Area of coastal seabed trawled by BOMEC class (2008–12)
Publisher
New Zealand's Environment Reporting Series: The Ministry for the Environment and Statistics New Zealand
Description
Seabed trawling and dredging, when fishing nets or dredges are towed near and along the seabed, can physically damage seabed (benthic) habitats and species. It can also stir up sediment from the seabed, shading (in shallow waters) or smothering marine species. This measure focuses on coastal areas (waters shallower than 250m). Focusing on coastal benthic habitats is important as these face multiple threats (for example, from land-based activities) in addition to fishing
