Offshore Pacific Seamounts & Vents Closure

To protect seamounts, hydrothermal vents, and the species they support.

All forms of bottom-contact fishing are prohibited.

Seamounts and hydrothermal vents are regionally unique geological features which provide habitats for corals, sponges, and other rare marine species. Some of these species, such as glass sponges or demosponges, are fragile, slow growing, and slow to recover. It has been estimated that over 80 per cent of hydrothermal vent species are endemic and rare, and more than 500 new animal species have been described since discovery of these ecosystems in 1977! Corals and sponges also provide habitats for other regionally important species, such as several kinds of rockfish.