EU calls for immediate protection of Irish coral reefs

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The European Union's executive, the Commission (EC), called for immediate action on Friday to protect endangered coral reefs in the deep waters of Ireland.

"On the basis of scientific evidence, the Commission considers that there is a good case for taking all necessary steps to prevent further damage to these ecosystems," an EC press release announced.

"To this end, the Commission proposes provisional measures immediately prohibiting all fishing in those areas," it added.

The proposed ban covers four areas of the seabed to the west of Ireland, all of them remarkable for the deep-water corals which flourish in the cold Atlantic waters.

The corals, which in this case grow between 400 and 1,600 metres below the surface, are a key component of the deep-sea ecosystem, providing shelter and food to many types of marine animal.

But they have therefore become the target for deep-sea fishermen, who are attracted by the concentration of marine life.

And the technique of bottom-trawling - during which a heavy net is dragged across the sea-bed - threatens the area with a potentially catastrophic destruction of major coral formations.

"The most obvious impact of trawling is mechanical damage to polyps and reef structure caused by the gear itself ... Recovery may not be possible or could be seriously impaired," a report by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) said.

The Commission's proposal could be approved when EU agriculture and fisheries ministers meet on October 22.

The decision is unlikely to spark a sudden wave of coral-reef scuba diving in Ireland, however: the deepest dive which humans can make without breathing special gas mixes is barely 60 metres. dpa bn pb