Editing Norwegian Sea (section)

=== Fishing and whaling ===
[[File:Cod lofoten.jpg|thumb|left|Traditional [[cod]] stand]]
[[File:18th century arctic whaling.jpg|thumb|Arctic whaling (18th century). The ships are Dutch and the animals are [[bowhead whale]]s. [[Beerenberg]] on Jan Mayen Land can be seen in the background.]]
Fishing has been practised near the Lofoten archipelago for hundreds of years. The coastal waters of the remote Lofoten islands are one of the richest fishing areas in Europe, as most of the Atlantic cod swims to the coastal waters of Lofoten in the winter to spawn. So in the 19th century, dried cod was one of Norway's main exports and by far the most important industry in northern Norway. Strong sea currents, [[Whirlpool|maelstrom]]s, and especially frequent storms made fishing a dangerous occupation: several hundred men died on the "Fatal Monday" in March 1821, 300 of them from a single [[parish]], and about a hundred boats with their crews were lost within a short time in April 1875.<ref name="Smith10">Tim Denis Smith [https://books.google.com/books?id=glYeaAEaKGgC&pg=PA10 ''Scaling Fisheries: The Science of Measuring the Effects of Fishing, 1855–1955''], Cambridge University Press, 1994 {{ISBN|0-521-39032-X}}, pp. 10–15</ref>

Over the last century, the Norwegian Sea has been suffering from overfishing. In 2018, 41% of stocks were excessively harvested.<ref>{{Cite web|title=EU still far from phasing out overfishing by 2020|url=https://europe.oceana.org/en/press-center/press-releases/eu-still-far-phasing-out-overfishing-2020|access-date=2020-12-07|website=Oceana Europe|language=en}}</ref> Two out of sixteen of the Total Allowed Catches (TACs) agreed upon by the [[European Union]] (EU) and Norway follow scientific advice. Nine of those TACs are at least 25% above scientific advice. While the other five are set above scientific evidence when excluding landing obligation.<ref>{{Cite web|title=EU-Norway agreement the worst outcome for fish stocks in ten years|url=https://our.fish/press/eu-norway-agreement-the-worst-outcome-for-fish-stocks-in-ten-years/|access-date=2020-12-07|website=Our Fish|language=en-US}}</ref> Under the [[Common Fisheries Policy]] (CFP), the EU committed to phase out overfishing by 2015, 2020 at the absolute latest.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2019-12-02|title=Depleted fish stocks can't wait. The EU and Norway need to commit to ending overfishing now ǀ View|url=https://www.euronews.com/2019/12/02/depleted-fish-stocks-can-t-wait-the-eu-and-norway-commit-to-ending-overfishing-now-view|access-date=2020-12-07|website=euronews|language=en}}</ref> As of 2019, the EU was reported to not be on path to achieving that goal.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Elliott |first1=Stuart |title=Norway plans to include more Barents Sea, Norwegian Sea blocks in new APA round |url=https://www.spglobal.com/commodityinsights/en/market-insights/latest-news/oil/012423-norway-plans-to-include-more-barents-sea-norwegian-sea-blocks-in-new-apa-round |website=www.spglobal.com |access-date=16 February 2023 |language=en |date=24 January 2023}}</ref>

Whaling was also important for the Norwegian Sea. In the early 1600s, the Englishman [[Stephen Bennet]] started hunting [[walrus]] at [[Bear Island (Norway)|Bear Island]]. In May 1607 the [[Muscovy Company]], while looking for the [[Northwest Passage]] and exploring the sea, discovered the large populations of walrus and whales in the Norwegian Sea and started hunting them in 1610 near [[Spitsbergen]].<ref name="Richards589">[[#refRichards|Richards, 2006]], pp. 589–596</ref> Later in the 17th century, Dutch ships started hunting bowhead whales near [[Jan Mayen]]; the bowhead population between Svalbard and Jan Mayen was then about 25,000 individuals.<ref name="Richards574">[[#refRichards|Richards, 2006]], pp. 574–580</ref> Britons and Dutch were then joined by Germans, [[Denmark|Danes]], and Norwegians.<ref name="Richards589"/> Between 1615 and 1820, the waters between Jan Mayen, Svalbard, Bear Island, and Greenland, between the Norwegian, Greenland, and Barents Seas, were the most productive whaling area in the world. However, extensive hunting had wiped out the whales in that region by the early 20th century.<ref name="Johnson95"/>