Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
A DANGEROUS ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARD - MOOSE FARTS
Global warming. Fossil fuels. Moose farts… Although it doesn't quite roll off the tongue as
a serious threat to the environment, a moose with gas can actually be more dangerous to
the environment than your average family car.
According to a report in London'sThe Timesnewspaper in August 2007, by doing noth-
ing more than farting and belching every year, a single adult moose releases the methane
equivalent of 2100kg of carbon dioxide emissions, equal to about 13,000km of travel in a
car. With an estimated 120,000 wild moose roaming the Norwegian wilds - the Norwegi-
an authorities authorise an annual nationwide hunting quota of around 37,000 - that
adds up to a disturbingly high output of methane, not to mention a heightened state of
nervousness among otherwise innocent moose.
The Future History of the Arctic
by Charles Emmerson is an engaging exploration of the
politics of the Arctic with a particular focus on the big issues of energy security, environ-
mental protection and the exploitation of the region's natural resources.
Commercial Fishing
Fishing and aquaculture (fish farming) remain the foundation of Norway's coastal eco-
nomy, providing work for an estimated 30,000 people in the fishing fleet, and a host of
secondary industries. With an annual catch of around 2.5 to 3 million tonnes, Norway is
the 10th-largest fishing nation in the world and one of the world's largest exporters of sea-
food.
And yet centuries of fishing have severely depleted fish stocks among species that were
once the mainstays of the Norwegian economy. By the late 1970s, for example, herring
stocks were nearly wiped out. In addition, overfishing depleted stocks of cod all across the
North Atlantic. Three decades of conservation measures later, including strict quotas, the
herring-fishery industry is recovering. Cod-fishing regulations are now in place, although
it will be many years before the numbers return.
It's fair to say that Norwegians usually view the critical depletion of fish stocks in Nor-
wegian waters as much through the prism of economic self-interest as they do a strictly en-
vironmental concern. Still Norway's second-largest export earner, it was one of the coun-
