In a step away from my usual doom and gloom/global warming articles, I’ve decided to expand my focus. Thankfully, the news is as always willing to satiate my various whims and needs, and with a topic that is dear to my heart as well. And though it may not sound glamorous or sexy, you better believe it’s important.

A meeting of the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO) has improved the hopes of the cod and local cold-water corals off of the Canadian provinces of Newfoundland and Labrador.

See, not very sexy!

But the fact is that as it stands at the moment, the amount of cod swimming around in our oceans are stacking up at 6% of their historical abundance. And it’s a figure that will no doubt be replicated across the world with continued over-fishing.

So it’s heartening and thrilling to see that there are people out there who are taking this seriously, and people with influence to boot. WWF is as excited as I am as well.

"For some time NAFO has been talking about protecting habitats and recovering depleted stocks," said Dr Robert Rangeley, WWF-Canada’s Vice President for the Atlantic. "Today, NAFO has begun to move from words to action by committing to conservation measures that, when implemented, will make a real difference on the water."

The single greatest challenge to the recovery of cod stocks is the unintentional harvesting of non-target species, in this instance cod (this is also known as bycatch). NAFO countries commitment to a southern Grand Banks cod recovery strategy includes immediately reducing bycatch up up to 40%.

On top of this, the countries involved in NAFO (see below) have agreed to an immediate ban on all bottom-fishing activities taking place on the southwest slope of the Grand Banks, in depths between 800 and 2000 meters. This area is part of a coral hotspot that has been identified by a report authored by scientists at Memorial University of Newfoundland for WWF-Canada.

This closure on bottom-fishing is a step towards detection and protection of vulnerable habitats.

"We are very encouraged with the measures undertaken this week as they have met most of our pre-meeting conservation expectations," continued Rangeley. "Canada, in particular, should be noted for its leadership in proposing measures to protect both cod and coral and working to see them adopted. These are critically important steps that will take hard work and goodwill in order to succeed."

Further measures that are expected and hoped for are likely to be implemented a year from now, in the next meeting in Spain.

Current member states of the NAFO include Bulgaria, Canada, Cuba, Denmark (in respect of Faroe Islands and Greenland), the European Union, France (in respect of Saint Pierre and Miquelon), Iceland, Japan, South Korea, Norway, Russia, Ukraine, and the US.

ENN - Protecting cod and coral off eastern Canada