Alaskan Snow Crab Season Cancelled Due to Climate Change

by Alisha Bhagat, Oct 16
1 minute read

For the first time in state history, Alaska has cancelled the snow crab harvest in the Bering Sea due to a population drop of 90% over the last two years. The reason for the decline is uncertain but is thought to be exacerbated by climate change warming the crab’s habitat.

So what?

The mysterious and rapid decline of the snow crab is an indicator that climate change is creating irrevocable damage to ecosystems. Not only will the loss of snow crabs impact the marine food chain, but also the livelihoods of fishermen and local communities that depend on the crab harvest. The impact on the snow crab fishery could mean that other cold water fish species are at risk.

Sources

Alaska snow crab season canceled as officials investigate disappearance of an estimated 1 billion crabs https://www.cbsnews.com/news/fishing-alaska-snow-crab-season-canceled-investigation-climate-change/

Details

Location: United States
Other Tags: Climate Change Oceans Sustainable Value Chains and Livelihoods

by Alisha Bhagat Spotted 27 signals

Alisha Bhagat is the futures lead at Forum for the Future. Her work focuses on the creative use of futures tools to impact long term positive change, particularly around social justice and equality. Alisha brings a broad toolkit to her work and designs games, creates immersive experiences, and brings the future to life. In addition to her work at Forum, Alisha is a part-time faculty member at Parsons School of Design where she teaches the Futures Studies and Speculative Design certificate. Prior to joining Forum, Alisha was a foreign policy consultant for the US government and a fellow at the East-West Center in Honolulu. Alisha holds an MS in Foreign Service from Georgetown University and a BS in Anthropology and History from Carnegie Mellon University. She was awarded a Fulbright scholarship in 2005. When not thinking about the future, Alisha is an avid gamer and science fiction enthusiast.

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