Photo by: Kim Conway

Home » Campaigns » Ocean Conservation » Saving the Sea of Glass: Hecate Strait and Queen Charlotte Sound Glass Sponge Reefs Marine Protected Area

Saving the Sea of Glass: Hecate Strait and Queen Charlotte Sound Glass Sponge Reefs Marine Protected Area

Ocean Conservation

Protecting rare and fragile glass sponge reefs on the north and central coasts of British Columbia from destructive fishing

After tens of millions of years of being thought extinct, glass sponge reefs were discovered deep in the waters off the BC north and central coasts. For scientists, it was like finding a herd of living dinosaurs.

These unique marine ecosystems provide critical habitat for rockfish and shrimp, store carbon, fertilize the ocean, and filter water. Fragile and vulnerable to damage from fishing methods like bottom trawling, these reefs need protection to sustain the biodiversity and livelihoods of coastal communities. CPAWS-BC’s campaign aims to strengthen regulations for the existing Hecate Strait and Queen Charlotte Sound Glass Sponge Reefs Marine Protected Area as part of the Great Bear Sea Marine Protected Area Network. Safeguards also need to be designated for known reefs that are still unprotected.

A map of Hecate Strait and Queen Charlotte Sound Glass Sponge Reefs Marine Protected Area

Goal

Increasing the buffer zones in the Hecate Strait and Queen Charlotte Sound Glass Sponge Reefs Marine Protected Area and designating safeguards for unprotected reefsIncreasing the buffer zones in the Hecate Strait and Queen Charlotte Sound Glass Sponge Reefs Marine Protected Area and designating safeguards for unprotected reefs

Quick Facts

Size

~2400 km²

Location

Great Bear Sea off the north and central coasts of British Columbia

Animals, Not Plants or Rocks

Glass sponges are not plants or rocks, but animals that were thought to have gone extinct 40 million years ago.

Large and Deep

The reefs are located at depths of 140 to 240 m below the surface, with the largest being 35 km long, 15 km wide and 25 m tall.

Made of Glass

Glass sponge skeletons are made of silica —the same stuff glass is made of — and are extremely fragile.

Underwater Homes

They provide habitat for rockfish, shrimp, crabs, octopuses and more!

Climate Change Fighters

Glass sponge reefs absorb carbon and store it at the bottom of the ocean for thousands of years.

Photo by: Fisheries and Oceans Canada (CC BY-NC 4.0), iNaturalist

Photo by: Nathan Grant (CC BY-NC 4.0), iNaturalist

Photo by: Fisheries and Oceans Canada (CC BY-NC 4.0), iNaturalist

Photo by: Nathan Grant (CC BY-NC 4,0), iNaturalist

Photo by: Fisheries and Oceans Canada (CC BY-NC 4.0), iNaturalist

Why Action is Needed

What's at Stake?

The glass sponge reefs in BC face significant threats from bottom contact fishing, which can shatter their fragile silica structures. Sediment kicked up from bottom contact fishing also causes these sponges to choke, forcing them to stop feeding. Without protection, unique marine ecosystems, coastal cultures, and local economies are at risk. Strong protection is essential to preserving biodiversity and sustaining ecological functions. Protecting these reefs ensures the continued health of the marine environment and the BC communities that depend on it.

Fragile silica (glass) skeletons
Easily damaged by heavy bottom contact fishing gear
“Choke” from sediment created from bottom trawling

Solutions

CPAWS-BC advocates for strong marine protected areas that ban bottom contact fishing on and near glass sponge reefs

Giant glass sponge reefs off the BC central coast are protected by the Hecate Strait and Queen Charlotte Sound Glass Sponge Reefs Marine Protected Area. New research shows that the buffer zones are too small and that the protected area should be expanded.

There are also several known living reefs in the Great Bear Sea that are currently unprotected. Urgent designation is needed to safeguard these reefs from destruction from bottom contact fishing before it is too late.