Gyeonggi-do Invests 17.6 Billion KRW in Fisheries Resource Management

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] Gyeonggi Province will establish a marine ranch in Pungdo this year and release fishery seeds such as flatfish and webfoot octopus. In addition, it plans to collect 1,144 tons of marine debris, including building a 140-ton class cleaning ship within this year.

On the 30th, Gyeonggi Province announced that it has established the "2020 Gyeonggi Province Fishery Resource Management Implementation Plan," which includes investing 17.6 billion KRW in five areas and 11 key tasks such as fishery resource creation and recovery, coastal ecosystem protection and management, aiming for fishery income of 60 million KRW this year.

This plan follows the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries' five-year (2016?2020) basic plan for fishery resource management.

The five key focus areas prepared by the province are ▲ fishery resource creation and recovery through resource management ▲ coastal ecosystem protection and management ▲ eradication of illegal fishing to protect fishery resources ▲ strengthening autonomous fishery management ▲ raising awareness of fishery resource protection and expanding citizen participation.

Looking at the detailed implementation, the province will first invest 7.8 billion KRW to create environments necessary for habitats such as artificial reef facilities and the Pungdo marine ranch to restore fishery resources, and release 28.15 million healthy juvenile fish of five species, 303 tons of high-income shellfish seeds, and 100,000 webfoot octopuses. In particular, for the webfoot octopus, a species specialized in the West Sea, a closed season will be set from July 11 to August 31 to restore population numbers, and nine webfoot octopus spawning grounds will be established in the Ansan and Hwaseong sea areas.

Additionally, to protect the coastal ecosystem, 7.4 billion KRW will be invested to build a 140-ton class cleaning ship by November this year and to promote the collection and disposal of 1,144 tons of marine debris.

Furthermore, 9,397 eco-friendly buoys will be distributed, and management of two marine protected areas, including Siheung Gaetgol and Ansan Daebudo mudflats, will be strengthened.

The province will also promote measures such as crackdowns on illegal fishing during the spawning season next month and the growth season in October, operation of honorary fishery resource protection monitors to supervise illegal fishing and fishing, and fostering autonomous fishery management to protect juvenile fish.

Lee Sang-woo, head of the Marine Fisheries Division of Gyeonggi Province, said, "Although the catch volume of fishery resources in Gyeonggi Province is on a recovery trend, continuous resource management is necessary for the development of the fishery industry in the province. Through this plan, we will strengthen systematic fishery resource management to create a rich Gyeonggi Sea that can be shared by both residents and fishermen."

Meanwhile, the newly established "Gyeonggi Province Fishery Resource Management Plan" will be announced through the provincial newsletter in May.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.