Trawling is among the most environmentally damaging fishing practices. Beyond the clear harm to marine ecosystems, the heavy nets dragging along the sea floor also contribute to climate change. They release CO2 that had been stored deep in the seabed for thousands of years, pushing more carbon into the ocean and the atmosphere.
A study from an American research team highlighted this emissions source as often overlooked, suggesting it could play a substantial role in future climate efforts.
Scientists note that from 1996 to 2020, trawling released CO2 at a rate that, in many years, surpassed emissions from the world’s fleet of fishing vessels combined. The impact is significant and warrants closer scrutiny.
Trawlers around the planet cause great damage to the environment European Press
“Dragging heavy nets across the ocean floor destroys marine life and habitats, but the findings show it also lifts clouds of carbon that would otherwise stay buried beneath the seabed,” said Trisha Atwood, a biologist specializing in ecology at the University of Utah in the United States, who led the study.
In this context, the study suggests trawling can release between 55% and 60% of the carbon currently stored on the seabed within the next nine years.
It emits as much CO2 as the entire world’s aviation
For decades, this damage has been ongoing. Research indicates that between 1996 and 2020, trawling released more CO2 annually than many nations did, a figure comparable to the emissions from global aviation.
Regions most affected by these emissions include the East China Sea, the Baltic Sea, the North Sea, and the Greenland Sea in the Atlantic Ocean.
Trawlers destroyed the seabed oceania
Further, the researchers concluded that Southeast Asia, the Bay of Bengal, the Arabian Sea, parts of Europe, and the Gulf of Mexico may also contribute notable carbon emissions from trawling, though data to firmly establish a correlation remains incomplete.
These findings illuminate a previously underrecognized problem. “Countries often overlook substantial carbon released by this activity in climate action plans,” stated Enric Sala, who coordinated the paper and serves as Executive Director of Pristine Seas. He remains hopeful that reducing trawling could yield immediate emissions benefits.
The study also explored what happens to carbon that does not enter the atmosphere. Roughly 40% to 45% of the total carbon remains dissolved in water, locally acidifying the marine environment and affecting the health of marine life where trawling occurs.
A reference to the study is cited in the scientific literature: Frontiers in Marine Science, 2023, focusing on the carbon emissions associated with bottom-contact fishing practices.
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Note: The environmental department is cited as part of the discussion in the study’s framing (attribution within the cited research).