Historical Context
*Warning: This page contains graphic images of animals in distressing situations. Please be advised.*
Norwegian cave drawings of a fishing expedition. Alta Fjords, 200-900 BCE
Early History
40,000 years ago humans were first recorded hunting for fish with spears made out of rock and shale. This marked one of the earliest interactions of humans and fish. 4,000 years ago Inuit hunters were recorded hunting seals and small whale species for food. By the 10th century small scale whaling was happening in Norway but the practice would not be introduced to southwest Europe until the Basques began to hunt for North Atlantic Right Whales in the Bay of Biscay. Their expeditions became larger and they began hunting further north by Iceland by the 16th century.
Industrial Era
The Industrial Revolution began in the 17th century beginning the trend of mass amounts of carbon emissions entering the atmosphere. Around this time whaling gained popularity in Northern Europe and soon made its way to the North America. By the 1830s the United States became the whaling capital of the world, their main targets being humpback and north atlantic right whales. The whales were hunted for the oil in their bone and blubber which was used as oil for lamps, lubricant, and their baleen which was used to create corsets and hoop skirts.
In the beginning of the 19th century sail boats were replaced with steam ships and steam powered winches which allowed for more fish to be caught at a single time. When refined petroleum began to gain popularity whaling in America began to decrease. Norway, Iceland, and Japan however began to increase their whaling economy, due to the creation of the steam powered whale catcher in 1863.
Early 20th Century
In 1946 in response to the severe over-fishing of whales to the point of extinction the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling implemented restrictions on Gray, Humpback, and Right whales. Along with a seasonal hunting restriction in the Antarctic region.
In 1961 the peak of whaling number was reached with 66,000 whales being hunted and killed in that year alone. In the 1960s through 70s many advocates were calling for the ban of commercial whaling and a stop to overfishing. In 1972 Congress passed the Marine Mammal Protection Act which allocated the conservation and protection of marine mammal species such as whales, seals, and dolphins to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. In 1973 the Endangered Species Act was passed by Congress which gave NOAA the responsibility to protect animal species which were in danger of extinction. In 1976 the Fishery Conservation and Management Act was first passed to phase out foreign fishing in the US Exclusive Economic Zone and to bring federal restrictions into Fishery Management.
Newspaper detailing cod fishing ban
Late 20th Century
In 1982 the International Whaling Commission enacted a pause on all commercial whaling for the 1985 to 1986 season that still is in effect today disassembling the worldwide whaling industry.
On July 2nd 1992 Canadian Federal Fisheries Minister John Crosbie made the announcement that Cod fishing would be banned for at least two years to make sure the species survived extinction. In 1996 the Fishery Conservation and Management Act, now called the Magnuson- Stevens Act was revised as the Sustainable Fisheries Act strengthened overfishing policies and efforts to rebuild dwindling fish stocks.
North Atlantic Right Whale populations were still very low and had not recovered from the whaling industry. Instead other challenges faced them such as vessel strikes. In 2001 the National Marine Fisheries Service and the U.S Coast Guard began to work on a ship-strike reduction strategy. Creating routes for ships, slow zones, and “areas to be avoided” around the East Coast of the United States.
North Atlantic Right Whale entangled in fishing gear
21st Century
In 2003 researchers coined the term “ocean acidification” as they began to notice rapid changes in the ocean’s chemistry. The Magnuson-Stevens received another revision in 2007, the MSA Reauthorization Act whose purpose was to strengthen conservation and management of fisheries. This reauthorization established catch limits and accountability measures, strengthened science’s role in fisheries, and promoted international cooperation on issues such as illegal fishing.
These issues are still prevalent in many parts of the world today and require action from communities and governments to create change.