Assessing the Long Term Effects of Deep Sea Trawling in the Northeast Atlantic

OVERVIEW

GRANT AWARDED: May 2011. Researchers have documented habitat destruction of deep water corals by bottom trawling gear, which scrapes along the sea floor. The deep-water banks off Britain are well-known fishing grounds for deep sea trawling fleets, some of which were closed to fishing in 2003. This project will look at the recovery of those deep sea habitats in the North Atlantic Ocean to help determine the timelines necessary for deep sea habitat to recover from the effects of bottom trawling.