Why a Gros Morne sea grass study is so important to the fishing industry

A team of researchers is studying eelgrass meadows on the ocean floor in the Gros Morne National Park region for the next three years to discover why the aquatic plant is declining on a global scale.

The project will cost about $64,000 and includes field work and data entry using underwater cameras and crab traps.

Rebecca Brushett of the Ecology Action Centre in Halifax says eelgrass is an "underwater plant hero," and there would be no fishing industry were it not for the grass.

She says the underwater meadows act as a buffer for coastal erosion, protecting beaches and coastlines in Gros Morne. It also serves as a carbon sink, which is crucial to mitigating the climate change crisis.

It also acts as a nursery for juvenile sea creatureslike halibut, lobsterand shrimp.

"It's directly linked to the commercial fisheries," said Brushett.

"Today and historically it really is what built our communities. Sowithout [those] eelgrass habitats we do not have cod as a juvenile species to grow and get bigger. Also crab, lobster or halibut we don't have [those] species or the food they depend on. We really need to protect it."

Brushett and her team of researchers say the eelgrass is declining and that has a lot to do with an invasive species called the European green crab. The crab can eat the eelgrass at the stem, destroying the meadows.

"We don't like them," said Brushett.

WATCH | See how many green crabs are crawling in this eelgrass:

What is eelgrass and why is it crawling with green crabs?

12 months ago

Duration 1:38

A research project on Newfoundlands west coast has taken a sideways path from eelgrass to green crabs. Learn why the crabs are hogging the spotlight, and why eelgrass is so important.

Invasive species

European green crab were first sightedin Gros Morne in 2009, but there hasn't been enough data to give a clear picture of what's happening until now.

Thethree-year research project is a team effort with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, whichprovided green crab traps to the researchers in the field so they can collect and dispose of any crabs they find.

Sydney Sullivan presses a button on her remote control screen and the remotely operated camera sinks to the bottom of the shoreline in Neddie's Harbour.

"You get to bring the ocean to eye level," said Sullivan, a marine conservationistwith Atlantic Healthy Oceans Initiative.

Sullivan spent the summer months studying eelgrass meadows around the Gros Morne region using the underwater camera. She also set traps in several different locations, collecting far more green crabs then she and her team had expected.

"Actually getting out there and seeing [eelgrass] and seeing that is it thriving in some areas, and very dense in some areas, is really nice to see," said Sullivan.

Data bank

All the data collected on green crabs and eelgrass quality will be entered into a marine atlas that willcontribute to any future decisions to conserve or protect certain bodies of water in the Gros Morne region.

"It's not just the research that we are collecting right now," said Sullivan.

The atlas is "like a map of everything that's going on in the region and the importance of the ocean to the people."

The field work on the eelgrass will continue for a few more weeks, while temperatures are still adequate for collecting samples.

Researchers with the Ecology Action Centre plan to studyeelgrass acrossthe region over the next two years.

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