Petroleum activities in the Lofoten area: What is the worst case scenario? ...

• Main Authors: Hauge, Kjellrun Hiis, Blanchard, Anne, Boland, Ragnhild, Fosså, Jan Helge, Howell, Daniel, Vikebø, Frode
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: unknown
• Published: ASC 2012 - Theme session I 2024
• Subjects: Fisheries and aquaculture; Lofoten
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.17895/ices.pub.24974241.v2; https://ices-library.figshare.com/articles/conference_contribution/Petroleum_activities_in_the_Lofoten_area_What_is_the_worst_case_scenario_/24974241/2

No abstracts are to be cited without prior reference to the author.The complexity and uncertainty surrounding environmental problems can fuel heated debates between stakeholders with conflicting interests, priorities and agendas. Many such debates have arisen at the ‘science-policy interface’ relative to calls to open new areas for petroleum activities in the Lofoten area, in the north of Norway. The Lofoten is an especially valuable and vulnerable archipelago, known for its unique landscape and as a key spawning and nursery area for several fish stocks, hosting also the world’s largest-known deep-sea coral reef. Introducing petroleum activities brings additional competition for this valuable space, and demands an assessment of the ‘worst case scenario’ of an oil spill to support political decision-making. However such a complex model introduces numerous uncertainties, which have become contentious both within the scientific community, and in dialogue with the petroleum industry. A comprehensive worst case ...