At its meeting during 5–19 June 1996, the Standing Committee on Publications (STACPUB) noted that the extensive scientific review of the Cod Stock in NAFO Div. 2J and 3KL conducted by the Scientific Council consisted of a group of papers suitable for a single publication of NAFO Scientific Council Studies. At its meeting during 7–13 September 1996, STACPUB invited J. Morgan, Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Centre, Newfoundland, Canada, to undertake the coordination of the papers for this publication.

This issue of NAFO Scientific Council Studies was initiated by the Standing Committee on Publications (STACPUB) of the Scientific Council with the intent of publishing the detailed review on Flemish Cap oceanography as prepared by the Chairman (M. Stein) of the Standing Committee on Fisheries Environment (STACFEN). At its meetings, STACPUB agreed to publish this review in addition to the annual review papers on climatic conditions as well as other currently available reports related to the Flemish Cap from research documents presented to its meetings, under a single cover of the NAFO Scientific Council Studies. The 24 previous issues of NAFO Scientific Council Studies are listed on the inside back cover of this volume.

At its meeting during 2–16 June 1993, the Scientific Council noted that a complete scientific review of results from the Northern Cod Science Program of Canada was scheduled for late-1994, and the coordinator of the Program, J. S. Campbell, should be invited to consider a NAFO publication for a collection of papers. The Council noted a group of papers dealing with Northern Cod presented at its June 1993 meeting appeared suitable for a single publication. At its meeting during 7–10 September 1993, the Council expressed its appreciation to J. S. Campbell for accepting this task, and the Secretariat undertook to complete the publication by the end of 1994.

During 4–6 September 1991, the Scientific Council held a Symposium on "Changes in Abundance and Biology of Cod Stocks and Their Possible Causes", with H. Hovgård (Denmark, in respect of the Faroe Islands and Greenland) as convener. At its meeting in September 1989, the Scientific Council initially agreed to host the 1991 Special Session on Atlantic Cod, and was pleased to welcome R. (Dick) Wells, the well-known Canadian expert on gadoid biology and fishery management science, to convene a Symposium. With the sad, untimely death of Dick Wells in December 1989, the Council was pleased Hovgård agreed to convene the session, and new ideas on the theme and specific topics were considered. The Council decided to dedicate the Symposium in memory of Dick Wells.

Interest in the contributions to the Symposium resulted in the Scientific Council recommendation that papers presented should be published in full or as extended abstracts in a special issue of, with H. Hovgård and T. Amaratunga undertaking the editorial review of the papers.