China to Impose Fishing Ban on Yangtze River

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Wednesday, November 21, 2001

China to Impose Fishing Ban on Yangtze River

China will ban fishing on its longest river, the Yangtze, from February to June next year to protect marine resources endangered by over-fishing.

China will ban fishing on its longest river, the Yangtze, from February to June next year to protect marine resources endangered by over-fishing.

If the ban goes smoothly, the prohibition period will be instituted annually, Wednesday's Beijing Morning Post quoted an official with the Ministry of Agriculture as saying.

The annual catch of aquatic products in the Yangtze River totaled 427,000 tons in 1954. But the figure dropped to around 100,000 tons in recent years as a result of over-fishing.

The number of major species such as herring and chub has reduced considerably.

Fishing bans imposed in Sichuan, Jiangxi, Hunan, Jiangsu and Anhui provinces have helped stabilize fishing resources there.

China has also implemented a summer fishing ban at Dongting Lake, one of the country's largest freshwater lakes, and some offshore sea area, including south and east China Seas and the Yellow Sea, to guarantee sustainable development in the fishing industry.