Deep sea trawling is harmful

Conservation groups are calling for a ban on bottom-trawling. Makes sense.

"Deep sea fish species in the northern Atlantic are on the brink of extinction, new research suggests.[...]
Allowing trawling in coral 'forests' is the worst thing we are doing in the ocean today. It should be stopped immediately until scientists can determine whether trawling in the deep sea can be justified anywhere.

"Nothing could be dumber than destroying the habitats that depleted fish populations need to recover. Governments must stop pussyfooting around and do something useful."

The Deep Sea Conservation Coalition includes Conservation International, Greenpeace International, World Conservation, the Marine Conservation Biology Institute, the Natural Resources Defense Council, and the New England Aquarium, among others.

That's the first time "pussyfooting" put in context. Anyway, bulldozing the ocean's floor is wiping out the bottom dwelling habitat. It takes decades for the ecosystem to sustain itself again. The photo above is the before (top) and after (bottom) the trawlers have passed through. Yes, trawling is an effective fishing technique to catch fish, but everything else is caught too. It'll be interesting for me to interact with boatmen on the scallop-fishing vessel in a few days. I'm also fascinated with the swordfishing vessels. I'm not gung-ho; I'm just bored and frustrated.