The Island's "high risk'' coral reef is it's lifeblood and efforts to protect it stand at the centre of the Green Paper on marine resources and the fishing industry released on Friday.

For if reef fish are allowed to be overfished, Bermuda faces ecological and economic disaster from which it may never recover.

Titled "Marine Resources and the Fishing Industry in Bermuda: A Discussion Paper'' the Green Paper is the product of 127 submissions from individuals and organisations.

Twenty three organisations representing such diverse viewpoints as the Bermuda Industrial Union fisheries division and various clubs and associations and environmental watchdogs made contributions.

The Green Paper was presented to Parliament on Friday by Environment Minister Arthur Hodgson.

It sets out in great detail the bio-history of the Bermuda marine life while chronicling the controversial fish pot ban imposed in 1990 to avoid potential overfishing of reef fish.

It will be used by government to produce policy and promote discussion of the issues surrounding the marine environment.

A review of the current Fisheries Act and its Regulations is expected with greater cooperation among the Fisheries Department, Marine Police, and Marine and Ports in their efforts to monitor and police the waters a possibility.

Reform of the licensing of boats and fishermen could also be in the cards, with fishermen expected to carry daily logs of their catch.

A total allowable catch quota may also be considered for the most heavily fished species to slow overfishing.

Government may consider penalties for consumers and retailers for people who buy fish from unlicensed sources, while a loophole of the sale of imported protected fish is suggested as needing "addressing''.

A vehicle monitoring system for all offshore fishing vessels is mulled not only for surveillance, but also for search and rescue. Iceland has a similar system.

Review of the fisheries related penalties and the introduction of a ticketing system for violators would make the prosecution process more efficient.

The paper calls for "some consideration'' of the creation of marine parks under the National Parks system.

The marine parks would be set aside for recreational purposes only -- without any fishing or anchoring on the delicate coral reef.

The balance between protecting the marine environment and maintaining fish stocks and fish pot ban and commercial fishing is never far from the green paper.

Submissions centred on a "near unanimous'' support for the fish pot ban, increased conservation and reduction of pollutants, and greater enforcement of the ban.

Respondents were also concerned with the preservation of wrecks, public access to the coastline and beaches, the ecological impact of the increasing number of boats and cruise ships.

The amount of fish caught in local waters hovers around 800,000 pounds per year, earning about $6 million for the more than 250 licensed fishermen.

Since the ban, fishermen have seen their total hours spent at sea hover between 74,465 in 1991 to a high of 92,534 in 1995. In 1998, the year of the most recent statistics, 88,134 hours were spent at sea.

In 1998 fishermen spent 87.9 percent of their time in the industry at sea, a jump since 1989 when they spent 70 percent of their time on the water.

The change is attributed to fishermen using other traditional methods like hook and line and net fishing.

The average hours at sea for the 153 commercial boats in 1998 stood at 576 hours, down from a high of 616 in 1996, but an increase from the 1989 level of 499 hours.

But the survival of coral and reef fishes and their interdependence is never far from the surface of the discussion paper.

Dramatic declines in the numbers of reef fish, such as six types of the very desirable groupers, led to other less desirable fish becoming nearly overfished by the late 1980s.

While "ecologically important'' reef fish like the parrot fish and surgeon fish maintain "reasonable'' populations, some fish like the groupers have not recovered.

Such fish form a community around coral structures, forming a delicate ecosystem dependent on each other.

While the Island's reefs are considered to be at high risk, the paper claims there are "signs of promise'' attributed to the fish pot ban.

Mr. Hodgson has called the paper "critically important'' to fostering discussion in Bermuda, and has promised further research on what can be done on maintaining fish stocks.