Overview

Fjords are deep, glacia11y carved estuaries that are pecu1iar to certain coast1ines, and have severa1 characteristics that dist inguish them from sha110wer embayments. At higher latitudes they indent the western coast1ines of Scandinavia, North and South America, and New Zea1and. They are a1so a common feature of much of the arctic coast1ine. The papers contained in this vo1ume were presented at a workshop funded by the NATO Advanced Studies Institute in Victoria, British Co1umbia. It may seem curious to the reader that this specia1 c1ass of estuaries shou1d have attracted an international gathering of oceanographers from severa1 different discip1ines. The reas on for this interest stems from both practica1 and scientific considerations. On the one hand, fjords are a feature common to the coast1ines of severa1 countries that depend heavi1y on the oceans for communication, fisheries and other resources. The impact of man's activities on these coasts has created a demand for new know1edge of the physica1, bio10gica1 and chemica1 aspects of fjords. Sometimes man's inf1uence on the ocean is intentiona1 as, for examp1e, in the artificia1 contro1 of ice cover; often it is the more insidious bui1d-up of toxic wastes that is of concern. These prob1ems are particu1ar1y acute where the conf1icting demands of fisheries, industria1 deve10pment and re creation meet in a sing1e fjord; and indeed, this is a common occurence a10ng severa1 of the fjords in Scandinavia and Canada."