In collaboration with colleagues at the University of East Anglia, Cefas and Plymouth Marine Laboratory through the UK’s Marine Climate Change Impact Partnership (MCCIP) <www.mccip.org.uk>, William Cheung and Miranda Jones of CORU published an article reviewing the effects of climate change on marine fisheries in the U.K. and Ireland.
Existing evidence shows that ocean warming is shifting the distribution of exploited species and is affecting the productivity of fish stocks and underlying marine ecosystems. These changes may lead to loss of productivity, but also the opening of new fishing opportunities, depending on the interactions between climate impacts, fishing grounds and fleet types. They will also impact fishing regulations, the price of fish products and operating costs, which in turn will affect the economic performance of the U.K.UK and Irish fleets. Key knowledge gaps exist in our understanding of the implications of climate and ocean chemistry changes for marine fisheries in the U.K.UK and Ireland, particularly on the social and economic responses of the fishing sectors to climate change. The study concludes that the gaps in scientific knowledge should not delay climate change mitigation and adaptation policy actions, particularly those measures, such as restore over-exploited ecosystems, that clearly have other ‘co-benefits’.
Citation: Cheung, W.W.L., Pinnegar, J., Merino, G., Jones, M.C., Barange, M. (2012) Review of climate change impacts on marine fisheries in the UK and Ireland. Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems 22:368-388