What is Bottom Trawling and Why Does It Need to End?

When we talk about protecting the ocean, the question often isn’t whether we should act, it’s where to start. Bottom trawling is a last century practice that has no place in a healthy ocean. 

In the video, Karli Thomas from the Deep Sea Conservation Coalition explains what bottom trawling is, what it means for seamounts, why these ecosystems are so important, and why this is one of the clearest opportunities we have to do better for the ocean – right now. 

It’s a fishing method that involves dragging heavy, industrial gear across the seafloor, destroying everything in its path. Among the most affected places are seamounts, underwater mountains that rise from the deep ocean floor. These areas are biodiversity hotspots, acting as nurseries and feeding grounds for fish, sharks, whales and countless other species. Because life concentrates around them, seamounts are incredibly valuable. They’re also incredibly vulnerable.

New Zealand has committed to ocean protection, innovation and sustainability. Yet we are still bottom trawling seamounts in our own waters and remain the only nation still doing so on seamounts in the South Pacific high seas.

That’s why this issue matters. 

Ending bottom trawling on seamounts isn’t about shutting down fishing. It’s about protecting the most fragile places first, using the best science available, and accelerating a transition to methods that don’t permanently damage the ocean floor.