Lofoten: Norway begins seismic and fisheries studies offshore.
Norway starts Troms II shoot
The Norwegian government has kicked off seismic surveys in the Troms II area near the scenic Lofoten islands, which environmental groups say should be permanently out of bounds to oil and gas drilling.
The seismic survey vessel Ocean Explorer began operating north of Senja, on Troms II, last night, the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) said in a release.
The study is already gathering data around Vesterålen.
The Storting has directed the NPD to survey the geology in Nordland VII and Troms II to map potential oil and gas deposits.
The results of the survey will be used as the legislative body tries to formulate a comprehensive management plan for the Barents Sea and the waters off Lofoten in next year.
Concurrently, the government is undertaking a research project designed to study the effect of seismic surveys on fish and how long it takes for fishery activity to normalise after seismic shoot.