(VOVworld) – The European Parliament (EP) has approved bans on trawling below 800m in EU waters. The ban, setting a worldwide precedent, will help to protect vulnerable deep-sea marine ecosystems by setting stricter limits on deep-sea fisheries.

The EP on Tuesday approved a regulation establishing new rules for fishing in the North-East Atlantic, including a total ban on bottom trawling below 800 meters in EU waters. The regulation says bottom trawling destroys the marine environment and the habitat of deep-water species such as corals and sponges, leading to the reduction of deep-sea fish species.

The ban also restricts offshore fishing to the area where it took place between 2009 and 2011. The EP also set inserts stronger transparency safeguards, obligating fisheries to provide public information on EP vessels targeting deep-sea species and to report all catches. Tougher checks at sea specify that 20% of EP vessels must have an observer or scientist on board to ensure that timely and accurate data are collected.

Deep-sea fishing within the EU earns about 500 billion euros annually, but over-exploitation has threatened some species. EU Fisheries Ministers on November 11 agreed to reduce total allowable catches (TACs) and quotas for black scabbardfish, roundnose grenadiers, and red seabreams.