PRC FISHING
ADVOCACY
BY: RUBY ZHOU, YEON-JAE CHO, MEGAN
TING
Introduction
We are the PRC Fishing Advocacy group. China, with 1/5
of the world’s population accounts for 1/3 of global
reported fish production and 2/3 of global aquaculture
production. In 2003, the global fish consumption per
capita was estimate `1d at 16.5kg, for China, it was
25.8kg. It is without a doubt that China is one of the
largest fishing countries. It is of utmost importance for
China to be able to sustain the fishing industry while
keeping with customer consumption demands.
Definitions
Sustainable: being able to be maintained for a long period of
time
Fisheries: a place where fish is reared for commercial purposes
Negative Effects
 Significant population drop in fishes leads to:
 Loss of food source
 Loss of source of employment
 Destruction to ecosystems and food chains
Importance of Fish
 Provides 200 million people with employment
 15% of all global protein intake
 Primary source of protein for 950 million people
 Contains the vitamins, protein and minerals needed for healthy
physical development and growth
Fishing Areas- The World and
China
The dark blue areas
indicate EconomicExclusive Zone (EEZ), an
area which a certain
state/country has the right
to use for marine
resources.
- Dark Pink Area: China’s EEZ
(877,019 km squared)
- Pink Area: EEZ claimed by
China, disputed with Taiwan
- Pale Pink Area: EEZ claimed
by China, disputed with other
neighboring countries.
China’s Fish Management
 In 1999, China set a goal of ‘zero growth in coastal catching’, and
changed it into ‘minus growth’ in 2001. In order to achieve this
goal, the authorities have been reducing the numbers of vessels
and relocating the workers out of fishing grounds. By the end of
2004, 8,000 vessels were taken away and more than 40,000
workers were moved.
Fishing Management Adopted
- Hot Season Moratorium: In 2004, the Ministry of Agriculture
of China issued the Regulation for Living Resources
Conservation in Bohai bay, which states that from June 16th
to September 1st, all fishing operations except gillnet with
mesh size over 90mm are banned. This is because this term
flourishes with most vessels and fishermen.
- Input Controls: These are the major fishery management.
This regulation states that the fisheries authorities have all
the control, including limits for vessels and gear, and the
fishing permits.
- Output controls: These include the regulation of restricting
the number of catching the undersized fish.
Relative UN Documents
 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea
(UNICLOS) signed 1958
 UNCLOS II signed 1960,
 Common Fisheries Policy signed 1970,
 National Aquaculture Development Act signed
1980,
 UNCLOS III signed1982
 Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries signed
1995
Possible Solutions
 Lessen consumer demand for species in danger
 Banning harmful methods of fishing such as bottomtrawling
 Creating more marine protected areas to allow those
areas to recover from over-fishing
 Impose stricter regulations to avoid fishing illegally and
by-catches
 Advertise and promote a brand of fish obtained from a
sustainable source and caught in an eco-friendly way
Aquaculture
Aquaculture: the breeding and production of fish in a controlled
environment for commercial purposes
Benefits: sustainability, steady population of fish
Negative Effects: disease transmission, improper disposal of waste,
illegal killing of predators, alteration to fish species, disturbance to
food chains
Aquaculture In China
 In 2005, China’s reported catch was 17.1 million tonnes of
wild fish caught in lakes, rivers, and the sea.
 China has one-fifth of the world’s population and two-thirds
of the world’s aquaculture production
 Aquaculture-producing regions are near the urban markets
in the middle and low area of the Yangtze valley and the Zhu
Jiang Delta.
Aquaculture in China
2004 Production of fish:
 Wild fish total of 19.9 million tonnes.
 Aquacultural fish total of 32.4 million tonnes (2005)
 Total 49.5 million tonnes (2005
Freshwater Aquaculture
 Pond culture is the most popular and important farming
method in China. About 70.85 percent of aquaculture is
from the pond.
 7 provinces: Guangdong, Jiangsu, Hubei, Hunan,
Anhui, Jiangxi and Shanghai are engaged in pond
fishing activity. Where this is 67.62 percent of the
country’s total inland aquaculture production.
Freshwater cultured species
 In 2003 China produced a total of 17,782,734 tonnes of
freshwater aquaculture products.
 The share of freshwater cultured species in
aquaculture production is shown:
Aquaculture Production
 The graph below shows total aquaculture production in
China over years according to FAO statistics:
Top Ten Species Grown in
China, 2005
 Below the chart show the top ten fishes grown in
tonnes.
China is increasingly
breeding fish to solve the
overfishing issue but as
the tremendous numbers
begin to increase there are
negative effects such as
disease, illegal waste, and
a disruption to the fish
food chain.
Human Resources
The development of aquaculture begins to provide more
employment:
 In 2003 the total amount of workers in the aquaculture
business was estimated to be 4.3 million, as well as the
6 million workers who work part-time.
 Knowledge gained by the people involved in the
aquaculture production is distributed from the
government by “science and technology entering rural
area program".
PRC Fishing Advocacy’s
Stance
The PRC is one of the largest consumers and
producers of fish worldwide. It is extremely important for
the PRC to achieve sustainable fisheries as soon as
possible. Besides the degradation of fisheries,
acidification of the ocean, rising sea temperatures and
habitat loss are also affecting the marine environment.
PRC Fishing Advocacy would like to create and promote a
new line of sustainable fish that come from sustainable
sources. Advertisement and promotion will be needed for
this to achieve it’s potential. PRC Fishing Advocacy
believes that consumers want to help preserve the marine
environment and that this line will be successful.
Bibliography

http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2009/20090105_nmfseconomics.html

http://www.sciencemag.org/content/323/5912/359.abstract

http://www.st.nmfs.noaa.gov/st1/commercial/index.html

http://www.worldfishingtoday.com/

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/03/070329-sharks-shellfish.hthttp://www.gov.cn/english/2006-08/16/content_363493.htm

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2007-02/osu-ldf021307.php

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7660011.stm

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-06/09/content_11513280.htm

http://www.un.org/Depts/los/convention_agreements/texts/unclos/part5.htm

http://web.archive.org/web/20050219192447/http://perc.org/publications/percreports/march2001/tangents.php

http://www.fao.org/fishery/countrysector/FI-CP_CN/en

http://www.china.org.cn/environment/2012-10/23/content_26881547.htm

http://www.chinaseafoodexpo.com/index.php/about-the-show

http://www.fishupdate.com/news/archivestory.php/aid/3500/FAO_report:_China_res
ponsible_for_two-thirds_of_world_aquaculture_production.html

http://www.seaaroundus.org/eez/#

http://www.lib.noaa.gov/retiredsites/china/fishing.htm

http://www.mindfully.org/Water/Fish-Catch-Distortions.htm

http://www.seaaroundus.org/OtherWebsites/2001/CaliforniaFish_29Nov01.pdf

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fishing_industry_in_China

http://www.fao.org/fishery/countrysector/naso_china/en

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aquaculture_in_China

http://www.fao.org/fishery/countrysector/FI-CP_CN/en