelerated. Furthermore, the process initiated through the AMAP
POLICY OPTIONS
35

---

under phase 1 and 2 should be continued and expanded to involve all
the economic scales of human adaptation; specifi cally the "lifetime"
relevant disciplines with the goal of pursuing a more holistic assessment
of a fi shing vessel. It is this resonance in time scales that makes the
of the health of the Arctic Peoples.
attribution of cause to the quasi-cycles in stock abundance more than
a purely scientifi c problem. There is a need to understand the natural
Overexploitation
physical and ecological causes of these "cycles" in marine ecosystems.
Sustainable fi shing
And then devise suffi
ciently long-term management to ameliorate
In 1987 the Brundtland Report, also known as Our Common Future
rather than amplify the economic consequences (Steele and Hoagland,
(World Commission on Environmental and Development, 1987),
2003).
alerted the world to the urgency of making progress toward economic
development that could be sustained without depleting natural
Recently FAO has given technical guidelines for responsible fi sheries
resources or harming the environment. The report provided a key
and fi sheries management using an Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries
statement on sustainable development, defi ning it as: development
(EAF) (FAO, 2001, 2003). These guidelines have been adopted to refl ect
that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability
the merging of two diff erent but related and ­ it is hoped ­ converging
of future generations to meet their own needs.
paradigms. The fi rst is that of ecosystem management, which aims to
meet its goal of conserving the structure, diversity and functioning of
In the North Atlantic considerable investments have been and
ecosystems through management actions that focus on the biophysical
continue to be made to manage fi sheries. Yet, despite these substantial
components of ecosystems (e.g. introduction of protected areas). The
investments, the fi shery management processes, including scientifi c
second is that of fi sheries management, which aims to meet the goals
advice, can hardly be described as successful, particularly for the
of satisfying societal and human needs for food and economic benefi ts
important cod fi sheries that have been the backbone of demersal
through management actions that focus on the fi shing activity and the
fi sheries in the North Atlantic (Maguire, 2001). However, at present the
target resource. Up until recently, these two paradigms have tended to
Faroes fi sheries management system started in 1987 are considered be
diverge into two diff erent perspectives, but the concept of sustainable
one of the best in the world today (Reinert, 2001a; Chuenpagdee and
development (Brundtland Report, Our Common Future) requires
Alder, 2001).
them to converge towards a more holistic approach that balances
both human well-being and ecological well-being. EAF is, in eff ect,
Fishery management has neglected the infl uence of the environment.
a way to implement sustainable development in a fi sheries context
According to Maguire (2001) it would benefi t from a more humble
(FAO, 2003).
evaluation of what it can reasonably expect to achieve, recognising
the large role of oceanographic and hydrographic variability. Fishery
management should formally and explicitly incorporate the social,
economic and environmental components of fi shery management in
Identification of the
addition the presently dominating stock assessment component. This
recommended policy option
should help put back the fi shermen as one of the component of the
ecosystem whose functions fi shery management is trying to protect.
Chemical pollution
The pollution stemming from the industrial regions of Northern Europe,
Steele and Hoagland (2003) have recently discussed the concept
America and Asia is caused by a complex of causes and the solution is
of sustainability in fi sheries. One of the main diffi
culties in fi sheries
to stop/reduce the chemical pollution which leads to problems for the
management is the "ratchet" eff ect (Ludwig et al., 1993). When the
biota and human population on the Faroe Plateau. The latter calls for
abundance of a stock increases, the fi shing capacity goes up. But
international cooperation and action such as AMAP and OSPAR (AMAP,
when later the stock decreases, the eff ort stays the same, usually with
2002; OSPAR Commission, 2000). It may be an important target area for
disastrous consequences for the stock and the economy. This general
GEF projects.
sequence occurs on top of a trend for "improved" gear technology.
The critical scientifi c problem is to distinguish between these two
Heavy metals
causes: natural environmental variability and changes in eff ort, fi shing
Current international actions on metals
boats and gear. According to Steele and Hoagland (2003) the time
In addition to national regulations concerning emissions and use
scale of natural changes in the sea (a few decades) is comparable to
of heavy metals, some signifi cant steps have recently been taken
36
GIWA REGIONAL ASSESSMENT 13 FAROE PLATEAU

---

internationally to address the heavy metals. The United Nations
The regional UN ECE agreement paved the way for global negotiations
Economic Commission for Europe (UN ECE) Convention on Long-Range
on banning POPs under the auspices of the United Nations Environment
Transboundary Air Pollution adopted a Protocol on Heavy Metals in
Programme. The Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants
1998. The protocol targets mercury, lead, and cadmium. Countries that
was opened for signature in May 2001. All AMAP countries have signed
are party to the protocol will have to reduce total annual emissions to
the Stockholm Convention. As of July, 2002, Canada, Iceland, Norway,
below the levels they emitted in 1990.
and Sweden had ratifi ed it.
As of June 15th, 2002, there were 36 signatories to the protocol,
Both agreements identify a number of specifi c POPs to be banned or
including all the Arctic countries except Russia. Of these, 10 had
whose use or emissions are to be restricted. They include industrial
ratifi ed it, including Canada, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, and
chemicals and by-products, such as PCBs, dioxins, furans, and
the United States. For the protocol to enter into force, sixteen countries
hexachlorobenzene. Also included are a number of organochlorine
must ratify it. At its meeting in 2000, the Arctic Council called on the
pesticides: aldrin, chlordane, dieldrin, DDT, endrin, heptachlor, mirex,
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to initiate a global
and toxaphene. Together, these are often called the `dirty dozen'. Some
assessment of mercury that could form the basis for appropriate
POPs, most notably the pesticide hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH), are
international action. This request was based on the fi ndings of AMAPs
covered in the UN ECE Protocol but not the Stockholm Convention.
fi rst assessment.
For several of the listed substances, some limited use is allowed, for
example DDT for fi ghting malaria.
In 2001, the UNEP Governing Council agreed to undertake such a study.
The study on mercury will summarise available information on the
The conventions also defi ne criteria for including new chemicals
health and environmental impacts of mercury, and compile information
based on their persistence, bioaccumulation, potential for long-
about prevention and control technologies and practices and their
range transport, and adverse eff ects. The Arctic is well suited as
associated costs and eff ectiveness. In addition, the UNEP Governing
an indicator region for long-range transport. Monitoring data that
Council requested, for consideration, an outline of options to address
provide information about the fate of chemicals in the Arctic will
any signifi cant global adverse impacts of mercury. These options
therefore be critical in identifying new POPs to be considered under
may include the reduction and/or elimination of the use, emissions,
the agreements.
discharges, and losses of mercury and its compounds; improving
international cooperation; and enhancing risk communication.
Overexploitation
The high dependency in the Faroe Islands of the marine resources
POPs
requires proper resource assessments and management. The advice
Several important steps have already been taken to address the
on management of the resources has so far been based solely on
threats POPs pose to the North Atlantic environment, such as the
fi sheries and fi shery independent survey data. However, the great
Stockholm Convention and the UN ECE POPs Protocol. The AMAP
variability in individual growth and recruitment to the fi sh stocks in the
(2002) assessment shows the continued need to bring Arctic concerns
area makes an ecosystem approach to resource management relevant
about POPs to the attention of these international policy fora to ensure
for the Faroe Islands.
continued emphasis on Arctic needs.
A preliminary work by Zeller and Reinert (2004) is an example of how an
Conventions regulate some POPs
ecosystem approach to fi sheries may be useful in fi sheries management
At a national level, the use and emissions of many POPs have been
in the Faroes:
restricted since the 1970s. In 1998, the United Nations Economic
Commission for Europe (UN ECE) negotiated a regional protocol
The Faroe Islands utilise a spatial- and eff ort-based system of fi sheries
on POPs under the Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air
management, explicitly incorporating ecosystem considerations in their
Pollution, the Aarhus POPs Protocol, which covers Europe, all states
policies. This management system was introduced relatively recently
of the former Soviet Union, and North America. All AMAP countries
(mid-1990s) (Reinert, 2001a,b). Given the exceptional importance of
except Russia are signatories to this convention. As of August 1, 2002,
marine resources to the Faroese culture and economy, eff ective and
the following AMAP countries had ratifi ed the POPs Protocol: Canada,
sustainable fi sheries management is of paramount importance to the
Denmark, Norway, and Sweden.
Faroes. Of particular interest in this regard at the present are ecosystem-
POLICY OPTIONS
37

---

level evaluations of the eff ects of the seasonal and gear-specifi c closure
realistic CO emission reduction targets for the diff erent sectors of
2
systems. By spatially explicit simulations using an ecosystem model of
the Faroe Islands economy.
the Faroese waters, Zeller and Reinert (2004) found that the current area
Promotion of fl eet reduction and rejuvenation measures in an eff ort
closures could be considered benefi cial in conserving major stocks of
to improve the long-term sustainability and fuel effi
ciency of the
demersal species, with biomass for cod, haddock and other demersal
fi shing fl eet.
species increasing over the 10-year simulation period. Simulated
Promoting energy effi ciency measures and the use of cleaner fuels
removal of the closure system reduced the eff ect of the projected
in the fi shing sector.
stock increases considerably. Greenland halibut, one of the major
Promoting wind energy schemes and eliminating barriers to third
deep-water species, and blue whiting, one of the main pelagic species,
party access to the electricity grid.
did not benefi t from the existing spatial management. Simulated
Promoting cooperation between the joint municipal company, SEV,
additional off shore closures of at least 20% of habitats deeper than
the Faroe Islands Government and the oil sector regarding energy
200 m benefi ted Greenland halibut only. Both Greenland halibut and
production on off shore installations.
blue whiting stocks benefi ted from drastic reductions in fi shing eff ort
Investigating ways of reducing CO emissions associated with
2
(between 20-50% reductions from 1997 eff ort levels). According to
off shore energy production.
Zeller and Reinert (2004) the simulation results suggest that the current
Improving and enlarging the available range of energy and
management regime, which limits eff ort and spatial access by certain
environmental indicators and statistics, and including regular
gears (trawls) is likely to be eff ective for demersal stocks. Furthermore,
fi gures for CO emissions, broken down by sector.
2
the simulations were also in line with single-species assessment advice,
which indicated that the deep-water fi sheries for Greenland halibut and
It is evident that global climatic change, in particular related to ocean
the pelagic fi sheries for blue whiting are being heavily overfi shed. The
temperature, salinity and currents, may have a potential very severe
simulations suggest that signifi cant management changes would be
impact on the fi sheries resources and the economy of the Faroes.
required to halt the current declining biomass trend for Greenland
However, the main causes for these eff ects shall be found outside the
halibut and blue whiting, including considerations for extensive spatial
Faroes, and only determined international action by the large emittants
closures for deep-water fi sheries, as well as drastic reductions in real
of greenhouse gases will be able to address this issue effi
ciently. Here,
eff ort for both pelagic and deep-water fi sheries.
The Faroes share fate with the cause of Small Island Development
States (SIDS)
To improve fi sheries resource management there is a need for better
understanding and predictions of the impact of global climate changes
on the Faroe Plateau marine ecosystem. Therefore, modeling the
coupling between climate, ocean circulation and marine productivity
Conclusions
has high priority for the Faroese Fisheries Laboratory (Jákupsstovu et
al., 2003).
Climate change and chemical pollution from outside the Islands impact
the natural resources on the Faroe Plateua by increasing the risks of
Global climate change
overexploitation and by contaminating the natural resources to levels
The Kingdom of Denmark comprises Denmark, Greenland and the Faroe
above the safe limits for human consumption. Both chemical pollution
Islands. The UN Framework Convention on Climate Changes has been
and climate change are caused by the industrialised world and they are
ratifi ed on behalf of all three parts of the Kingdom (Anon., 2003c).
global international problems to be solved in international cooperation.
It is important for Faroe Islands to inform the UN and the world about
In the Faroe Islands there is no energy policy or plan in place (Anon.,
the impact of chemical pollution and climate change and to take
2001). The Islands' lack of a specifi c legislative framework on energy
active part in solving the root causes to the problems. The Faroese
use is recognised as an impediment to promoting energy effi
ciency
are very aware of the threats to habitats, biota, human health due to
measures throughout the Faroese economy. According to Anon. (2001),
climate change, chemical pollution and overexploitation through its
necessary measures that will in part demand an extended regulatory
membership and active participation in international organisations
regime may include:
concerned with resource management (e.g. ICES, NAFO, NEAFC,
Establishing a regulatory framework for energy production and use
NAMMCO, Arctic Council) and pollution (e.g. AMAP and OSPAR).
and setting clear targets on renewable energy sources. Establishing
38
GIWA REGIONAL ASSESSMENT 13 FAROE PLATEAU

---

References
Appelquist, H., Asbirk, S. and Drabæk I.1984. Mercury Monitoring:
Bloch, D. 1994. Pilot whales in the North Atlantic. Age, growth and
Mercury stability in bird feather. Mar. Poll. Bull. 15 (1) 22-24.
social structure in Faroese grinds of the long-fi nned pilot whale,
Appelquist, H., Drabæk I. and Asbirk, S. 1985. Variation in mercury
Globicephala melas. PhD thesis, the University of Lund, Sweden.
content of Guillemot feathers over 150 years. Mar. Poll. Bull. 16 (6)
Bloch, D. 1996a. Whaling in the Faroe Islands, 1584-1994, an overview.
244-248.
In: Holm, P., Starkey, D.J. and Thór, J. Th. (eds.). The North Atlantic
Anonymous, 1997. Preparation for Oil Exploration. Report of the
Fisheries, 11-1976. National perspectives on a common resource.
Hydrocarbon Planning Commission to the Faroese Government.
Studia Atlantica 1: 49-61.
524 pp.
Bloch, D. 1996b. Færøernes grindefangst med en tilføjelse
Anon., 2001. Study of the impact of the development of hydrocarbon
om døglingefangsten. 2001. 6th revised edition. Føroya
resources in the Faroe Islands. Menas Associates Limited in
Náttúrugripasavn.
association with Fróðskaparsetur Føroya (University of Faroe
Bloch, D. 1998. A review of marine mammals observed, caught or
Islands). A study commissioned by BP Amoco Exploration.
stranded over the last two centuries in Faroese Waters. Shetland
Anon., 2003a. Information Memorandum, Faroe Islands, September
Sea Mammal Report, 1997: 15-37.
2003, Landsbanki Føroya, Governmental Bank. 22p.
Bloch, D., Desportes, G., Zachariassen, M. and Christensen, I. 1996. The
Anon., 2003b. Bekendtgørelse om visse forureninger i fødevare.
Northern Bottlenose Whale in the Faroe Islands, 1584-1994. J. Zool.
Fødevaredirektoratet, bekendtgørelse nr. 860, 22.10.2003.
London 239: 123-140.
Anon., 2003c. DenmarkŽs third national communication on climate
Bloch, D., Heide-Jørgensen, M.P., Stefansson, E., Mikkelsen, B., Ofstad, L.H.,
change. Under the United Nations Framework Convection on
Dietz, R. and Andersen, L.W. 2003. Short-term movements of pilot
climate change. Danish Environmental Protection Agency, Danish
whales around the Faroe Islands. Wildlife Biology 9,1: 71-82.
ministry of the Environment. 212 pp.
Bloch, D. and Lastein, L. 1993. Morphometric segregation of long-
AMAP, 1998. AMAP Assessment Report: Arctic Pollution Issues. Arctic
fi nned pilot whales in eastern and western North Atlantic. Ophelia
Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP), Oslo, Norway.
38: 55-68.
Xii+859 pp.
Bloch, D., and Lastein, L. 1995. Modelling the school structure of pilot
AMAP, 2002. Arctic Pollution 2002. Arctic Monitoring and Assessment
whales in the Faroe Islands, 1832-1994. In: Blix, A.S., Walløe, L. and
Programme (AMAP), Oslo, Norway. Vii + 112 pp. www.amap.no.
Ulltang, U. (eds.). Whales, seals, fi sh and man: 499-508. Elsevier.
AMAP, 2003. AMAP 2002: Human Health in the Arctic. Arctic Monitoring
Amsterdam - Lausanne - New York - Oxford - Shannon - Tokyo.
and Assessment Programme (AMAP), Oslo, Norway. Xiv + 137 pp.
Bloch, D., Mikkelsen, B. and Ofstad, L.H. 2001. Marine Mammals in Faroese
Baars,A.J., M. I. Bakker, R. A. Baumann, P. E. Boon, J. I. Freijer, L. A. P.
Waters with special attention to the south-south-eastern Sector of
Hoogenboom, R. Hoogerbrugge, J. D. van Klaveren, A. K. D. Liem,
the region. GEM Report to Environmental Impact Assessment
W. A. Traag and J. de Vries, 2004. Dioxins, dioxin-like PCBs and non-
Programme: 1-40.
dioxin-like PCBs in foodstuff s: occurrence and dietary intake in The
Bruntse G. and O.S. Tendal (eds.), 2001: Marine biological investigations
Netherlands. Toxicology Letters Volume 151, Issue 1 , p.51-61.
and assemblages of benthic invertebrates from the Faroe Islands.
- Kaldbak Marine Biological Laboratory. 80 pp.
REFERENCES
39

---

Buckland, S.T., Bloch, D., Cattanach, K.L., Gunnlaugsson, T., Hoydal, K.,
Fitzgerald, W.F., Engstrom, D.R., Mason, R.P., Nater, E.A.1998. The case
Lens, S. and Sigurjónsson, J. 1993. Distribution and abundance of
for atmospheric mercury contamination in remote areas. Env. Sci.
long-fi nned pilot whales in the North Atlantic, estimated from
Technol. 32(1) 1-7.
NASS-1987 and NASS-89 data. Rep. int. Whal. Commn (special issue
Gaard, E., Hansen, B., Olsen, B., and Reinert, J. 2002. Ecological Features
14): 33-49.
and Recent Trends in the Physical Environment, Plankton, Fish
Christoff ersen, K. 2002. Previous Studies of Freshwater Biota in Faroese
Stocks, and Seabirds in the Faroe Shelf Ecosystem. In K. Sherman
Lakes. Ann. Soc. Scient. Færoensis Suppl. 36: 7-13
and H.R. Skjoldal (editors), p 245-265, Large Marine Ecosystem of
Chuenpagdee R. and J. Alder, 2001. Sustainability Ranking of North
the North Atlantic 449 pp. Elsevier.
Atlantic Fisheries. In: Tony Pitcher, Ussif Rashid Sumaila and Daniel
Grandjean, P., Weihe, P., White, R.F., and Debes, F., 1998. Cognitive
Pauly. (eds) Fisheries impacts on North Atlantic ecosystems:
performance of children prenatally exposed to "safe" levels of
Evaluations and Policy Exploration. Fisheries Centre Research
methylmercury. Env. Res. Sec A. 77, 165-172.
Reports 9(5): 49-54.
Hagstova, 2003. `Statistics Faroe Islands': www.hagstova.fo .
Committee on the Toxicological Eff ects of Methylmercury, 2000.
Hall-Spencer, S. et al., 2001. Trawling damage to Northeast Atlantic coral
Board on Environmental Studies and Toxicology, Commission on
reefs. - Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B 269: 507-511.
Life Sciences, National Research Council. Toxicological eff ects of
Hansen, B. and Østerhus, S. 2000. North Atlantic - Nordic Seas exchanges.
methylmercury. Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 2000.
Progress in Oceanography, 45, 109-208.
Online-version: (http://books.nap.edu/books/0309071402/html,
Hansen, B., Stefánsson, U., and Svendsen, E.1998. Iceland, Faroe and
accessed on April 30, 2001).
Norwegian Coasts. In The Sea, Volume 11, 733-758, edited by
Dam, M. and D. Bloch, 2000. Screening of mercury and persistent
A.R.Robinson and K.H.Brink, John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
organochlorine pollutants in long-fi nned pilot whale (Globicephala
Hansen, B., W. R. Turrell and S. Østerhus, 2001. Decreasing overfl ow from
melas) in the Faroe Islands. Marine Pollution Bulletin 2000, Vol. 40,
the Nordic seas into the Atlantic Ocean through the Faroe Bank
1090 - 1099.
Channel since 1950. Nature, 198, 520-528.
Dam, M. G. Bruntse, A. Reinert, and J.P. Joensen. 2000. Chapter 3: The
Heide-Jørgensen, H.S. and Johnsen, I., 1998: Ecosystem Vulnerability to
Faroe Islands. In C. Sheppard (Editor). Seas at The Millennium: An
Climate Change in Greenland and the Faroe Islands. Miljønyt no. 33,
Environmental Evaluation. PERGAMON, Elsevier Science Ltd.:31-41.
Danish Environmental Protection Agency, 266 pp.
Deutch B. and J.C. Hansen (Editors). 2003. AMAP Greenland and the
Heide-Jørgensen, M.P., Bloch, D., Stefansson, E., Mikkelsen, B., Ofstad, L.H.
Faroe Island 1997-2001. Vol. 1: Human Health. DANCEA. Ministry of
and Dietz, R. 2002. Diving behaviour of long-fi nned pilot whales
Environment, Denmark. 234pp.
Globicephala melas around the Faroe Islands. Wildlife Biology 8,4:
Desportes, G., Bloch, D., Andersen, L.W. and Mouritsen, R. 1994. The
307-313.
international research programme on the ecology and status of
Heilsufrøðiliga Starvsstovan, 1998. Landslæknin og Deildin fyri Arbeiðs-
the long-fi nned pilot whale off the Faroe Islands: Presentation,
og Almannaheilsu [Hygienic Institute, Chief Medical Offi
cer, and
results and references. Fróðskaparrit 40 (1992): 9-29.
Department for Occupational and Public Health]. Kosttilmæli um
Dunn, E and C. Steel, 2001. The impact of longline fi shing on seabirds
grind [Dietary recommendations about pilot whale consumption].
in the north-east Atlantic: recommendation for reducing mortality.
Tórshavn, Faroe Islands: Heilsufrøðiliga Starvsstovan, 1998.
RSPB, NOF, JNCC and Birdlife International. 2001, 107 pp)
Hites, R.A., J. A. Foran, D. O. Carpenter, M. C. Hamilton, B. A. Knuth, and S.
EEC, 2002. Economic performance of selected European fi shing fl eets.
J. Schwager, 2004. Global Assessment of Organic Contaminants in
European Commission.
Farmed Salmon. Science, Vol. 303, Issue 5655, 226-229.
FAO, 2001. What is the code of conduct for responsible fi sheries? FAO
Hoydal, K. and M. Dam (Editors), 2003. AMAP Greenland and the Faroe
Rome, 2003. 13pp.
Islands1997- 2001. Vol. 3: The Environment of the Faroe Islands.
FAO, 2003. The ecosystem approach to fi sheries. FAO Technical
DANCEA. Ministry of Environment, Denmark: 265p.
Guidelines for Responsible Fisheries. No. 4, Suppl. 2. Rome, FAO.
Hoydal, K., J. Olsen, and M. Dam, 2003. 7 AMAP Faroe Islands 1999-2001
2003. 112p.
POPs. In: Hoydal, K. and M. Dam (Editors), 2003. AMAP Greenland
Fiedler, H., Hutzinger, O., Welsch-Pausch, K. and Schmiedinger, A. 2000.
and the Faroe Islands1997- 2001. Vol. 3: The Environment of the
Evaluation of the occurrence of PCDD/PCDF and POPs in wastes
Faroe Islands. DANCEA. Ministry of Environment, Denmark: 221-
and theri potential to enter the foodchain. Univ. Bayreuth, Germany,
265.
pp.117.
40
GIWA REGIONAL ASSESSMENT 13 FAROE PLATEAU

---

ICES, 1998. Report of the northern pelagic and blue whiting fi sheries
Magnussen, E. 2003. Demersal fi sh assemblages of Faroe Bank.
working group. ICES CM 1998/ACFM:18, pp. 282.
In: Jákupsstovu, H.I. (ed.) 2003. Workshop on the Ecosystem
ICES, 2001. Report of the northern pelagic and blue whiting fi sheries
Modelling of Faroese Waters Tórshavn 24-26 September 2002.
working group. ICES CM 2001/ACFM:17, pp. 243.
Fiskirannsóknarstovan 2003. pp 95.
ICES, 2003. Report of the North-Western Working Group. Advisory
Maguire, J-J. 2001. Fisheries Science and Management in the North
Committee on Fishery Management ICES CM 2003/ACFM:24. Part
Atlantic. Pages 36-48 in Pitcher, T.J., Sumaila, U.R. and Pauly, D. (eds)
1 and 2 (www.ices.dk).
(2001) Fisheries Impacts on North Atlantic Ecosystems: Evaluations
ICES, 2003a. Report of the Northern pelagic and blue whiting fi sheries
and Policy Exploration. Fisheries Centre Research Reports 9 (5): 94
Working Group. ICES CM 2003/ACFM: 23, 229 pp.
pp.
ICES, 2003b. Report of the Working Group on the assessment of
Mikkelsen, B., Haug, T. and Nilssen, K.T. 2002. Summer diet of grey seals
mackerel, horse mackerel, sardine and anchovy. ICES CM 2003/
(Halichoerus grypus) in the Faroese waters. Sarsia. 87: 462-471.
ACFM: 07, 572 pp.
Monteiro, L.R. and Furness, R.W. 1995. Seabirds as monitoris of mercury
ICES, 2004a. Report of the Northern Pelagic and Blue Whiting Fisheries
in the marine environment. Water , Air and Soil pollution 80, 851-
Working Group, 27 April 4 May 2004 (ICES CM 2004/ACFM:24).
870.
ICES, 2004b. Report of the North-Western Working Group. Advisory
Nørrevang, A., 1986. Tradition of sea bird fowling in the Faroes: An
Committee on Fishery Management (www.ices.dk).
ecological basis for sustained fowling. Ornis Scandinavica 17: 275-
Jacobsen, J.A., Guðmundsdóttir, Á., Heino, M., Holst, J.C., Krysov, A.,
281.
Melle, W., Mork, K.A., Røttingen, I., Tangen, Ø. & Vilhjálmsson, H.
Nørrevang, A., T. Brattegard, A.B. Josefson, J.-A. Sneli and O.S. Tendal,
2002. Report of the Planning Group on Surveys on Pelagic Fish in
1994: List of BIOFAR stations. - Sarsia 79: 165-180.
the Norwegian Sea 2002. ICES CM 2002 (D:06): 1-68.
Olsen, B. 1998. Changes in Faroese Seabird Populations and Human
Jákupsstovu, H. I. (ed.), 2003. Workshop on Ecosystem Modelling
Impact. Fróðskaparrit 46. bók p 167-168.
of Faroese Waters Tórshavn 24-26 September 2002. Olsen, B. 2001. Burðardygg ferðavinna og fuglurin. Frágreiðing frá Føroya
Fiskirannsóknarstovan 2003.
Fuglafrøðifelag p 8-10
Jensen, J.K., Mortensen. S.M., and Langgaard, L. 1983. Biologiske eff ekter
Olsen, B. 2003. Seabird-data that can be used in modelling the
af vandudnyttelse ved Vestmanna og Eiði, Færøerne. Rapport til
ecosystem of the Faroese waters. In: Jákupsstovu, H.I. (ed.) 2003.
Overfredningsnævnet på Færøerne. Vandkvalitetsinstituttet, ATV,
Workshop on the Ecosystem Modelling of Faroese Waters Tórshavn
Hørsholm, Danmark.
24-26 September 2002. Fiskirannsóknarstovan 2003. pp 95.
Joensen, H.P. and H. Dahlgaard, 2003. 4 Radionuclides. In: Hoydal, K. and
Olsen, J., K. Hoydal, and M. Dam, 2003. AMAP Faroe Islands 1999-2001
M. Dam (Editors), 2003. AMAP Greenland and the Faroe Islands1997-
Heavy Metals. In: Hoydal, K. and M. Dam (Editors), 2003. AMAP
2001. Vol. 3: The Environment of the Faroe Islands. DANCEA. Ministry
Greenland and the Faroe Islands1997- 2001. Vol. 3: The Environment
of Environment, Denmark: 57-69.
of the Faroe Islands. DANCEA. Ministry of Environment, Denmark:
Larsen, R.B. and M. Dam, 2003. 5 AMAP Faroe Islands 1997-1998. Hoydal,
155-220.
K. and M. Dam (Editors), 2003. AMAP Greenland and the Faroe
OSPAR Commission, 2000. Quality Status Report 2000, Region I
Islands1997- 2001. Vol. 3: The Environment of the Faroe Islands.
­ Arctic Waters. OSPAR Commission, London. 102 + xiv pp.
DANCEA. Ministry of Environment, Denmark: 71-153.
(www.ospar.org)
Leonards, Pim E. G.; Traag, Wim A.; de Boer, Jacob, 2001. Polychlorinated
Reinert, J. 2001a. Faroese Waters: Environment, Biology, Fisheries and
dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDD), dibenzofurans (PCDF) and biphenyls
Management. In: Zeller, D., R. Watson, and D. Pauly (eds.). Fisheries
(PCBs) in Dutch fi shery products. Organohalogen Compounds
Impacts on North Atlantic Ecosystems: Catch, Eff ort and National/
(2001), 52(Dioxin 2001), 161-164.
Regional Data Sets. Fisheries Centre Research Reports 9(3): 110-
Ludwig, D., Hilborn, R., Walters, C., 1993. Uncertainty, resource
125.
exploitation and conservation. Science 260, 17­26.
Reinert, J. 2001b. Faroese Fisheries: Discards and Non-mandated Catches.
Magnussen, E. 2002. Demersal fi sh assemblages of the Faroe Bank:
In: Zeller, D., R. Watson, and D. Pauly (eds.). Fisheries Impacts on
Species composition, distribution, biomass spectrum and diversity.
North Atlantic Ecosystems: Catch, Eff ort and National/Regional Data
Mar.Ecol.Prog.Ser. 238:211-225.
Sets. Fisheries Centre Research Reports 9(3): 126-129.
REFERENCES
41

---

Reinert, J. 2003. Fishes in Faroese Waters ­ a brief overview. In:
Thiel, H. and A. Kowlow (eds.), 2001. Managing risks to biodiversity
Jákupsstovu, H.I. (ed.) 2003. Workshop on the Ecosystem
and the environment on the high sea, including tools such as
Modelling of Faroese Waters Tórshavn 24-26 September 2002.
marine protected afras - Scientifi c requirements and legal aspects.
Fiskirannsóknarstovan 2003. pp 95.
- Proceedings of the expert workshop held at the International
Robinson, Clive; Rose, Martin; White, Shaun; Gem, Martin; Gleadle,
Academy for Nature Conservation, Isle of Vilm, Germany, 27
Alison; Harrison, Nigel, 2000. PCDDs, PCDFs and PCBs in fi sh and
February - 4 March 2001. 216 pp. (Her særligt A.J. Grahan: Deep-
fi sh fi ngers on sale in the UK. Organohalogen Compounds (2000),
water coral conservation. Pp 67-74)
47 334-337.
Quass, U., Fermann, M. and Broker, G., 2000. The European Dioxin
Rogers, A.D., 1999: The biology of Lophelia pertusa (Linnaeus, 1758)
emission inventory Stage II. Vol I.North Rhine Westphalia State
and other deep-water reef-forming corals and impacts from human
Environment Agency, pp. 54.
activities. - Internat. Rev. Hydrobiol. 4: 315-406.
Weihe, P, M. Dam, and Á. Olafsson., 2003a. Chapter 5. The Faroe Islands.
Schmidt, S. F., O. S. Tendal, and E. Magnussen. 2003. The Faroe Bank ­ A
Sociocultural environment, lifestyle, health and contaminant
Potential MPA. WWF's Showcase Examples for the OSPAR System
exposure. In: Deutch B. and J.C. Hansen (Editors), 2003. AMAP
of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). www.ngo.grida.no/wwfneap/
Greenland and the Faroe Island 1997-2001. Vol. 1: Human Health.
Projects/MPAmap.htm
DANCEA. Ministry of Environment, Denmark: 123-134.
Somer, E. and Appelquist, H., 1974. Changes and diff erences in mercury
Weihe, P, Steuerwald, U, Taheri S, Færø O, Veyhe AS, Nicolajen D, 2003b.
level in the Baltic and Kattegat compared to the North Atlantic
Chapter 6. The Human Health programme in the Faroe Islands 1985-
using Uria sp. (Guillemot sp.) and Cepphus grylle (Black guillemot)
2001. In: Deutch B. and J.C. Hansen (Editors), 2003. AMAP Greenland
as indicators. 9the Conference of the Baltic oceanorgraphers, Paper
and the Faroe Island 1997-2001. Vol. 1: Human Health. DANCEA.
no. 30, 379-387.
Ministry of Environment, Denmark: 135-212.
Steele, J. and P. Hoagland, 2003. Are fi sheries "sustainable"?. Fisheries
World Commission on Environment and Development. 1987 - Our
Research 64 (2003) 1­3
common future. Oxford, UK; Oxford University Press: 398 pp.
Steingrund, P. 2003. Relationship between primary production, food
Zeller, D. and Reinert, J. 2004. Modelling spatial closures and fi shing
abundance and fi sh production on Faroe Plateau. In: Jákupsstovu,
eff ort restrictions in the Faroe Islands marine ecosystem. Ecological
H.I. (ed.) 2003. Workshop on the Ecosystem Modelling of Faroese
Modelling, 172: 403-420.
Waters Tórshavn 24-26 September 2002. Fiskirannsóknarstovan
2003. pp 95.
Steingrund, P., L.H. Ofstad, and D.H. Olsen, 2003. Eff ect of recruitment,
individual weights, fi
shing eff ort, and fl uctuating longline
catchability on the catch of Faroe Plateau cod (Gadus morhua L.)
in the period 1989-1999. ICES Marine Science Symposia, 219: 418-
420.
Sørensen, J., G. Bruntse, K. Gunnarsson and R. Nielsen, 2001: List of
BIOFAR 2 stations. - Fróðskaparrit 48: 61-85.
Sørensen, J. 2003. Benthos in modelling the Faroe Shelf ecosystem.
In: Jákupsstovu, H.I. (ed.) 2003. Workshop on the Ecosystem
Modelling of Faroese Waters Tórshavn 24-26 September 2002.
Fiskirannsóknarstovan 2003. pp 95.
Tendal, O.S., T. Brattegard, A. Nørrevang and J.-A. Sneli: The BIOFAR 1
programme: background, accomplishment, and some outcome
from inter-Nordic investigations around the Faroe Islands (NE
Atlantic). ­ Froskaparrit (In press)
42
GIWA REGIONAL ASSESSMENT 13 FAROE PLATEAU

---

Annexes
Annex I
List of contributing authors
Faroe plateau task team experts ­ meeting participants and contributors:
The Scaling and Scoping meeting held 8. October 2003 at the Fiskirannsóknarstovan (Faroese Fisheries Laboratory)
Name
Country
Field of work
Jákup Reinert
Faroe Islands
Fisheries research
Jan Arge Jacobsen*
Faroe Islands
Fisheries Research
Andrias Reinert*
Faroe Islands
Fish Research Freshwater
Dorete Bloch
Faroe Islands
Habitat and community modification, marine mammals, and other issues
Bjarni Mikkelsen
Faroe Islands
Marine mammals
Bergur Olsen
Faroe Islands
Seabirds
Arne Nørrevang
Faroe Islands
Benthic community modification, and other issues
Jákup P. Joensen*
Faroe Islands
Pollution and other environmental issues
Pál Weihe
Faroe Islands
Biomagnification of pollutants, human health
Eyðfinn Magnusson*
Faroe Islands
Marine Ecology
Eilif Gaard
Faroe Islands
Marine Ecology
Sámal Johansen
Faroe Islands
Socio-economy
Maria Gunnleivsdóttir Hansen*
Faroe Islands
Pollution
Johanna Olsen
Faroe Islands
Pollution
Maria Dam*
Faroe Islands
Pollution, AMAP
Knud Simonsen*
Faroe Islands
Oceanography and Climate
Sigmundur Ísfeld*
Faroe Islands
(Advicer on political structure), Department of Foreign Affairs, Faroe Prime Minister's Office
ANNEXES
43

---

---

The Global International
Waters Assessment
This report presents the results of the Global International Waters
Adequately managing the world's aquatic resources for the benefi t of
Assessment (GIWA) of the transboundary waters of the Faroe Plateau
all is, for a variety of reasons, a very complex task. The liquid state of
region. This and the subsequent chapter off er a background that
the most of the world's water means that, without the construction
describes the impetus behind the establishment of GIWA, its
of reservoirs, dams and canals it is free to fl ow wherever the laws of
objectives and how the GIWA was implemented.
nature dictate. Water is, therefore, a vector transporting not only a
wide variety of valuable resources but also problems from one area
to another. The effl
uents emanating from environmentally destructive
activities in upstream drainage areas are propagated downstream
The need for a global
and can aff ect other areas considerable distances away. In the case of
international waters
transboundary river basins, such as the Nile, Amazon and Niger, the
assessment
impacts are transported across national borders and can be observed
in the numerous countries situated within their catchments. In the case
of large oceanic currents, the impacts can even be propagated between
Globally, people are becoming increasingly aware of the degradation of
continents (AMAP 1998). Therefore, the inextricable linkages within
the world's water bodies. Disasters from fl oods and droughts, frequently
and between both freshwater and marine environments dictates that
reported in the media, are considered to be linked with ongoing global
management of aquatic resources ought to be implemented through
climate change (IPCC 2001), accidents involving large ships pollute public
a drainage basin approach.
beaches and threaten marine life and almost every commercial fi sh stock
is exploited beyond sustainable limits - it is estimated that the global
In addition, there is growing appreciation of the incongruence
stocks of large predatory fi sh have declined to less that 10% of pre-
between the transboundary nature of many aquatic resources and the
industrial fi shing levels (Myers & Worm 2003). Further, more than 1 billion
traditional introspective nationally focused approaches to managing
people worldwide lack access to safe drinking water and 2 billion people
those resources. Water, unlike laws and management plans, does not
lack proper sanitation which causes approximately 4 billion cases of
respect national borders and, as a consequence, if future management
diarrhoea each year and results in the death of 2.2 million people, mostly
of water and aquatic resources is to be successful, then a shift in focus
children younger than fi ve (WHO-UNICEF 2002). Moreover, freshwater
towards international cooperation and intergovernmental agreements
and marine habitats are destroyed by infrastructure developments,
is required (UN 1972). Furthermore, the complexity of managing the
dams, roads, ports and human settlements (Brinson & Malvárez 2002,
world's water resources is exacerbated by the dependence of a great
Kennish 2002). As a consequence, there is growing public concern
variety of domestic and industrial activities on those resources. As a
regarding the declining quality and quantity of the world's aquatic
consequence, cross-sectoral multidisciplinary approaches that integrate
resources because of human activities, which has resulted in mounting
environmental, socio-economic and development aspects into
pressure on governments and decision makers to institute new and
management must be adopted. Unfortunately however, the scientifi c
innovative policies to manage those resources in a sustainable way
information or capacity within each discipline is often not available or
ensuring their availability for future generations.
is inadequately translated for use by managers, decision makers and
GLOBAL INTERNATIONAL WATERS ASSESSMENT
i

---

policy developers. These inadequacies constitute a serious impediment
The Global Environment Facility (GEF)
to the implementation of urgently needed innovative policies.
The Global Environment Facility forges international co-operation and fi nances actions to address
six critical threats to the global environment: biodiversity loss, climate change, degradation of
international waters, ozone depletion, land degradation, and persistent organic pollutants (POPs).
Continual assessment of the prevailing and future threats to aquatic
The overall strategic thrust of GEF-funded international waters activities is to meet the incremental
ecosystems and their implications for human populations is essential if
costs of: (a) assisting groups of countries to better understand the environmental concerns of
their international waters and work collaboratively to address them; (b) building the capacity
governments and decision makers are going to be able to make strategic
of existing institutions to utilise a more comprehensive approach for addressing transboundary
policy and management decisions that promote the sustainable use of
water-related environmental concerns; and (c) implementing measures that address the priority
transboundary environmental concerns. The goal is to assist countries to utilise the full range of
those resources and respond to the growing concerns of the general
technical, economic, fi nancial, regulatory, and institutional measures needed to operationalise
public. Although many assessments of aquatic resources are being
sustainable development strategies for international waters.
conducted by local, national, regional and international bodies, past
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
assessments have often concentrated on specifi c themes, such as
United Nations Environment Programme, established in 1972, is the voice for the environment
biodiversity or persistent toxic substances, or have focused only on
within the United Nations system. The mission of UNEP is to provide leadership and encourage
partnership in caring for the environment by inspiring, informing, and enabling nations and
marine or freshwaters. A globally coherent, drainage basin based
peoples to improve their quality of life without compromising that of future generations.
assessment that embraces the inextricable links between transboundary
UNEP work encompasses:

freshwater and marine systems, and between environmental and
Assessing global, regional and national environmental conditions and trends;
Developing international and national environmental instruments;
societal issues, has never been conducted previously.
Strengthening institutions for the wise management of the environment;
Facilitating the transfer of knowledge and technology for sustainable development;
Encouraging new partnerships and mind-sets within civil society and the private sector.
International call for action
University of Kalmar
University of Kalmar hosts the GIWA Co-ordination Offi ce and provides scientifi c advice and
administrative and technical assistance to GIWA. University of Kalmar is situated on the coast of
The need for a holistic assessment of transboundary waters in order to
the Baltic Sea. The city has a long tradition of higher education; teachers and marine offi cers have
been educated in Kalmar since the middle of the 19th century. Today, natural science is a priority
respond to growing public concerns and provide advice to governments
area which gives Kalmar a unique educational and research profi le compared with other smaller
universities in Sweden. Of particular relevance for GIWA is the established research in aquatic and
and decision makers regarding the management of aquatic resources
environmental science. Issues linked to the concept of sustainable development are implemented
was recognised by several international bodies focusing on the global
by the research programme Natural Resources Management and Agenda 21 Research School.
environment. In particular, the Global Environment Facility (GEF)
Since its establishment GIWA has grown to become an integral part of University activities.
The GIWA Co-ordination offi ce and GIWA Core team are located at the Kalmarsund Laboratory, the
observed that the International Waters (IW) component of the GEF
university centre for water-related research. Senior scientists appointed by the University are actively
suff ered from the lack of a global assessment which made it diffi
cult
involved in the GIWA peer-review and steering groups. As a result of the cooperation the University
can offer courses and seminars related to GIWA objectives and international water issues.
to prioritise international water projects, particularly considering
the inadequate understanding of the nature and root causes of
environmental problems. In 1996, at its fourth meeting in Nairobi, the
causes of degradation of the transboundary aquatic environment and
GEF Scientifi c and Technical Advisory Panel (STAP), noted that: "Lack of
options for addressing them. These pro cesses led to the development
an International Waters Assessment comparable with that of the IPCC, the
of the Global International Waters Assessment (GIWA) that would be
Global Biodiversity Assessment, and the Stratospheric Ozone Assessment,
implemented by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in
was a unique and serious impediment to the implementation of the
conjunction with the University of Kalmar, Sweden, on behalf of the GEF.
International Waters Component of the GEF".
The GIWA was inaugurated in Kalmar in October 1999 by the Executive
Director of UNEP, Dr. Klaus Töpfer, and the late Swedish Minister of the
The urgent need for an assessment of the causes of environmental
Environment, Kjell Larsson. On this occasion Dr. Töpfer stated: "GIWA
degradation was also highlighted at the UN Special Session on
is the framework of UNEPŽs global water assessment strategy and will
the Environment (UNGASS) in 1997, where commitments were
enable us to record and report on critical water resources for the planet for
made regarding the work of the UN Commission on Sustainable
consideration of sustainable development management practices as part of
Development (UNCSD) on freshwater in 1998 and seas in 1999. Also in
our responsibilities under Agenda 21 agreements of the Rio conference".
1997, two international Declarations, the Potomac Declaration: Towards
enhanced ocean security into the third millennium, and the Stockholm
The importance of the GIWA has been further underpinned by the UN
Statement on inter action of land activities, freshwater and enclosed
Millennium Development Goals adopted by the UN General Assembly
seas, specifi cally emphasised the need for an investigation of the root
in 2000 and the Declaration from the World Summit on Sustainable
ii
REGIONAL ASSESSMENTS

---

Development in 2002. The development goals aimed to halve the
International waters and transboundary issues
proportion of people without access to safe drinking water and basic
The term "international waters", as used for the purposes of the GEF Operational Strategy,
sanitation by the year 2015 (United Nations Millennium Declaration
includes the oceans, large marine ecosystems, enclosed or semi-enclosed seas and estuaries, as
well as rivers, lakes, groundwater systems, and wetlands with transboundary drainage basins
2000). The WSSD also calls for integrated management of land, water and
or common borders. The water-related ecosystems associated with these waters are considered
living resources (WSSD 2002) and, by 2010, the Reykjavik Declaration on
integral parts of the systems.
The term "transboundary issues" is used to describe the threats to the aquatic environment
Responsible Fisheries in the Marine Ecosystem should be implemented
linked to globalisation, international trade, demographic changes and technological advancement,
by all countries that are party to the declaration (FAO 2001).
threats that are additional to those created through transboundary movement of water. Single
country policies and actions are inadequate in order to cope with these challenges and this makes
them transboundary in nature.
The international waters area includes numerous international conventions, treaties, and
agreements. The architecture of marine agreements is especially complex, and a large number
The conceptual framework
of bilateral and multilateral agreements exist for transboundary freshwater basins. Related
conventions and agreements in other areas increase the complexity. These initiatives provide
and objectives
a new opportunity for cooperating nations to link many different programmes and instruments
into regional comprehensive approaches to address international waters.
Considering the general decline in the condition of the world's aquatic
the large-scale deforestation of mangroves for ponds (Primavera 1997).
resources and the internationally recognised need for a globally
Within the GIWA, these "non-hydrological" factors constitute as large
coherent assessment of transboundary waters, the primary objectives
a transboundary infl uence as more traditionally recognised problems,
of the GIWA are:
such as the construction of dams that regulate the fl ow of water into

To provide a prioritising mechanism that allows the GEF to focus
a neighbouring country, and are considered equally important. In
their resources so that they are used in the most cost eff ective
addition, the GIWA recognises the importance of hydrological units that
manner to achieve signifi cant environmental benefi ts, at national,
would not normally be considered transboundary but exert a signifi cant
regional and global levels; and
infl uence on transboundary waters, such as the Yangtze River in China
To highlight areas in which governments can develop and
which discharges into the East China Sea (Daoji & Daler 2004) and the
implement strategic policies to reduce environmental degradation
Volga River in Russia which is largely responsible for the condition of
and improve the management of aquatic resources.
the Caspian Sea (Barannik et al. 2004). Furthermore, the GIWA is a truly
regional assessment that has incorporated data from a wide range of
In order to meet these objectives and address some of the current
sources and included expert knowledge and information from a wide
inadequacies in international aquatic resources management, the GIWA
range of sectors and from each country in the region. Therefore, the
has incorporated four essential elements into its design:
transboundary concept adopted by the GIWA extends to include

A broad transboundary approach that generates a truly regional
impacts caused by globalisation, international trade, demographic
perspective through the incorporation of expertise and existing
changes and technological advances and recognises the need for
information from all nations in the region and the assessment of
international cooperation to address them.
all factors that infl uence the aquatic resources of the region;

A drainage basin approach integrating freshwater and marine
systems;

A multidisciplinary approach integrating environmental and socio-
The organisational structure and
economic information and expertise; and
implementation of the GIWA

A coherent assessment that enables global comparison of the
results.
The scale of the assessment
Initially, the scope of the GIWA was confi ned to transboundary waters
The GIWA builds on previous assessments implemented within the GEF
in areas that included countries eligible to receive funds from the GEF.
International Waters portfolio but has developed and adopted a broader
However, it was recognised that a truly global perspective would only
defi nition of transboundary waters to include factors that infl uence the
be achieved if industrialised, GEF-ineligible regions of the world were
quality and quantity of global aquatic resources. For example, due to
also assessed. Financial resources to assess the GEF-eligible countries
globalisation and international trade, the market for penaeid shrimps
were obtained primarily from the GEF (68%), the Swedish International
has widened and the prices soared. This, in turn, has encouraged
Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) (18%), and the Finnish
entrepreneurs in South East Asia to expand aquaculture resulting in
Department for International Development Cooperation (FINNIDA)
GLOBAL INTERNATIONAL WATERS ASSESSMENT
iii

---

1
15
11
16
14
12
28
10
13
17
25
29
9
18
30
19
23
22
8
7
31
6
20
24
26
35
33
2
34
27
5
21
50
32
51
36
37
41
52
4
49
53
43
65
55
48
54
3
42
56
46
62
47
40b
40a
57
62
45b
39
59
45a
58
60
64
44
61
38
63
66
1 Arctic
12 Norwegian
Sea
(LME)
24 Aral
Sea
36 East-China
Sea
(LME)
46
Somali Coastal Current (LME)
58
North Australian Shelf (LME)
2
Gulf of Mexico (LME)
13 Faroe
plateau
25
Gulf of Alaska (LME)
37
Hawaiian Archipelago (LME)
47
East African Rift Valley Lakes
59 Coral
Sea
Basin
3
Caribbean Sea (LME)
14
Iceland Shelf (LME)
26
California Current (LME)
38
Patagonian Shelf (LME)
48
Gulf of Aden
60
Great Barrier Reef (LME)
4 Caribbean
Islands
15 East
Greenland
Shelf
(LME)
27
Gulf of California (LME)
39
Brazil Current (LME)
49
Red Sea (LME)
61 Great
Australian
Bight
5
Southeast Shelf (LME)
16
West Greenland Shelf (LME)
28
East Bering Sea (LME)
40a Brazilian Northeast (LME)
50 The
Gulf
62
Small Island States
6 Northeast
Shelf
(LME)
17
Baltic Sea (LME)
29
West Bering Sea (LME)
40b Amazon
51 Jordan
63 Tasman
Sea
7
Scotian Shelf (LME)
18
North Sea (LME)
30
Sea of Okhotsk (LME)
41
Canary Current (LME)
52
Arabian Sea (LME)
64 Humboldt
Current
(LME)
8
Gulf of St Lawrence
19
Celtic-Biscay Shelf (LME)
31
Oyashio Current (LME)
42 Guinea
Current
(LME)
53
Bay of Bengal S.E.
65 Eastern
Equatorial
Pacific
9
Newfoundland Shelf (LME)
20 Iberian
Coastal
(LME)
32
Kuroshio Current (LME)
43 Lake
Chad
54 South
China
Sea
(LME)
66 Antarctic
(LME)
10
Baffin Bay, Labrador Sea,
21
Mediterranean Sea (LME)
33
Sea of Japan/East Sea (LME)
44 Benguela
Current
(LME)
55 Mekong
River
Canadian Archipelago
22 Black
Sea
(LME)
34 Yellow
Sea
(LME)
45a Agulhas Current (LME)
56
Sulu-Celebes Sea (LME)
11
Barents Sea (LME)
23 Caspian
Sea
35 Bohai
Sea
45b Indian Ocean Islands
57 Indonesian
Seas
(LME)
Figure 1
The 66 transboundary regions assessed within the GIWA project.
(10%). Other contributions were made by Kalmar Municipality, the
Considering the objectives of the GIWA and the elements incorporated
University of Kalmar and the Norwegian Government. The assessment of
into its design, a new methodology for the implementation of the
regions ineligible for GEF funds was conducted by various international
assessment was developed during the initial phase of the project. The
and national organisations as in-kind contributions to the GIWA.
methodology focuses on fi ve major environmental concerns which
constitute the foundation of the GIWA assessment; Freshwater shortage,
In order to be consistent with the transboundary nature of many of the
Pollution, Habitat and community modifi cation, Overexploitation of fi sh
world's aquatic resources and the focus of the GIWA, the geographical
and other living resources, and Global change. The GIWA methodology
units being assessed have been designed according to the watersheds
is outlined in the following chapter.
of discrete hydrographic systems rather than political borders (Figure 1).
The geographic units of the assessment were determined during the
The global network
preparatory phase of the project and resulted in the division of the
In each of the 66 regions, the assessment is conducted by a team of
world into 66 regions defi ned by the entire area of one or more
local experts that is headed by a Focal Point (Figure 2). The Focal Point
catchments areas that drains into a single designated marine system.
can be an individual, institution or organisation that has been selected
These marine systems often correspond to Large Marine Ecosystems
on the basis of their scientifi c reputation and experience implementing
(LMEs) (Sherman 1994, IOC 2002).
international assessment projects. The Focal Point is responsible
for assembling members of the team and ensuring that it has the
Large Marine Ecocsystems (LMEs)
necessary expertise and experience in a variety of environmental
Large Marine Ecosystems (LMEs) are regions of ocean space encompassing coastal areas from river
and socio-economic disciplines to successfully conduct the regional
basins and estuaries to the seaward boundaries of continental shelves and the outer margin of the
major current systems. They are relatively large regions on the order of 200 000 km2 or greater,
assessment. The selection of team members is one of the most critical
characterised by distinct: (1) bathymetry, (2) hydrography, (3) productivity, and (4) trophically
elements for the success of GIWA and, in order to ensure that the
dependent populations.
most relevant information is incorporated into the assessment, team
The Large Marine Ecosystems strategy is a global effort for the assessment and management
of international coastal waters. It developed in direct response to a declaration at the 1992
members were selected from a wide variety of institutions such as
Rio Summit. As part of the strategy, the World Conservation Union (IUCN) and National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) have joined in an action program to assist developing
universities, research institutes, government agencies, and the private
countries in planning and implementing an ecosystem-based strategy that is focused on LMEs as
sector. In addition, in order to ensure that the assessment produces a
the principal assessment and management units for coastal ocean resources. The LME concept is
also adopted by GEF that recommends the use of LMEs and their contributing freshwater basins
truly regional perspective, the teams should include representatives
as the geographic area for integrating changes in sectoral economic activities.
from each country that shares the region.
iv
REGIONAL ASSESSMENTS

---

The GIWA is comprised of a logical sequence of four integrated
components. The fi rst stage of the GIWA is called Scaling and is a
Steering Group
process by which the geographic area examined in the assessment is
defi ned and all the transboundary waters within that area are identifi ed.
GIWA Partners
IGOs, NGOs,
Core
Thematic
Once the geographic scale of the assessment has been defi ned, the
Scientific institutions,
Team
Task Teams
private sector, etc
assessment teams conduct a process known as Scoping in which the
66 Regional
magnitude of environmental and associated socio-economic impacts
Focal Points
of Freshwater shortage, Pollution, Habitat and community modifi cation,
and Teams
Unsustainable exploitation of fi sh and other living resources, and Global
Figure 2
The organisation of the GIWA project.
change is assessed in order to identify and prioritise the concerns
that require the most urgent intervention. The assessment of these
predefi ned concerns incorporates the best available information and
In total, more than 1 000 experts have contributed to the implementation
the knowledge and experience of the multidisciplinary, multi-national
of the GIWA illustrating that the GIWA is a participatory exercise that
assessment teams formed in each region. Once the priority concerns
relies on regional expertise. This participatory approach is essential
have been identifi ed, the root causes of these concerns are identifi ed
because it instils a sense of local ownership of the project, which
during the third component of the GIWA, Causal chain analysis. The root
ensures the credibility of the fi ndings and moreover, it has created a
causes are determined through a sequential process that identifi es, in
global network of experts and institutions that can collaborate and
turn, the most signifi cant immediate causes followed by the economic
exchange experiences and expertise to help mitigate the continued
sectors that are primarily responsible for the immediate causes and
degradation of the world's aquatic resources.
fi nally, the societal root causes. At each stage in the Causal chain
analysis, the most signifi cant contributors are identifi ed through an
analysis of the best available information which is augmented by the
expertise of the assessment team. The fi nal component of the GIWA is
GIWA Regional reports
the development of Policy options that focus on mitigating the impacts
of the root causes identifi ed by the Causal chain analysis.
The GIWA was established in response to growing concern among the
general public regarding the quality of the world's aquatic resources
The results of the GIWA assessment in each region are reported in
and the recognition of governments and the international community
regional reports that are published by UNEP. These reports are designed
concerning the absence of a globally coherent international waters
to provide a brief physical and socio-economic description of the
assessment. However, because a holistic, region-by-region, assessment
most important features of the region against which the results of the
of the condition of the world's transboundary water resources had never
assessment can be cast. The remaining sections of the report present
been undertaken, a methodology guiding the implementation of such
the results of each stage of the assessment in an easily digestible form.
an assessment did not exist. Therefore, in order to implement the GIWA,
Each regional report is reviewed by at least two independent external
a new methodology that adopted a multidisciplinary, multi-sectoral,
reviewers in order to ensure the scientifi c validity and applicability of
multi-national approach was developed and is now available for the
each report. The 66 regional assessments of the GIWA will serve UNEP
implementation of future international assessments of aquatic resources.
as an essential complement to the UNEP Water Policy and Strategy and
UNEP's activities in the hydrosphere.
UNEP Water Policy and Strategy
The primary goals of the UNEP water policy and strategy are:
(a) Achieving greater global understanding of freshwater, coastal and marine environments by
Global International Waters Assessment
conducting environmental assessments in priority areas;
(b) Raising awareness of the importance and consequences of unsustainable water use;
(c) Supporting the efforts of Governments in the preparation and implementation of integrated
management of freshwater systems and their related coastal and marine environments;
(d) Providing support for the preparation of integrated management plans and programmes for
aquatic environmental hot spots, based on the assessment results;
(e) Promoting the application by stakeholders of precautionary, preventive and anticipatory
approaches.
GLOBAL INTERNATIONAL WATERS ASSESSMENT
v

---

References:
AMAP (1998). Assessment Report: Arctic Pollution Issues. Arctic
Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP), Oslo, Norway.
Barannik, V., Borysova, O. and Stolberg, F. (2004). The Caspian Sea Region:
Environmental Change. Ambio, 33:45-51.
Brinson, M.M. and Malvárez, A.I. (2002). Temperate freshwater wetlands:
types, status, and threats. Environmental Conservation, 29:115-133.
Daoji, L. and Daler, D. (2004). Ocean Pollution from Land-based Sources:
East China Sea, China. Ambio, 33:98-106.
FAO (2001). Reykjavik conference on responsible fi sheries in the marine
ecosystem. Iceland, 1-4 October 2001.
IOC (2002). IOC-IUCN-NOAA Consultative Meeting on Large Marine
Ecosystems (LMEs). Fourth Session, 8-9 January 2002, Paris,
France.
IPCC (2001). Climate Change 2001: The Scientifi c Basis. Contribution
of Working Group I to the Third Assessment Report of the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. In: Houghton,
J.T., Ding, Y., Griggs, D.J., Noguer, M., van der Linden, P.J., Dai, X.,
Maskell, K. and Johnson, C.A. (eds). Cambridge University Press,
Cambridge, United Kingdom and New York, NY, USA.
Kennish, M.J. (2002). Environmental threats and environmental future of
estuaries. Environmental Conservation, 29:78-107.
Myers, R.A. and Worm, B. (2003). Rapid worldwide depletion of predatory
fi sh communities. Nature, 423:280-283.
Primavera, J.H. (1997) Socio-economic impacts of shrimp culture.
Aquaculture Research, 28:815-827.
Sherman, K. (1994). Sustainability, biomass yields, and health of coastal
ecosystems: an ecological perspective. Marine Ecology Progress
Series, 112:277-301.
United Nations conference on the human environment (1972). Report
available on-line at http://www.unep.org
United Nations Millennium Declaration (2000). The Millennium
Assembly of the United Nations, New York.
WHO-UNICEF (2002). Global Water Supply and Sanitation Assessment:
2000 Report.
WSSD (2002). World Summit on Sustainable Development.
Johannesburg Summit 2002. Key Outcomes of the Summit,
UN Department of Public Information, New York.
vi
REGIONAL ASSESSMENTS

---

The GIWA methodology
The specifi c objectives of the GIWA were to conduct a holistic and globally
The assessment integrates environmental and socio-economic data
comparable assessment of the world's transboundary aquatic resources
from each country in the region to determine the severity of the
that incorporated both environmental and socio-economic factors
impacts of each of the fi ve concerns and their constituent issues on
and recognised the inextricable links between freshwater and marine
the entire region. The integration of this information was facilitated by
environments, in order to enable the GEF to focus their resources and to
implementing the assessment during two participatory workshops
provide guidance and advice to governments and decision makers. The
that typically involved 10 to 15 environmental and socio-economic
coalition of all these elements into a single coherent methodology that
experts from each country in the region. During these workshops, the
produces an assessment that achieves each of these objectives had not
regional teams performed preliminary analyses based on the collective
previously been done and posed a signifi cant challenge.
knowledge and experience of these local experts. The results of these
analyses were substantiated with the best available information to be
The integration of each of these elements into the GIWA methodology
presented in a regional report.
was achieved through an iterative process guided by a specially
Table 1 Pre-defi ned GIWA concerns and their constituent issues
convened Methods task team that was comprised of a number of
addressed within the assessment.
international assessment and water experts. Before the fi nal version
of the methodology was adopted, preliminary versions underwent
Environmental issues
Major concerns
an extensive external peer review and were subjected to preliminary
1. Modification of stream flow
testing in selected regions. Advice obtained from the Methods task
2. Pollution of existing supplies
I Freshwater shortage
3. Changes in the water table
team and other international experts and the lessons learnt from
preliminary testing were incorporated into the fi nal version that was
4. Microbiological
5. Eutrophication
used to conduct each of the GIWA regional assessments.
6. Chemical
7. Suspended
solids
II Pollution
8. Solid
wastes
Considering the enormous diff erences between regions in terms of the
9. Thermal
10. Radionuclide
quality, quantity and availability of data, socio-economic setting and
11. Spills
environmental conditions, the achievement of global comparability
12. Loss of ecosystems
required an innovative approach. This was facilitated by focusing
III Habitat and community
13. Modification of ecosystems or ecotones, including community
modification
structure and/or species composition
the assessment on the impacts of fi ve pre-defi ned concerns namely;
Freshwater shortage, Pollution, Habitat and community modifi cation,
14. Overexploitation
15. Excessive by-catch and discards
IV Unsustainable
Unsustainable exploitation of fi sh and other living resources and Global
16. Destructive fishing practices
exploitation of fish and
change, in transboundary waters. Considering the diverse range of
17. Decreased viability of stock through pollution and disease
other living resources
18. Impact on biological and genetic diversity
elements encompassed by each concern, assessing the magnitude of
19. Changes in hydrological cycle
the impacts caused by these concerns was facilitated by evaluating the
20. Sea level change
V Global change
impacts of 22 specifi c issues that were grouped within these concerns
21. Increased uv-b radiation as a result of ozone depletion
22. Changes in ocean CO source/sink function
(see Table 1).
2
THE GIWA METHODOLOGY
vii

---

political boundaries but were instead, generally defi ned by a large but
T
r
ansboundar
The GIWA approach
discrete drainage basin that also included the coastal marine waters into
which the basin discharges. In many cases, the marine areas examined
1
Scaling
st
W
orkshop
Detailed
during the assessment coincided with the Large Marine Ecosystems
y
D
(LMEs) defi ned by the US National Atmospheric and Oceanographic
iagnostic
A
ssessment
Scoping
Administration (NOAA). As a consequence, scaling should be a
relatively straight-forward task that involves the inspection of the
Analy
boundaries that were proposed for the region during the preparatory
Causal Chain
2
sis
nd
Analysis
phase of GIWA to ensure that they are appropriate and that there are
W
orkshop
no important overlaps or gaps with neighbouring regions. When the
Policy Option
proposed boundaries were found to be inadequate, the boundaries of
Analysis
the region were revised according to the recommendations of experts
from both within the region and from adjacent regions so as to ensure
that any changes did not result in the exclusion of areas from the GIWA.
Once the regional boundary was defi ned, regional teams identifi ed all
SAP
the transboundary elements of the aquatic environment within the
SAP
region and determined if these elements could be assessed as a single
Figure 1
Illustration of the relationship between the GIWA
coherent aquatic system or if there were two or more independent
approach and other projects implemented within the
systems that should be assessed separately.
GEF International Waters (IW) portfolio.
The GIWA is a logical contiguous process that defi nes the geographic
Scoping ­ Assessing the GIWA concerns
region to be assessed, identifi es and prioritises particularly problems
Scoping is an assessment of the severity of environmental and socio-
based on the magnitude of their impacts on the environment and
economic impacts caused by each of the fi ve pre-defi ned GIWA concerns
human societies in the region, determines the root causes of those
and their constituent issues (Table 1). It is not designed to provide an
problems and, fi nally, assesses various policy options that addresses
exhaustive review of water-related problems that exist within each region,
those root causes in order to reverse negative trends in the condition
but rather it is a mechanism to identify the most urgent problems in the
of the aquatic environment. These four steps, referred to as Scaling,
region and prioritise those for remedial actions. The priorities determined
Scoping, Causal chain analysis and Policy options analysis, are
by Scoping are therefore one of the main outputs of the GIWA project.
summarised below and are described in their entirety in two volumes:
GIWA Methodology Stage 1: Scaling and Scoping; and GIWA Methodology:
Focusing the assessment on pre-defi ned concerns and issues ensured
Detailed Assessment, Causal Chain Analysis and Policy Options Analysis.
the comparability of the results between diff erent regions. In addition, to
Generally, the components of the GIWA methodology are aligned
ensure the long-term applicability of the options that are developed to
with the framework adopted by the GEF for Transboundary Diagnostic
mitigate these problems, Scoping not only assesses the current impacts
Analyses (TDAs) and Strategic Action Programmes (SAPs) (Figure 1) and
of these concerns and issues but also the probable future impacts
assume a broad spectrum of transboundary infl uences in addition to
according to the "most likely scenario" which considered demographic,
those associated with the physical movement of water across national
economic, technological and other relevant changes that will potentially
borders.
infl uence the aquatic environment within the region by 2020.
Scaling ­ Defining the geographic extent
The magnitude of the impacts caused by each issue on the
of the region
environment and socio-economic indicators was assessed over the
Scaling is the fi rst stage of the assessment and is the process by which
entire region using the best available information from a wide range of
the geographic scale of the assessment is defi ned. In order to facilitate
sources and the knowledge and experience of the each of the experts
the implementation of the GIWA, the globe was divided during the
comprising the regional team. In order to enhance the comparability
design phase of the project into 66 contiguous regions. Considering the
of the assessment between diff erent regions and remove biases
transboundary nature of many aquatic resources and the transboundary
in the assessment caused by diff erent perceptions of and ways to
focus of the GIWA, the boundaries of the regions did not comply with
communicate the severity of impacts caused by particular issues, the
viii
REGIONAL ASSESSMENTS

---

results were distilled and reported as standardised scores according to
Table 2
Example of environmental impact assessment of
Freshwater shortage.
the following four point scale:
Weight

0 = no known impact
Environmental
Environmental issues
Score
Weight %
averaged
concerns

1 = slight impact
score

2 = moderate impact
1. Modification of stream flow
1
20
Freshwater shortage
1.50

3 = severe impact
2. Pollution of existing supplies
2
50
The attributes of each score for each issue were described by a detailed
3. Changes in the water table
1
30
set of pre-defi ned criteria that were used to guide experts in reporting
Table 3
Example of Health impacts assessment linked to one of
the results of the assessment. For example, the criterion for assigning
the GIWA concerns.
a score of 3 to the issue Loss of ecosystems or ecotones is: "Permanent
Criteria for Health impacts
Raw score
Score
Weight %
destruction of at least one habitat is occurring such as to have reduced their
Very small
Very large
surface area by >30% during the last 2-3 decades". The full list of criteria is
Number of people affected
2
50
0 1 2 3
presented at the end of the chapter, Table 5a-e. Although the scoring
Minimum
Severe
Degree of severity
2
30
0 1 2 3
inevitably includes an arbitrary component, the use of predefi ned
Occasion/Short
Continuous
Frequency/Duration
2
20
0 1 2 3
criteria facilitates comparison of impacts on a global scale and also
Weight average score for Health impacts
2
encouraged consensus of opinion among experts.
The trade-off associated with assessing the impacts of each concern
After all 22 issues and associated socio-economic impacts have
and their constituent issues at the scale of the entire region is that spatial
been scored, weighted and averaged, the magnitude of likely future
resolution was sometimes low. Although the assessment provides a
changes in the environmental and socio-economic impacts of each
score indicating the severity of impacts of a particular issue or concern
of the fi ve concerns on the entire region is assessed according to the
on the entire region, it does not mean that the entire region suff ers
most likely scenario which describes the demographic, economic,
the impacts of that problem. For example, eutrophication could be
technological and other relevant changes that might infl uence the
identifi ed as a severe problem in a region, but this does not imply that all
aquatic environment within the region by 2020.
waters in the region suff er from severe eutrophication. It simply means
that when the degree of eutrophication, the size of the area aff ected,
In order to prioritise among GIWA concerns within the region and
the socio-economic impacts and the number of people aff ected is
identify those that will be subjected to causal chain and policy options
considered, the magnitude of the overall impacts meets the criteria
analysis in the subsequent stages of the GIWA, the present and future
defi ning a severe problem and that a regional action should be initiated
scores of the environmental and socio-economic impacts of each
in order to mitigate the impacts of the problem.
concern are tabulated and an overall score calculated. In the example
presented in Table 4, the scoping assessment indicated that concern III,
When each issue has been scored, it was weighted according to the relative
Habitat and community modifi cation, was the priority concern in this
contribution it made to the overall environmental impacts of the concern
region. The outcome of this mathematic process was reconciled against
and a weighted average score for each of the fi ve concerns was calculated
the knowledge of experts and the best available information in order
(Table 2). Of course, if each issue was deemed to make equal contributions,
to ensure the validity of the conclusion.
then the score describing the overall impacts of the concern was simply the
arithmetic mean of the scores allocated to each issue within the concern.
In some cases however, this process and the subsequent participatory
In addition, the socio-economic impacts of each of the fi ve major
discussion did not yield consensus among the regional experts
concerns were assessed for the entire region. The socio-economic
regarding the ranking of priorities. As a consequence, further analysis
impacts were grouped into three categories; Economic impacts,
was required. In such cases, expert teams continued by assessing the
Health impacts and Other social and community impacts (Table 3). For
relative importance of present and potential future impacts and assign
each category, an evaluation of the size, degree and frequency of the
weights to each. Afterwards, the teams assign weights indicating the
impact was performed and, once completed, a weighted average score
relative contribution made by environmental and socio-economic
describing the overall socio-economic impacts of each concern was
factors to the overall impacts of the concern. The weighted average
calculated in the same manner as the overall environmental score.
score for each concern is then recalculated taking into account
THE GIWA METHODOLOGY
ix

---

Table 4
Example of comparative environmental and socio-economic impacts of each major concern, presently and likely in year 2020.
Types of impacts
Environmental score
Economic score
Human health score
Social and community score
Concern
Overall score
Present (a)
Future (b)
Present (c)
Future (d)
Present (e)
Future (f)
Present (g)
Future (h)
Freshwater shortage
1.3
2.3
2.7
2.8
2.6
3.0
1.8
2.2
2.3
Pollution
1.5
2.0
2.0
2.3
1.8
2.3
2.0
2.3
2.0
Habitat and community
2.0
3.0
2.4
3.0
2.4
2.8
2.3
2.7
2.6
modification
Unsustainable exploitation of fish
1.8
2.2
2.0
2.1
2.0
2.1
2.4
2.5
2.1
and other living resources
Global change
0.8
1.0
1.5
1.7
1.5
1.5
1.0
1.0
1.2
the relative contributions of both present and future impacts and
should be regarded as a framework to guide the analysis, rather than
environmental and socio-economic factors. The outcome of these
as a set of detailed instructions. Secondly, in an ideal setting, a causal
additional analyses was subjected to further discussion to identify
chain would be produced by a multidisciplinary group of specialists
overall priorities for the region.
that would statistically examine each successive cause and study its
links to the problem and to other causes. However, this approach (even
Finally, the assessment recognises that each of the fi ve GIWA concerns
if feasible) would use far more resources and time than those available
are not discrete but often interact. For example, pollution can destroy
to GIWA1. For this reason, it has been necessary to develop a relatively
aquatic habitats that are essential for fi sh reproduction which, in turn,
simple and practical analytical model for gathering information to
can cause declines in fi sh stocks and subsequent overexploitation. Once
assemble meaningful causal chains.
teams have ranked each of the concerns and determined the priorities
for the region, the links between the concerns are highlighted in order
Conceptual model
to identify places where strategic interventions could be applied to
A causal chain is a series of statements that link the causes of a problem
yield the greatest benefi ts for the environment and human societies
with its eff ects. Recognising the great diversity of local settings and the
in the region.
resulting diffi
culty in developing broadly applicable policy strategies,
the GIWA CCA focuses on a particular system and then only on those
Causal chain analysis
issues that were prioritised during the scoping assessment. The
Causal Chain Analysis (CCA) traces the cause-eff ect pathways from the
starting point of a particular causal chain is one of the issues selected
socio-economic and environmental impacts back to their root causes.
during the Scaling and Scoping stages and its related environmental
The GIWA CCA aims to identify the most important causes of each
and socio-economic impacts. The next element in the GIWA chain is
concern prioritised during the scoping assessment in order to direct
the immediate cause; defi ned as the physical, biological or chemical
policy measures at the most appropriate target in order to prevent
variable that produces the GIWA issue. For example, for the issue of
further degradation of the regional aquatic environment.
eutrophication the immediate causes may be, inter alia:
Enhanced
nutrient
inputs;
Root causes are not always easy to identify because they are often
Increased
recycling/mobilisation;
spatially or temporally separated from the actual problems they

Trapping of nutrients (e.g. in river impoundments);
cause. The GIWA CCA was developed to help identify and understand
Run-off and stormwaters
the root causes of environmental and socio-economic problems
in international waters and is conducted by identifying the human
Once the relevant immediate cause(s) for the particular system has
activities that cause the problem and then the factors that determine
(have) been identifi ed, the sectors of human activity that contribute
the ways in which these activities are undertaken. However, because
most signifi cantly to the immediate cause have to be determined.
there is no universal theory describing how root causes interact to
Assuming that the most important immediate cause in our example
create natural resource management problems and due to the great
had been increased nutrient concentrations, then it is logical that the
variation of local circumstances under which the methodology will
most likely sources of those nutrients would be the agricultural, urban
be applied, the GIWA CCA is not a rigidly structured assessment but
or industrial sectors. After identifying the sectors that are primarily
1 This does not mean that the methodology ignores statistical or quantitative studies; as has already been pointed out, the available evidence that justifies the assumption of causal links should
be provided in the assessment.
x
REGIONAL ASSESSMENTS

---

responsible for the immediate causes, the root causes acting on those
The policy options recommended by the GIWA are only contributions
sectors must be determined. For example, if agriculture was found to
to the larger policy process and, as such, the GIWA methodology
be primarily responsible for the increased nutrient concentrations, the
developed to test the performance of various options under the
root causes could potentially be:
diff erent circumstances has been kept simple and broadly applicable.

Economic (e.g. subsidies to fertilisers and agricultural products);

Legal (e.g. inadequate regulation);
Global International Waters Assessment

Failures in governance (e.g. poor enforcement); or

Technology or knowledge related (e.g. lack of aff ordable substitutes
for fertilisers or lack of knowledge as to their application).
Once the most relevant root causes have been identifi ed, an
explanation, which includes available data and information, of how
they are responsible for the primary environmental and socio-economic
problems in the region should be provided.
Policy option analysis
Despite considerable eff ort of many Governments and other
organisations to address transboundary water problems, the evidence
indicates that there is still much to be done in this endeavour. An
important characteristic of GIWA's Policy Option Analysis (POA) is that
its recommendations are fi rmly based on a better understanding of
the root causes of the problems. Freshwater scarcity, water pollution,
overexploitation of living resources and habitat destruction are very
complex phenomena. Policy options that are grounded on a better
understanding of these phenomena will contribute to create more
eff ective societal responses to the extremely complex water related
transboundary problems. The core of POA in the assessment consists
of two tasks:
Construct policy options
Policy options are simply diff erent courses of action, which are not
always mutually exclusive, to solve or mitigate environmental and
socio-economic problems in the region. Although a multitude of
diff erent policy options could be constructed to address each root
cause identifi ed in the CCA, only those few policy options that have
the greatest likelihood of success were analysed in the GIWA.
Select and apply the criteria on which the policy options will be
evaluated
Although there are many criteria that could be used to evaluate any
policy option, GIWA focuses on:
Eff ectiveness (certainty of result)
Effi
ciency (maximisation of net benefi ts)

Equity (fairness of distributional impacts)

Practical criteria (political acceptability, implementation feasibility).
THE GIWA METHODOLOGY
xi

---

Table 5a: Scoring criteria for environmental impacts of Freshwater shortage
Issue
Score 0 = no known impact
Score 1 = slight impact
Score 2 = moderate impact
Score 3 = severe impact
Issue 1: Modification
No evidence of modification of stream
There is a measurably changing trend in
Significant downward or upward trend
Annual discharge of a river altered by more
of stream flow
flow.
annual river discharge at gauging stations
(more than 20% of the long term mean) in
than 50% of long term mean; or
"An increase or decrease
in a major river or tributary (basin >
annual discharges in a major river or tributary Loss of >50% of riparian or deltaic
in the discharge of
40 000 km2); or
draining a basin of >250 000 km2; or
wetlands over a period of not less than
streams and rivers
There is a measurable decrease in the area
Loss of >20% of flood plain or deltaic
40 years (through causes other than
as a result of human
of wetlands (other than as a consequence
wetlands through causes other than
conversion or artificial embankment); or
interventions on a local/
of conversion or embankment
conversion or artificial embankments; or
Significant increased siltation or erosion
regional scale (see Issue
construction); or
Significant loss of riparian vegetation (e.g.
due to changing in flow regime (other than
19 for flow alterations
There is a measurable change in the
trees, flood plain vegetation); or
normal fluctuations in flood plain rivers);
resulting from global
interannual mean salinity of estuaries or
Significant saline intrusion into previously
or
change) over the last 3-4
coastal lagoons and/or change in the mean
freshwater rivers or lagoons.
Loss of one or more anadromous or
decades."
position of estuarine salt wedge or mixing
catadromous fish species for reasons
zone; or
other than physical barriers to migration,
Change in the occurrence of exceptional
pollution or overfishing.
discharges (e.g. due to upstream
damming.
Issue 2: Pollution of
No evidence of pollution of surface and
Any monitored water in the region does
Water supplies does not meet WHO or
River draining more than 10% of the basin
existing supplies
ground waters.
not meet WHO or national drinking water
national drinking water standards in more
have suffered polysaprobic conditions, no
"Pollution of surface
criteria, other than for natural reasons; or
than 30% of the region; or
longer support fish, or have suffered severe
and ground fresh waters
There have been reports of one or more
There are one or more reports of fish kills
oxygen depletion
supplies as a result of
fish kills in the system due to pollution
due to pollution in any river draining a
Severe pollution of other sources of
point or diffuse sources"
within the past five years.
basin of >250 000 km2 .
freshwater (e.g. groundwater)
Issue 3: Changes in
No evidence that abstraction of water from Several wells have been deepened because Clear evidence of declining base flow in
Aquifers are suffering salinisation over
the water table
aquifers exceeds natural replenishment.
of excessive aquifer draw-down; or
rivers in semi-arid areas; or
regional scale; or
"Changes in aquifers
Several springs have dried up; or
Loss of plant species in the past decade,
Perennial springs have dried up over
as a direct or indirect
Several wells show some salinisation.
that depend on the presence of ground
regionally significant areas; or
consequence of human
water; or
Some aquifers have become exhausted
activity"
Wells have been deepened over areas of
hundreds of km2;or
Salinisation over significant areas of the
region.
Table 5b: Scoring criteria for environmental impacts of Pollution
Issue
Score 0 = no known impact
Score 1 = slight impact
Score 2 = moderate impact
Score 3 = severe impact
Issue 4:
Normal incidence of bacterial related
There is minor increase in incidence of
Public health authorities aware of marked
There are large closure areas or very
Microbiological
gastroenteric disorders in fisheries product
bacterial related gastroenteric disorders
increase in the incidence of bacterial
restrictive advisories affecting the
pollution
consumers and no fisheries closures or
in fisheries product consumers but no
related gastroenteric disorders in fisheries
marketability of fisheries products; or
"The adverse effects of
advisories.
fisheries closures or advisories.
product consumers; or
There exists widespread public or tourist
microbial constituents of
There are limited area closures or
awareness of hazards resulting in
human sewage released
advisories reducing the exploitation or
major reductions in the exploitation or
to water bodies."
marketability of fisheries products.
marketability of fisheries products.
Issue 5:
No visible effects on the abundance and
Increased abundance of epiphytic algae; or
Increased filamentous algal production
High frequency (>1 event per year), or
Eutrophication
distributions of natural living resource
A statistically significant trend in
resulting in algal mats; or
intensity, or large areas of periodic hypoxic
"Artificially enhanced
distributions in the area; and
decreased water transparency associated
Medium frequency (up to once per year)
conditions, or high frequencies of fish and
primary productivity in
No increased frequency of hypoxia1 or
with algal production as compared with
of large-scale hypoxia and/or fish and
zoobenthos mortality events or harmful
receiving water basins
fish mortality events or harmful algal
long-term (>20 year) data sets; or
zoobenthos mortality events and/or
algal blooms; or
related to the increased
blooms associated with enhanced primary
Measurable shallowing of the depth range
harmful algal blooms.
Significant changes in the littoral
availability or supply
production; and
of macrophytes.
community; or
of nutrients, including
No evidence of periodically reduced
Presence of hydrogen sulphide in
cultural eutrophication
dissolved oxygen or fish and zoobenthos
historically well oxygenated areas.
in lakes."
mortality; and
No evident abnormality in the frequency of
algal blooms.
xii
REGIONAL ASSESSMENTS

---

Issue 6: Chemical
No known or historical levels of chemical
Some chemical contaminants are
Some chemical contaminants are above
Chemical contaminants are above
pollution
contaminants except background levels of
detectable but below threshold limits
threshold limits defined for the country or
threshold limits defined for the country or
"The adverse effects of
naturally occurring substances; and
defined for the country or region; or
region; or
region; and
chemical contaminants
No fisheries closures or advisories due to
Restricted area advisories regarding
Large area advisories by public health
Public health and public awareness of
released to standing or
chemical pollution; and
chemical contamination of fisheries
authorities concerning fisheries product
fisheries contamination problems with
marine water bodies
No incidence of fisheries product tainting;
products.
contamination but without associated
associated reductions in the marketability
as a result of human
and
catch restrictions or closures; or
of such products either through the
activities. Chemical
No unusual fish mortality events.
If there is no available data use the following
High mortalities of aquatic species near
imposition of limited advisories or by area
contaminants are
criteria:
outfalls.
closures of fisheries; or
here defined as
If there is no available data use the following
Some use of pesticides in small areas; or
Large-scale mortalities of aquatic species.
compounds that are
criteria:
Presence of small sources of dioxins or
If there is no available data use the following
toxic or persistent or
No use of pesticides; and
furans (e.g., small incineration plants or
criteria:
If there is no available data use the following
bioaccumulating."
No sources of dioxins and furans; and
bleached kraft/pulp mills using chlorine);
Large-scale use of pesticides in agriculture
criteria:
No regional use of PCBs; and
or
and forestry; or
Indications of health effects resulting
No bleached kraft pulp mills using chlorine Some previous and existing use of PCBs
Presence of major sources of dioxins or
from use of pesticides; or
bleaching; and
and limited amounts of PCB-containing
furans such as large municipal or industrial Known emissions of dioxins or furans from
No use or sources of other contaminants.
wastes but not in amounts invoking local
incinerators or large bleached kraft pulp
incinerators or chlorine bleaching of pulp;
concerns; or
mills; or
or
Presence of other contaminants.
Considerable quantities of waste PCBs in
Known contamination of the environment
the area with inadequate regulation or has
or foodstuffs by PCBs; or
invoked some public concerns; or
Known contamination of the environment
Presence of considerable quantities of
or foodstuffs by other contaminants.
other contaminants.
Issue 7: Suspended
No visible reduction in water transparency; Evidently increased or reduced turbidity
Markedly increased or reduced turbidity
Major changes in turbidity over wide or
solids
and
in streams and/or receiving riverine and
in small areas of streams and/or receiving
ecologically significant areas resulting
"The adverse effects of
No evidence of turbidity plumes or
marine environments but without major
riverine and marine environments; or
in markedly changed biodiversity or
modified rates of release
increased siltation; and
changes in associated sedimentation or
Extensive evidence of changes in
mortality in benthic species due to
of suspended particulate No evidence of progressive riverbank,
erosion rates, mortality or diversity of flora
sedimentation or erosion rates; or
excessive sedimentation with or without
matter to water bodies
beach, other coastal or deltaic erosion.
and fauna; or
Changes in benthic or pelagic biodiversity
concomitant changes in the nature of
resulting from human
Some evidence of changes in benthic or
in areas due to sediment blanketing or
deposited sediments (i.e., grain-size
activities"
pelagic biodiversity in some areas due
increased turbidity.
composition/redox); or
to sediment blanketing or increased
Major change in pelagic biodiversity or
turbidity.
mortality due to excessive turbidity.
Issue 8: Solid wastes
No noticeable interference with trawling
Some evidence of marine-derived litter on
Widespread litter on beaches giving rise to
Incidence of litter on beaches sufficient
"Adverse effects
activities; and
beaches; or
public concerns regarding the recreational
to deter the public from recreational
associated with the
No noticeable interference with the
Occasional recovery of solid wastes
use of beaches; or
activities; or
introduction of solid
recreational use of beaches due to litter;
through trawling activities; but
High frequencies of benthic litter recovery
Trawling activities untenable because of
waste materials into
and
Without noticeable interference with
and interference with trawling activities;
benthic litter and gear entanglement; or
water bodies or their
No reported entanglement of aquatic
trawling and recreational activities in
or
Widespread entanglement and/or
environs."
organisms with debris.
coastal areas.
Frequent reports of entanglement/
suffocation of aquatic species by litter.
suffocation of species by litter.
Issue 9: Thermal
No thermal discharges or evidence of
Presence of thermal discharges but
Presence of thermal discharges with large
Presence of thermal discharges with large
"The adverse effects
thermal effluent effects.
without noticeable effects beyond
mixing zones having reduced productivity
mixing zones with associated mortalities,
of the release of
the mixing zone and no significant
or altered biodiversity; or
substantially reduced productivity or
aqueous effluents at
interference with migration of species.
Evidence of reduced migration of species
noticeable changes in biodiversity; or
temperatures exceeding
due to thermal plume.
Marked reduction in the migration of
ambient temperature
species due to thermal plumes.
in the receiving water
body."
Issue 10: Radionuclide No radionuclide discharges or nuclear
Minor releases or fallout of radionuclides
Minor releases or fallout of radionuclides
Substantial releases or fallout of
"The adverse effects of
activities in the region.
but with well regulated or well-managed
under poorly regulated conditions that do
radionuclides resulting in excessive
the release of radioactive
conditions complying with the Basic Safety
not provide an adequate basis for public
exposures to humans or animals in relation
contaminants and
Standards.
health assurance or the protection of
to those recommended under the Basic
wastes into the aquatic
aquatic organisms but without situations
Safety Standards; or
environment from
or levels likely to warrant large scale
Some indication of situations or exposures
human activities."
intervention by a national or international
warranting intervention by a national or
authority.
international authority.
Issue 11: Spills
No evidence of present or previous spills of
Some evidence of minor spills of hazardous Evidence of widespread contamination
Widespread contamination by hazardous
"The adverse effects
hazardous material; or
materials in small areas with insignificant
by hazardous or aesthetically displeasing
or aesthetically displeasing materials
of accidental episodic
No evidence of increased aquatic or avian
small-scale adverse effects one aquatic or
materials assumed to be from spillage
from frequent spills resulting in major
releases of contaminants
species mortality due to spills.
avian species.
(e.g. oil slicks) but with limited evidence of
interference with aquatic resource
and materials to the
widespread adverse effects on resources or
exploitation or coastal recreational
aquatic environment
amenities; or
amenities; or
as a result of human
Some evidence of aquatic or avian species
Significant mortality of aquatic or avian
activities."
mortality through increased presence of
species as evidenced by large numbers of
contaminated or poisoned carcasses on
contaminated carcasses on beaches.
beaches.
THE GIWA METHODOLOGY
xiii

---

Table 5c: Scoring criteria for environmental impacts of Habitat and community modification
Issue
Score 0 = no known impact
Score 1 = slight impact
Score 2 = moderate impact
Score 3 = severe impact
Issue 12: Loss of ecosystems or
There is no evidence of loss of
There are indications of fragmentation Permanent destruction of at least one
Permanent destruction of at least one
ecotones
ecosystems or habitats.
of at least one of the habitats.
habitat is occurring such as to have
habitat is occurring such as to have
"The complete destruction of aquatic
reduced their surface area by up to 30
reduced their surface area by >30%
habitats. For the purpose of GIWA
% during the last 2-3 decades.
during the last 2-3 decades.
methodology, recent loss will be
measured as a loss of pre-defined
habitats over the last 2-3 decades."
Issue 13: Modification of
No evidence of change in species
Evidence of change in species
Evidence of change in species
Evidence of change in species
ecosystems or ecotones, including
complement due to species extinction
complement due to species extinction
complement due to species extinction
complement due to species extinction
community structure and/or species
or introduction; and
or introduction
or introduction; and
or introduction; and
composition
No changing in ecosystem function
Evidence of change in population
Evidence of change in population
"Modification of pre-defined habitats
and services.
structure or change in functional group
structure or change in functional group
in terms of extinction of native species,
composition or structure
composition or structure; and
occurrence of introduced species and
Evidence of change in ecosystem
changing in ecosystem function and
services2.
services over the last 2-3 decades."
2 Constanza, R. et al. (1997). The value of the world ecosystem services and natural capital, Nature 387:253-260.
Table 5d: Scoring criteria for environmental impacts of Unsustainable exploitation of fish and other
living resources
Issue
Score 0 = no known impact
Score 1 = slight impact
Score 2 = moderate impact
Score 3 = severe impact
Issue 14: Overexploitation
No harvesting exists catching fish
Commercial harvesting exists but there One stock is exploited beyond MSY
More than one stock is exploited
"The capture of fish, shellfish or marine
(with commercial gear for sale or
is no evidence of over-exploitation.
(maximum sustainable yield) or is
beyond MSY or is outside safe
invertebrates at a level that exceeds the
subsistence).
outside safe biological limits.
biological limits.
maximum sustainable yield of the stock."
Issue 15: Excessive by-catch and
Current harvesting practices show no
Up to 30% of the fisheries yield (by
30-60% of the fisheries yield consists
Over 60% of the fisheries yield is
discards
evidence of excessive by-catch and/or
weight) consists of by-catch and/or
of by-catch and/or discards.
by-catch and/or discards; or
"By-catch refers to the incidental capture
discards.
discards.
Noticeable incidence of capture of
of fish or other animals that are not the
endangered species.
target of the fisheries. Discards refers
to dead fish or other animals that are
returned to the sea."
Issue 16: Destructive fishing
No evidence of habitat destruction due Habitat destruction resulting in
Habitat destruction resulting in
Habitat destruction resulting in
practices
to fisheries practices.
changes in distribution of fish or
moderate reduction of stocks or
complete collapse of a stock or far
"Fishing practices that are deemed to
shellfish stocks; or
moderate changes of the environment;
reaching changes in the environment;
produce significant harm to marine,
Trawling of any one area of the seabed
or
or
lacustrine or coastal habitats and
is occurring less than once per year.
Trawling of any one area of the seabed
Trawling of any one area of the seabed
communities."
is occurring 1-10 times per year; or
is occurring more than 10 times per
Incidental use of explosives or poisons
year; or
for fishing.
Widespread use of explosives or
poisons for fishing.
Issue 17: Decreased viability of
No evidence of increased incidence of
Increased reports of diseases without
Declining populations of one or more
Collapse of stocks as a result of
stocks through contamination and
fish or shellfish diseases.
major impacts on the stock.
species as a result of diseases or
diseases or contamination.
disease
contamination.
"Contamination or diseases of feral (wild)
stocks of fish or invertebrates that are a
direct or indirect consequence of human
action."
Issue 18: Impact on biological and
No evidence of deliberate or accidental Alien species introduced intentionally
Measurable decline in the population
Extinction of native species or local
genetic diversity
introductions of alien species; and
or accidentally without major changes
of native species or local stocks as a
stocks as a result of introductions
"Changes in genetic and species diversity No evidence of deliberate or accidental
in the community structure; or
result of introductions (intentional or
(intentional or accidental); or
of aquatic environments resulting from
introductions of alien stocks; and
Alien stocks introduced intentionally
accidental); or
Major changes (>20%) in the genetic
the introduction of alien or genetically
No evidence of deliberate or accidental
or accidentally without major changes
Some changes in the genetic
composition of stocks (e.g. as a result
modified species as an intentional or
introductions of genetically modified
in the community structure; or
composition of stocks (e.g. as a result
of escapes from aquaculture replacing
unintentional result of human activities
species.
Genetically modified species
of escapes from aquaculture replacing
the wild stock).
including aquaculture and restocking."
introduced intentionally or
the wild stock).
accidentally without major changes in
the community structure.
xiv
REGIONAL ASSESSMENTS

---

Table 5e: Scoring criteria for environmental impacts of Global change
Issue
Score 0 = no known impact
Score 1 = slight impact
Score 2 = moderate impact
Score 3 = severe impact
Issue 19: Changes in hydrological
No evidence of changes in hydrological Change in hydrological cycles due
Significant trend in changing
Loss of an entire habitat through
cycle and ocean circulation
cycle and ocean/coastal current due to
to global change causing changes
terrestrial or sea ice cover (by
desiccation or submergence as a result
"Changes in the local/regional water
global change.
in the distribution and density of
comparison with a long-term time
of global change; or
balance and changes in ocean and coastal
riparian terrestrial or aquatic plants
series) without major downstream
Change in the tree or lichen lines; or
circulation or current regime over the
without influencing overall levels of
effects on river/ocean circulation or
Major impacts on habitats or
last 2-3 decades arising from the wider
productivity; or
biological diversity; or
biodiversity as the result of increasing
problem of global change including
Some evidence of changes in ocean
Extreme events such as flood and
frequency of extreme events; or
ENSO."
or coastal currents due to global
drought are increasing; or
Changing in ocean or coastal currents
change but without a strong effect on
Aquatic productivity has been altered
or upwelling regimes such that plant
ecosystem diversity or productivity.
as a result of global phenomena such
or animal populations are unable to
as ENSO events.
recover to their historical or stable
levels; or
Significant changes in thermohaline
circulation.
Issue 20: Sea level change
No evidence of sea level change.
Some evidences of sea level change
Changed pattern of coastal erosion due Major loss of coastal land areas due to
"Changes in the last 2-3 decades in the
without major loss of populations of
to sea level rise has became evident; or
sea-level change or sea-level induced
annual/seasonal mean sea level as a
organisms.
Increase in coastal flooding events
erosion; or
result of global change."
partly attributed to sea-level rise
Major loss of coastal or intertidal
or changing prevailing atmospheric
populations due to sea-level change or
forcing such as atmospheric pressure
sea level induced erosion.
or wind field (other than storm
surges).
Issue 21: Increased UV-B radiation as No evidence of increasing effects
Some measurable effects of UV/B
Aquatic community structure is
Measured/assessed effects of UV/B
a result of ozone depletion
of UV/B radiation on marine or
radiation on behavior or appearance of
measurably altered as a consequence
irradiation are leading to massive loss
"Increased UV-B flux as a result polar
freshwater organisms.
some aquatic species without affecting
of UV/B radiation; or
of aquatic communities or a significant
ozone depletion over the last 2-3
the viability of the population.
One or more aquatic populations are
change in biological diversity.
decades."
declining.
Issue 22: Changes in ocean CO
No measurable or assessed changes
Some reasonable suspicions that
Some evidences that the impacts
Evidences that the changes in
2
source/sink function
in CO source/sink function of aquatic
current global change is impacting the
of global change have altered the
source/sink function of the aquatic
2
"Changes in the capacity of aquatic
system.
aquatic system sufficiently to alter its
source/sink function for CO of aquatic
systems in the region are sufficient to
2
systems, ocean as well as freshwater, to
source/sink function for CO .
systems in the region by at least 10%.
cause measurable change in global CO
2
2
generate or absorb atmospheric CO as a
balance.
2
direct or indirect consequence of global
change over the last 2-3 decades."
THE GIWA METHODOLOGY
xv

---

---

---

---

---

---