Ocean habitat protection: for cod and country.

• Position: OCEAN CONSERVATION

The almighty cod is a legendary fish in our New England waters. It is a staple of our traditional cuisine and an historic driver of our economy. Once, New England's fisheries inspired tales of cod schools so thick that fish jumped onto boats' decks. Sadly, that is no longer the case.

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Decades of overfishing and relentless sea-floor habitat destruction caused by widespread use of bottom trawling and dredging have sharply depleted New England's iconic cod populations--which are now at record low levels--and depleted our groundfish species, including haddock and yellowtail flounder. Decades of harmful fishing practices and habitat destruction have created an environmental crisis that threatens to destroy our fishing heritage and coastal economies up and down New England. Combined with the threats of climate change, which may be affecting cod and other marine species in ways that we do not yet fully understand, the long-term changes to ocean health are severe.

In a desperate attempt to compensate for declining catches, some in the fishing industry are pushing to allow commercial trawling in the few protected areas in New England ocean waters. Places such as Cashes Ledge, Jeffreys Ledge, Jeffreys Bank, and Georges Bank provide rich habitats for groundfish and many other species, all of which benefit from fishing regulations that prohibit harmful bottom trawling practices. These protected areas, along with the enforcement of strict catch limits, are the keys to the future of our fisheries.

Opening up these areas to destructive bottom trawling will devastate the habitat and threaten the remaining productive female cod critical to rebuilding the population. This decision could mean life or death for the cod fishery, and it will have profound impacts on the fishermen, communities, and economies that depend on this important natural resource.

Protecting ocean habitat through fishing closures is a proven management strategy for not only increasing fish populations, but also for restoring the health of the ecosystem.

Along with taking a stand for strong habitat protection, CLF is calling for a complete shutdown of New England's cod fishery to prevent a total collapse of the fishery and its related businesses. We only have to look north to the collapse of the cod fishery in Canada, which has not recovered despite a multi-decade-long moratorium, to see what's at stake.

HIGHLIGHTS

* Throughout 2012, New England's fishing industry...