EU Bans Canary and Azores Trawling to Save Coral Reefs
Date: 21-Sep-05
Country: BELGIUM
Coral has been found at depths of more than 1,000 metres at several sites around the islands -- territories of Spain and Portugal -- and needs special protection against the physical damage caused by so-called bottom trawls, the European Commission says.
A bottom trawl is constructed like a cone-shaped net and towed by one or two boats across the sea floor, with one end retaining all the fish that are scooped up from the ocean floor.
Environmental groups have long criticised the fishing technique, saying it destroys unique and fragile deep sea life in an effort to catch what amounts to a few fish.
"Trawlers are going deeper and deeper, looking for deep sea species like ling and black scabbardfish. This was when we started to see evidence of damage (to coral reefs)," a Commission official said.
With the depletion of mainstay species such as cod and hake in recent years, deepwater fish with exotic names like orange roughy, black scabbardfish and roundnose grenadier, have become an attractive catch as trawlers switch from traditional waters.
Coral reefs are one of the oldest types of living systems on the planet and are a critical sea habitat, along with related ecosystems such as mangroves and sea grass beds. They act as a nursery for much of the biodiversity of the oceanic system.
"Given the importance that damage from erosion by bottom trawls may have for the survival of these habitats, it is appropriate to issue a prohibition on the use of trawls in the areas concerned," said the text of the EU's new regulation.
