Foghorn Wails: Norway Fines Vessel for Waking Polar Bear

Norwegian maritime authorities fined a vessel’s crew 50,000 kroner (£3,890) for blasting a foghorn that woke a sleeping polar bear in Svalbard.

Aboard a ship traveling in a fjord of northwestern Svalbard—about 620 miles from the North Pole—a passenger struck the alarm—a foghorn—after spotting a polar bear asleep on a rock. The noise jolted the bear, which then moved elsewhere.

The incident, which happened earlier this month, was confirmed by Governor Lars Fause, who cited the fine. Under the Svalbard Environment Act it is a violation to needlessly disturb, attract or pursue a polar bear, a species protected since 1972. The person on board has agreed to pay the fine.

Svalbard, the world’s northernmost archipelago, hosted roughly 250 polar bears according to the last 2015 survey, and authorities have repeatedly cited fines for wildlife disturbances. In 2024, for example, a tourist was fined 11,500 kroner (£900) for getting too close to a walrus.

These penalties underscore Norway’s commitment to preserving Arctic fauna. The Svalbard Environment Act requires all maritime traffic to avoid unnecessary disturbances to local wildlife—including polar bears, seals, whales, reindeer and arctic foxes.