Northeast Channel Coral Conservation Area (Restricted Bottom Fisheries Zone)

To protect cold-water coral habitat.

All commercial bottom-contact fishing gear (for example bottom trawls or traps) is prohibited in the area.

The conservation area contains high densities of cold-water corals, especially octocorals, which are long-lived, fragile, and slow to recover when hurt. When not protected, corals can easily be damaged by fishing or other human activities that come into contact with the sea floor. Corals form structures that act as spawning and breeding grounds, nurseries, and refuges for many other aquatic species.