April 7, 2015
Photos: A Look into Chile’s Seamounts Permanently Protected from Bottom Trawling
BY: Brianna Elliott
Did you hear the exciting news about permanent protections for Chile’s seamounts?
A few weeks ago, Chile finalized regulation that bans bottom trawling on all 117 seamounts located within its Exclusive Economic Zone. Now, over 68,000 square kilometers of important underwater habitat are protected, forever, within Chile’s waters. This historic move makes Chile the first nation in the world to safeguard every one of these seamounts from this dirty fishing practice.
Seamounts, which are essentially submerged mountains, are critical habitat for many marine species. They serve as rich feeding grounds, nurseries and breeding grounds for thousands of creatures, ranging from sharks, lobsters, sting rays and more. Bottom trawling — a form of commercial fishing that involves dragging weighted nets across the seafloor — can destroy seamounts, stripping them of corals, sea urchins and other marine life that covers their surface.
The move comes after six years of campaign work by Oceana, who has fought for the protection of these seamounts for years and conducted multiple expeditions to many of Chile’s seamounts that document their vast biodiversity.
Take a look below to catch a glimpse into some of Chile’s newly-protected habitat.
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Salas y Go?mez Island, a remote, uninhabited island that lies about 320 kilometers east of Easter Island, is part of the 150,000-square kilometer, no-take Motu Motiro Hiva Marine Park and is dotted by surrounding seamounts. Oceana, National Geographic and the Chilean Navy conducted an expedition to Salas y Go?mez in 2011, and documented rich marine life and habitat.
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Around the Juan Fernández islands, an archipelago located about 640 kilometers off the coast of Chile, biodiversity is so rich that this area has been compared to the Galapagos Islands for its wildlife. Colorful corals, lobsters, mollusks and more form the backdrop of this chain of islands and seamounts, and the region is home to species found nowhere else in the world, like the Juan Fernández fur seal pictured above. Oceana conducted several expeditions to the area between 2009 and 2014, documenting marine life and establishing relationships with local fishermen. Several months later, five Chilean senators sponsored a bill that advocated for bottom trawl bans around the Juan Fernández. This resulted in the effective protection of all 117 seamounts in Chilean waters in early 2015.
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Isla Chañaral is located just over six miles off coastal Chile, and is part of nesting habitat for 80 percent of the world’s Humboldt penguins, along with other marine life like whales and dolphins. Oceana visited this area in 2009 to advocate for the region stretching from coastal La Higuera to Isla Chañaral to be designated as a multiple-use marine protected area.
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Salas y Go?mez Island, a remote, uninhabited island that lies about 320 kilometers east of Easter Island, is part of the 150,000-square kilometer, no-take Motu Motiro Hiva Marine Park and is dotted by surrounding seamounts. Oceana, National Geographic and the Chilean Navy conducted an expedition to Salas y Go?mez in 2011, and documented rich marine life and habitat.
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Salas y Go?mez Island, a remote, uninhabited island that lies about 320 kilometers east of Easter Island, is part of the 150,000-square kilometer, no-take Motu Motiro Hiva Marine Park and is dotted by surrounding seamounts. Oceana, National Geographic and the Chilean Navy conducted an expedition to Salas y Go?mez in 2011, and documented rich marine life and habitat.
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Around the Juan Fernández islands, an archipelago located about 640 kilometers off the coast of Chile, biodiversity is so rich that this area has been compared to the Galapagos Islands for its wildlife. Colorful clams, corals, mollusks and more form the backdrop of this chain of islands and seamounts, and the region is home to species found nowhere else in the world, like the Juan Fernández fur seal pictured above. Oceana conducted several expeditions to the area between 2009 and 2014, documenting marine life and establishing relationships with local fishermen. Several months later, five Chilean senators sponsored a bill that advocated for bottom trawl bans around the Juan Fernández. This resulted in the effective protection of all 117 seamounts in Chilean waters in early 2015.
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Isla Chañaral is located just over six miles off coastal Chile, and is part of nesting habitat for 80 percent of the world’s Humboldt penguins, along with other marine life like whales and dolphins. Oceana visited this area in 2009 to advocate for the region stretching from coastal La Higuera to Isla Chañaral to be designated as a multiple-use marine protected area.
