DivePro - Info

HALIFAX (CP) - Scientists have for the first time discovered a string of coral 'hot spots' in waters off Canada's East Coast and will use the surprising finds to press global fishing interests to steer clear of areas they say are vital marine habitats.

Canadian researchers, in a study to be released Tuesday, said they found heavy concentrations of about 30 species of coral along a stretch of the seabed that extends from the Hudson Strait off Labrador to the Grand Banks off southern Newfoundland.

Their 40-page report says three main sites serve as sanctuaries for a variety of marine animals, but are being damaged by intense fishing.

"We're recommending an immediate fisheries closure in those areas where coral concentrations can be identified within those hot spots," said Bob Rangeley of the World Wildlife Fund, which released the study.

"Corals represent something very, very important about marine biodiversity."

The scientists at Memorial University in Newfoundland plan to present their findings later this month at an upcoming meeting of the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization in Portugal.

Rangeley said the scientists will lobby to have NAFO, which regulates fisheries beyond Canada's 200-mile limit, promote a closure of the areas while more research is done.

Nadia Bouffard of the federal Fisheries Department said Canadian officials will present a handful of proposals to NAFO delegates, including some that could involve closures in areas included in this latest report on marine preservation.

"We will be tabling some measures to look at coral conservation that will include proposed closures," Bouffard, director-general of fisheries renewal, said from Ottawa. "We will be getting NAFO to look at the areas covered in the NAFO jurisdiction and we will look at the ones in Canadian waters."

Using data from Canadian scientific surveys and the Canadian Fisheries Observer Program, researchers found that the most damage was likely being done by fishing vessels registered in Canada, Russia, Portugal and Spain.

Some of the coldwater corals, which can survive in deep, dark waters several kilometres below the surface, are hundreds of years old and take decades to recover after being damaged.

"These are species that are important to deep-sea biodiversity and there are many other organisms that live on them or around them," Evan Edinger, a marine scientist at Memorial, said in an interview. "So, if we're concerned about conserving biodiversity in the oceans in general, then conserving corals is a good way to conserve other species."

The research also found damage is being done by several fishing gear types, rather than just bottom trawling, which is most often associated with the destruction of coral reefs.

Edinger said that in addition to trawling, longlines are getting ensared in the brittle, tree-like formations and snapping them off.

"Our research demonstrates that no matter what type of fishing gear is used, bottom-contact fishing in coral habitat damages coral," he said. "It's very important that any areas established to protect corals exclude bottom directed fishing activities."

The federal Fisheries Department has already created several zones off the East Coast where fishing is either restricted or prohibited to protect fragile marine life. But it's not clear if the department will be successful if it recommends further closures at the NAFO meeting.

The fisheries management body has long faced criticism that it has failed to adequately deal with rogue vessels and nations that ignore internationally sanctioned fishing practices.

Bouffard insisted NAFO members are starting to respond to a growing public demand that the fishery become more ecologically sensitive and are beginning to conduct their fisheries accordingly.

"So at the end of the day industry is starting to think if they don't so something about bottom impacts, access to their markets might be affected," she said, adding that DFO will conduct more research on the effects of gear types on corals. "I think they see the writing on the wall."

Still, Rangeley said there will be little patience for slow progress or intransigence on the part of contracting countries that are reluctant to adopt conservation measures.

"The time for talk is over," said Rangeley, who will attend the Portugal meeting. "We'll be watching them very closely."

Source - 630 CHED