According to the Institute's poll amongst fishermen, a vast number of reefs are probably already destroyed by demersal trawling. The collecting of samples from coral reefs in connection with research and teaching can also constitute a threat to coral reefs in areas where large scale studies of this kind are undertaken. In Norway, this is especially relevant to the Trondheim Fjord, where researchers have routinely taken samples from coral reefs for the last 30 years using a triangular scraper. However, when Bellona raised this issue with the Ministry and the pertinent researchers, it turned out that the law had not been actively applied and that the taking of samples had therefore occurred without permission. The coral reefs in Norwegian coastal waters can also be damaged by the laying of pipelines, cables and other construction work on the ocean floor, by anchoring on the reefs and by pollution.
Corals are sensitive to muddy waters.
Thus discharges of drill mud and drill cuttings from oil exploration activities on the continental shelf are a particularly relevant pollution problem. The coral reefs must be protected The value of the Norwegian Lophelia reefs from a natural history perspective, their extraordinary size and their great and insufficiently charted significance to biodiversity in the sea, including commercially important fish species, make it imperative to protect the coral reefs from any further damage. Bellona has requested the authorities to intervene immediately and preserve the remaining coral reefs from further damage. In recognition of the importance of the coral reefs to future fishing resources, the Ministry of Fisheries announced in autumn of 1998 that it was developing a proposal for regulations designed to protect the reefs from damage caused by demersal trawling, and that it would be circulated for public comment when ready, probably during late 1998. Furthermore, in the spring of 1999 the Ministry of the Environment is due to present a report to the Norwegian Parliament on the protection of coastal areas, on which future work with marine conservation areas in Norway will be based.