Kimberly Oremus
Associate Professor University of Delaware
- Newark DE
Expert on oceans and fishery policy, as well as the ways humans can adapt and develop policy to target climate change
Media
Social
Biography
She is among the leading experts on U.S. fishery policy, the economics of fisheries under climate change, and policies to limit marine plastics. Oremus received her B.S. from Stanford University and her MPA and Ph.D. from Columbia University. She combines economics, policy analysis and the natural sciences to understand the complex interactions between industry, government and the environment.
Her work has been published in top journals such as Science, Nature Sustainability, and the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Areas of Expertise
Media Appearances
Do Plastic Bag Bans Actually Work?
Time online
2025-06-19
“I was surprised to see how effective plastic bag policies have been in reducing plastic bag shoreline litter,” says Kimberly Oremus, associate professor in the School of Marine Science and Policy at the University of Delaware, and co-author of the Science paper. “While they don’t eliminate the problem, they do help mitigate it. What makes me hopeful is the growing number and geographic spread of these policies in the U.S.”
Banning Plastic Bags Works to Limit Shoreline Litter, Study Finds
The New York Times online
2025-06-19
“It’s slowing down the rate of plastic bag litter,” said Kimberly Oremus, another author and an environmental economist and associate professor at the University of Delaware. “It’s not reversing it, it’s not eliminating it.”
Plastic bag fees and bans help protect beaches and riverbanks, study finds
The Washington Post online
2025-06-19
Measures targeting plastic bags aren’t eliminating the problem, just slowing its growth, said Kimberly Oremus, one of the study’s authors and an associate professor at the University of Delaware’s School of Marine Science and Policy.
Are plastic bag bans working? One Univ. of Delaware study says 'yes'
Delaware Public Media online
2025-07-18
Kimberly Oremus is an associate professor in UD’s School of Marine Science and Policy. She says when it comes to the types of bans, one appears more effective.
Climate 'Shocks' Eliminated 16% Of New England Fishing Jobs, Study Finds
Huffington Post online
2019-12-10
Climate shocks and significant deviations from the average temperatures reduced fishing jobs in New England’s coastal counties by 16% from 1996 to 2017, according to the peer-reviewed paper by University of Delaware researcher Kimberly Oremus.
Fish larvae float across national borders, binding the world’s oceans in a single network
The Conversation online
2019-09-18
Fish populations are declining around the world, and many countries are trying to conserve them by regulating their fishing industries. However, controlling fishing locally may not do enough to strengthen fish populations.
Die Fische und das „Kleine-Welt-Phänomen“
Die Welt online
2019-06-21
„Jetzt haben wir eine Karte davon, wie die Fischbestände der Welt miteinander verbunden sind, und wo internationale Kooperation am nötigsten ist, um eine natürliche Ressource zu schützen, von der Hunderte Millionen Menschen abhängig sind“, sagt Kimberly Oremus von der University of Delaware’s School of Marine Science and Policy.
Articles
Plastic bag bans and fees reduce harmful bag litter on shorelines
Science2025-06-19
Plastic pollution has become a global problem, constituting the majority of marine litter, threatening wildlife, and damaging ecosystems. Among the most common and troublesome categories of marine litter are thin plastic shopping bags, which often evade waste management by floating away in the wind and can entangle or block the digestion of marine animals.
Regulating Biological Resources: Lessons From Marine Fisheries in the United States
National Bureau of Economic Research2025-09-15
In 1996, with United States fish populations in decline, Congress overhauled fishing laws with scientific thresholds for rebuilding overfished stocks. The law's impact is contested, and lawmakers have spent over a decade debating its reauthorization while countries around the world consider similar policies. We develop the first causally interpretable evaluation of this law, exploiting the fact that the European Union has comparable fisheries but only recently developed similar laws.
Testing the waters: the state of U.S. shellfish permitting regulations
Animal Frontiers2024-09-05
Aquaculture produces roughly half of the seafood consumed worldwide, yet in the United States, the industry remains strikingly limited relative to its potential capacity (Lester et al., 2021). At present, U.S. marine aquaculture (mariculture) consists mostly of small-scale shellfish farming within state waters, with some states boasting well-established shellfish industries and others having entered the industry in earnest only in the last decade.
Geolocated fish spawning habitats
Scientific Data2024-05-22
Fish spawning locations are a crucial input into fisheries management and conservation plans, and many stocks are especially sensitive to the environmental conditions within these localized zones. Globally collated data on spawning locations across many species has been unavailable, hindering global stock assessments and analyses of sustainable development and global environmental change.
Harassment and obstruction of observers in U.S. fisheries
Frontiers in Marine Science2023-09-12
Fishery observers play a crucial role in the management and conservation of fish stocks, but the treatment they receive aboard fishing vessels can affect their ability to perform their duties. Using law enforcement data from the Northeast and Alaska regions, home to the most important commercial fisheries in the United States, we explore the extent of observer harassment, assault, interference, and obstruction (OHAIO).
Governance challenges for tropical nations losing fish species due to climate change
Nature Sustainability2020-02-24
Climate change is driving fishery stocks out of their historical ranges. Along with the management challenge of species entering new jurisdictions, the exit of species from countries’ waters poses distinct threats to those resources and the economies that depend on them.
The small world of global marine fisheries: The cross-boundary consequences of larval dispersal
Science2019-06-21
Fish stocks are managed within national boundaries and by regional organizations, but the interdependence of stocks between these jurisdictions, especially as a result of larval dispersal, remains poorly explored.
Climate variability reduces employment in New England fisheries
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences2019-12-26
Beyond their value as a natural resource, marine fisheries employ an estimated 18.4 million commercial harvesters worldwide. Previous research describes how climate change can affect fish populations, but how it will impact fishing employment and communities is not yet understood.
Education
Columbia University
Ph.D.
Sustainable Development
2017
Columbia University
M.P.A.
Environmental Science and Policy
2011
Stanford University
B.S.
Management Science and Engineering
2005
