Svalbard Norway: Tourist fined £900 for getting too close to walrus as he went on a pack of floating ice to approach the animal

A tourist has been fined £900 for getting too close to a walrus in Norway. Members of the public alerted officials when they saw a man going onto an ice floe to approach the animal in the Norwegian Arctic archipelago of Svalbard.

It's against the law to approach the wildlife on Svalbard in a way that disturbs them. The incident happened near Longyearbyen - one of the world's northernmost settlements.

According to the Svalbard Environment Act stipulates, all traffic on the archipelago must take place in a way that does not lead to unnecessary disturbance of local wildlife. The local wildlife includes polar bears, seals, whales, reindeer and arctic foxes.

The governor has encouraged everyone to keep a good distance from walruses so that they are not disturbed and to avoid danger to people. Walruses in Svalbard became protected in 1952 when only a few hundred remained. However, the population of walruses has been growing since measures were put in place. But the species remain on the Norwegian National Red List.

Spring and summer are popular times for tourists to visit Svalbard as the sun at the almost untouched archipelago in the high Arctic doesn't set at night. The Norwegian government has announced tougher regulations due to growing concerns on the impact of tourism and climate change. 

The regulations will come into place next year and include a ban on getting within 150 metres of a walrus. Other measures include a cap on cruise ships and designated landing sites.

Police prosecutor Magnus Rindal Fredriksen told the BBC that parts of the incident with the tourist getting too close to the walrus were observed by several of the governor's employees. He said the incident happened "very close to Longyearbyen, at the bottom of the fjord".