BOTTOM CONTACT FISHING ACTIVITIES PERSIST ON VULNERABLE ECOSYSTEMS OF THE DEEP

Bottom contact fishing activities persist on vulnerable ecosystems of the deep despite EU closures, new study finds. In 2016 the EU adopted the Deep-Sea Access Regulation*, and upon entry into force in 2017 banned all bottom trawling below 800 metres in EU waters in the Northeast Atlantic. This regulation sought to safeguard some of the area’s most biodiverse but fragile habitats, including seamounts teeming with cold-water corals and sponges – vulnerable marine ecosystems (VMEs).
In November 2022, the European Commission closed 87 areas (between 400-800 metres depth) of European waters to bottom contact fishing, implementing one of the key provisions of the 2016 regulation. While the protections have been successful in reducing fishing activity, a new open-access study published in Science Advances, reveals that bottom contact fishing activities persist.
By comparing apparent fishing activity data from Global Fishing Watch before the EU closures (November 2021 to October 2022), with post-closure data (November 2022 to October 2023), the study reveals an 81% reduction in bottom contact fishing activity. A total of 3,500 fishing hours took place following the closures, down from 19,000 hours in the previous year.
Dr Lissette Victorero, lead author and researcher for the Deep Sea Conservation Coalition (DSCC):
“In this study, we present independent analysis of bottom-fishing activities within the EU’s closures of VMEs. Our findings suggest that, while the 2022 closures have achieved an encouraging reduction in fishing activity, continued bottom-contact fishing within these fragile habitats reveals gaps in compliance and enforcement.
“These closures are an essential step in protecting some of the ocean’s most vulnerable ecosystems, but ensuring their long-term success requires further mapping and protection of VMEs in EU waters and stricter adherence to regulations.”
While the reduction in fishing activity is promising, the study reveals ongoing threats to these vital, vulnerable ecosystems. The analysis found that, of the 3,500 hours post-closure, Spanish vessels accounted for the most activity, responsible for 1,769 hours of bottom contact fishing, followed by the Portuguese fleet. Three Portuguese vessels equipped with bottom trawls appear to have engaged in significant bottom trawling activity, repeatedly targeting a VME closure on the West Iberian Shelf. Despite the protective measures, this area endured over 500 hours of fishing effort.
The study notes that short, quick fishing incursions, such as those by the Spanish fleet, could go unnoticed by vessel monitoring system (VMS) data. This underscores the need for States to enhance and coordinate surveillance and monitoring of their fleets to ensure effective fisheries management by using automatic identification system (AIS) data, alongside VMS, for more transparent monitoring of fishing activity in order to deliver on VME protections and fulfill international commitments.
Additionally, the study identified significant levels of bottom contact fishing in many areas of EU waters where VMEs have been identified, but remain unprotected due to prolonged political delays in implementing the next round of closures, which should proceed annually. Alongside this, over the two-year period covered by this study, an estimated 19,200 hours of trawling activity were recorded at depths below 800 metres in EU waters, in spite of the Deep-Sea Access Regulation which sought to protect these areas from trawling. Collectively, these activities present a serious threat to the health and sustainability of VMEs across EU waters.
Bronwen Golder, Global Seamounts Campaign Lead, DSCC:
“The European Union’s leadership in protecting deep-sea ecosystems must be celebrated, with high levels of compliance identified by this study being an indication that EU member States are taking the collective protection of vulnerable marine ecosystems seriously.
“The reality of continued fishing activity by a handful of vessels in areas where the presence of VMEs has been confirmed sends a clear signal that the next phase of recommended VME closures under the Deep-Sea Access Regulation should be progressed without delay. ”
Twenty years ago, the international community recognised the value of VMEs and the need to protect them; Parties to the UN General Assembly (UNGA) and Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), including EU member States, committed to protect VMEs including seamounts from destructive fishing practices, recognising: “the immense importance and value of deep-sea ecosystems and the biodiversity they contain”. The VME closures by the EU mark a significant step forward in implementing these twenty-year commitments, but more effective monitoring and management is needed to fully and finally achieve the protection of all seamounts from destructive practices
The DSCC calls on the EU to continue implementation of the Deep-Sea Access Regulation including, as a 2025 priority, the adoption of new closures that will see all seamounts and other VMEs in EU waters protected.
*The EU Deep-sea Access Regulation ((EU) 2016/2336) adopted in 2016 contained, among others, two important requirements to protect VMEs: 1- a ban on bottom trawling fishing activities targeting deep-sea species below 800m, and 2- an obligation to protect VMEs where are know or likely to occur between 400m and 800m depth.