Canadian and Russian Fisheries Management in the Arctic: Complexities, Commonalities and Contrasts

• Published in: Arctic Review on Law and Politics
• Main Authors: David L. VanderZwaag, Vitalii Vorobev, Olga Koubrak
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English; Norwegian
• Published: Cappelen Damm Akademisk NOASP 2022
• Subjects: arctic fisheries; co-management; barents sea; beaufort sea; baffin bay/davis strait; droit; scipo; Arctic; Arctic Ocean; Baffin Bay; Barents Sea; Canada; Arctic review on law and politics; Baffin; Beaufort Sea; Central Arctic; Davis Strait
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.23865/arctic.v13.3484; https://doaj.org/article/d86aa6cb3e48475aace55cc4f21ac1e0

This article reviews and compares Canadian and Russian approaches to Arctic fisheries management through a three-part format. First, the complex array of laws and policies applicable to Arctic fisheries is described for each country. How Canada and Russia have addressed international fishery issues is also highlighted, including their participation in the 2018 Central Arctic Ocean Fisheries Agreement. Second, commonalities in fisheries governance approaches are summarized, including national commitments to implement precautionary and ecosystem approaches. Finally, contrasts in Arctic fisheries management are discussed. Major differences include the greater devolution of management responsibilities by Canada to Indigenous communities through land-claim agreements and co-management arrangements and Russia’s greater success in formalizing bilateral fisheries management arrangements with its neighbours.