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International Business Times
09-06-2025
- Science
- International Business Times
Tourism Sector Alert! World-First Footage Shows Antarctic Seafloor at Risk as Ship Anchors Destroy Unique Marine Ecosystem
A latest study, published in Frontiers in Conservation Science, revealed on Monday, June 9, that ship anchors are causing significant damage to the fragile Antarctic seafloor. This action is eventually crushing the unique marine life and leaving long-lasting scars. According to scientists from New Zealand, Canada, and the United States, video footage from 36 Antarctic Peninsula and South Georgia Island sites revealed that ship anchoring leaves areas almost lifeless, with crushed sponges and scarred seafloor, while surrounding undisturbed zones remain biodiverse. Sally Watson, a marine geophysicist at New Zealand's National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research and the study's co-author said, "Anchoring impacts are understudied and underestimated globally. It's so important to recognize and mitigate the impacts across all industries and limit planned anchoring." Using underwater cameras, the researchers discovered that the problem is worsening as shrinking sea ice makes more of Antarctica available for cruise, research, fishing, and private vessels, adding that anchor damage is almost entirely unregulated in Antarctica, despite strict conservation rules for other activities. During the 2022-2023 Antarctic summer, at least 195 ships anchored in Antarctic seas, most certainly underestimating the total number, according to the study. In disturbed regions, footage showed crushed ancient sponges and a paucity of benthic creatures, whereas undisturbed places were rich in unusual, slow-growing species that were particularly vulnerable to such impacts. While research on anchor impacts is expanding in tropical reefs, Watson identified a significant knowledge gap in Antarctica. Each vessel that anchors in 30-40 meters of water might disturb at least 1,600 meters of seafloor, not counting further damage from chains dragging if ships move, she said. Scientists warn that recovery from seafloor damage in Antarctica might take decades, although similar damage in warmer places has persisted for over ten years. Matthew Mulrennan, who founded the California-based ocean exploration and conservation nonprofit KOLOSSAL, and the study's lead author said that the loss of sponges and other seafloor life disturbs essential ecological services including water filtration, carbon storage, and habitat provision, jeopardizing the broader Antarctic food chain, which includes species such as penguins and seals that attract tourists. Mulrennan concluded, "Anchoring is likely the most overlooked ocean conservation issue in terms of global seafloor disruption; it is on par with the damages from bottom trawling."
Canada Standard
09-06-2025
- Science
- Canada Standard
Antarctic seafloor at risk as ship anchors crush unique marine life: study
WELLINGTON, June 9 (Xinhua) -- Ship anchors are causing significant damage to the fragile Antarctic seafloor, crushing unique marine life and leaving long-lasting scars, a new study revealed on Monday. Video footage from 36 Antarctic Peninsula and South Georgia Island sites shows that ship anchoring leaves areas nearly lifeless, with crushed sponges and scarred seafloor, while nearby undisturbed zones remain biodiverse, according to scientists from New Zealand, Canada and the United States. "Anchoring impacts are understudied and underestimated globally. It's so important to recognize and mitigate the impacts across all industries and limit planned anchoring," said the study's co-author Sally Watson, a marine geophysicist at New Zealand's National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research. Using underwater cameras, the research found that the problem is growing as shrinking sea ice opens up more of Antarctica to cruise, research, fishing, and private vessels, the scientists said, adding that anchor damage is almost entirely unregulated in Antarctica, despite strict conservation rules for other activities. During the 2022-2023 Antarctic summer, at least 195 ships anchored in Antarctic waters, likely underestimating the true number, said the study published in Frontiers in Conservation Science. Footage revealed crushed ancient sponges and a lack of benthic animals in disturbed areas, while undamaged sites were rich in unique, slow-growing species highly vulnerable to such impacts. While research on anchor impacts is increasing in tropical reefs, Watson highlighted a major knowledge gap in Antarctica. Each vessel anchoring in 30-40 meters of water could disturb at least 1,600 meters of seabed, not accounting for additional damage from chains dragging if ships move, she said. Scientists caution that recovery from seafloor damage in Antarctica could take decades or longer, as similar harm in warmer regions has persisted for over ten years. The loss of sponges and other seafloor life disrupts key ecosystem functions like water filtration, carbon storage, and habitat provision, threatening the broader Antarctic food web, including species such as penguins and seals that draw tourists, said the study's lead author, Matthew Mulrennan, who founded the California-based ocean exploration and conservation nonprofit KOLOSSAL. "Anchoring is likely the most overlooked ocean conservation issue in terms of global seafloor disruption; it is on par with the damages from bottom trawling," Mulrennan said.
ABC News
09-06-2025
- Science
- ABC News
Video of Antarctic sea floor damage by anchors a warning to tourism sector
Matthew Mulrennan was trying to find and film the elusive colossal squid in Antarctica when his underwater footage revealed something worrying in the deep. The footage revealed a sea floor scoured of life with "deep grooves" that suggested damage by anchor chains. "You could clearly see this delineation between where there was abundant marine life and where the chain and anchor had disrupted the sea floor," Mr Mulrennan said. It is the first video evidence of environmental damage in the sensitive polar region, Mr Mulrennan and colleagues report today in the Frontiers in Conservation Science. An estimated 4,000 species live on the Antarctic sea floor, with around 90 per cent unique to the southern continent's waters. Mr Mulrennan said most visitors might go there for the penguins, seals and whales, but the region's biodiversity was more like an iceberg. "Almost all of it is underwater," he said. "[The] animals that are there are very vulnerable. Some grow to extreme years of age including giant volcano sponges, which we found right next to the anchor damage." Mr Mulrennan, a marine scientist and founder of not-for-profit conservation group Kolossal, was on a tourist ship visiting Antarctica in 2023 when he took the footage. Concerned about what he saw, he contacted marine geophysicist and anchor chain damage researcher Sally Watson from the New Zealand National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research. Dr Watson confirmed the linear grooves and harsh gouges, recorded in the popular destination Yankee Harbour next to an Antarctic island, were consistent with damage caused by anchors and their chains. Mr Mulrennan and Dr Watson said the findings raised concerns about anchoring by research and fishing vessels, as well as a growing tourism industry in Antarctica. They said more regulation and collecting of anchoring data was needed ahead of a projected quadrupling of tourists to 452,000 people a year visiting Antarctica by 2033–34. Anchors can be metres wide, and crush the living things they land on, but it's the chain connecting the anchor to the ship that often does the most damage as it drags laterally across the sea bed. Many Antarctic seabed animals grow slowly in the same place over centuries, making them vulnerable to chains. Dr Watson said anchor chains probably had the second biggest impact to the sea floor after trawling by commercial fishers. Research into anchor impacts is growing in places such as the Great Barrier Reef and other tropical reef environments but Dr Watson said there was a "big gaping hole" in Antarctica. Mr Mulrennan surveyed 36 sites around the Antarctic Peninsula, and anchoring damage was only found at the Yankee Harbour site. Dr Watson wasn't able to access voluntary anchoring data kept by the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO), so she used ship tracking data to estimate anchoring activity instead. Eight vessels likely used their anchors in Yankee Harbour during the month Mr Mulrennan surveyed the area. Dr Watson estimated a minimum of 1,600 metres of seabed would be affected if each vessel anchored in water 30–40 metres deep. This figure does not consider the damage from the chain dragging side to side if the ships moved. Social scientist Elizabeth Leane of the University of Tasmania, who was not involved with the study, said there were sites more popular than Yankee Harbour that hadn't been surveyed. Professor Leane, whose work focuses on Antarctic tourism, noted Cuverville Island and Neko Harbour received more visits than Yankee Harbour. Lisa Kelley, the executive director of IAATO, said the group welcomed "research into all forms of human activity in Antarctica". "We acknowledge that this study represents a snapshot in time," Ms Kelley said."The insights provided will be shared with IAATO's relevant committees and working groups to support our ongoing commitment to safe and environmentally responsible operations in the Antarctic region." Greg Mortimer, who founded the Antarctic tour company Aurora Expeditions, said operators had become more aware of potential damage caused by anchors since the 2000s. He said tourist ships were able to visit Antarctica based on their impacts being less than minor or transitory. "If that's not the case, further action is needed," Mr Mortimer said. He said the "missing link" was knowing how much damage was being done and its significance. Dr Watson said collecting more data on anchoring, as well as surveys of marine life, will be crucial to planning sea-floor-safe Antarctic tourism. Mr Mulrennan said ships at times already operated safely in Antarctica without using an anchor. When sea ice is high, vessels cannot get to water shallow enough to drop anchor and rely on dynamic positioning systems — where a vessel uses its own propulsion — to stay put. Dr Watson said she recognised it wasn't possible to get rid of anchoring entirely. "I want to be really clear about the difference between anchoring when you have a storm, and you're trying to protect the people and ship, compared to cruising up to a harbour and dropping anchor willy-nilly," she said. In areas of high destruction, Mr Mulrennan suggested operators could agree on "parking lot areas" where all visiting ships anchor or that moorings be created in high traffic zones. Parking lots were a "sound idea" according to Mr Mortimer, who said most ships anchored in the same place anyway. However, he believes moorings would be vulnerable to Antarctica's extreme weather and iceberg damage. Professor Leane said she was hopeful tour operators would take the research on board and come up with solutions. "[Tourist operators] don't want a damaged environment as people are increasingly interested in seeing the undersea environment," she said.
