More Than 6,000 Fishing Boats “Ashore”

Text & photos by Chen Yong,Cai Jun,Wang Ling,Tian Yuxin & Sun Yaohua

On December 20,2019,just after daybreak,Li Jinjie,a fisherman in Shangchewan Township,Jianli County,Hubei Province,harbored his fishing boat at the Hewangmiao Pier near the watergate of the old watercourse on the Yangtze River.The family of three then busied themselves removing the fishing boat’s cape.On the same day,the fishing boat would be handed in and dismantled.

Not far from the shore,the fishermen who have completed the assessment of their fishing boats and gear were signing resettlement compensation agreements one by one.Yang Jinyong,deputy magistrate of Jianli County,patiently explained a series of measures to the fishermen involving their production and business transfer,the policies of compensation for fishing vessels and gear collection,incentive compensation for job changes,transitional living allowances,compensation for their abandonment of fishing rights,minimum living subsidies and so on.

On November 25,2019,more than 190 fishing boats sealed up in Yidu City11月25日，宜都市封存190 多艘退捕上岸的渔船。

On October 19,2019,the last batch of fishing boats in the Jiayu section of the Yangtze River Aquatic Life Reserve hoisted ashore10月19日，长江嘉鱼段水生生物保护区最后一批渔船被吊起上岸。

2019年12月20日，天刚刚亮，监利县上车湾镇渔民李金阶早早把自家渔船开到何王庙长江故道闸口附近的码头，一家3 口在岸边拆除渔船的斗篷。当天，渔船要上交拆解。

岸边不远处，已完成渔船、渔具评估的渔民正在签订安置补偿协议。监利县副县长杨金勇向渔民介绍转产转业的措施，详细解释渔船渔具征收补偿、转产奖励补偿、过渡期生活补助、捕捞权收回补偿、最低生活补助等政策。

这一天，监利县在此举行水生生物保护区渔民退捕安置和渔船拆解现场会，32 条渔船被当场拆解。何王庙长江故道水域与长江自然连通，全长33 公里。2015年4月，何王庙长江江豚省级自然保护区成立后，206 户渔民退出核心区，在缓冲区继续进行季节性捕捞。目前，有21 头江豚生活在何王庙长江故道水域。

按照国家部署，长江退捕禁渔分两步走。“上半场”：2019年年底前，长江流域所有水生生物保护区完成渔民退捕，全面禁止生产性捕捞。“下半场”：2020年年底前，长江干流及重要支流，以及大型通江湖泊完成渔民退捕，实施暂定为期10年的常年禁捕。

湖北省水产局介绍，湖北率先在长江流域打响保护区退捕禁渔第一枪。第一阶段主要禁捕范围是83 个水生生物保护区，退捕渔船9022 艘。截至2019年12月20日，全省回收拆解渔船6000 多艘，其他渔船基本完成退捕安置补偿协议的签订，渔船回收拆解工作正在紧张有序进行，2019年年底前基本完成83 个水生生物保护区退捕、禁捕任务。

长江宜昌段中华鲟自然保护区全长约60 公里，从2018年1月1日起在全省率先实行常年禁捕，宜昌市5 个城区221 艘渔船当年年底全部完成征收和渔民上岸工作，枝江市、宜都市渔船于2019年11月全部上岸。宜昌市渔政监察支队挑选12 名退捕渔民，组建了6 人的保护江豚志愿者队伍和6 人的渔政协助巡护队，重点巡护中华鲟、江豚等珍稀水生生物，协助打击非法捕捞，配合科考性捕捞和科研监测活动。

On November 25,2019,Yichang Municipal Fishery Administration assisting the patrolmen,who turned from fishermen to now fish-keepers,on the Yangtze River11月25日，宜昌市渔政支队协助巡护员在长江上开展巡护工作，这些巡护员已从捕鱼人变成护鱼人。

On December 20,2019,the fishing boats tugged ashore for seasonal fishing in the buffer zone of Hewangmiao Finless Porpoise Reserve in Jianli County12月20日，在监利县何王庙江豚保护区缓冲区进行季节性捕捞的渔船被众人拉上岸。

On the same day,Jianli County held an on-site meeting for the fishermen’s rezoning,rehousing,and dismantling of fishing boats in the Aquatic Life Conservation Zone where 32 fishing boats were dismantled on the spot.The old river course of Hewangmiao is naturally connected to the Yangtze River,with a total length of 33 kilometers.In April of 2015,after the establishment of the Yangtze River Finless Porpoise Nature Reserve at Hewangmiao,206 fishermen withdrew from the forbidden area to continue their seasonal fishing in the buffer zone.At present,21 finless porpoises live in the waters of the old course of the Yangtze River at Hewangmiao.

According to the national strategy,the fishing ban on the Yangtze River will be implemented in two stages.By the end of 2019,commercial fishing activities shall be completely banned with former fishermen coming ashore in all aquatic life conservation areas in the Yangtze River Basin; and then by the end of 2020,a temporary 10-year ban on fishing will be expanded to all natural waterways of the river,its major tributaries,as well as the large river-communicating lakes.

According to the Fisheries Bureau of Hubei Province,Hubei took the lead in imposing the fishing bans in the Yangtze River Basin.In the first stage,83 aquatic life reserves have been protected against fishing and 9,022 fishing boats were brought ashore.By December 20,2019,more than 6,000 fishing boats have been dismantled while the owners of the remaining fishing boats have signed resettlement agreements for withdrawal from fishing.As the retrieval and dismantling of fishing boats were under way,the main task of rezoning and banning fishing in 83 aquatic life reserves has been completed by the end of 2019.

The Chinese Sturgeon Nature Reserve in the Yichang section of the Yangtze River is approximately 60 kilometers in length.It was the first to implement a year-round ban on fishing in Hubei Province,starting from January 1,2018.All 221 fishing boats in five urban areas of Yichang were retrieved and the fishermen were required to be ashore by the end of the year.The fishing boats in Zhijiang and Yidu were required to come ashore in November of 2019.Yichang Municipal Fisheries Supervision Detachment selected 12 retired fishermen to form a six-person volunteer team for the protection of finless porpoises and a sixperson fishing assistance patrol,whose main duty is to patrol and protect rare aquatic life such as Chinese sturgeon and finless porpoises,assist in combating illegal fishing,and cooperate with scientific research monitoring activities.

On December 19,2019,the People’s Government of Longkou Township,Honghu City signing a compensation and resettlement agreement with the fishermen ashore12月19日，洪湖市龙口镇人民政府与退捕渔民签订补偿安置协议。

Since its establishment in July of 2018,the patrol team has patrolled more than 800 times and observed hundreds of finless porpoises.Nowadays,watching finless porpoises on the Yichang Zhixi Yangtze River Bridge has become a local tourism attraction,and the Yichang section of the Yangtze River has offered a cozy habitat for such rare aquatic creatures as Chinese sturgeons,Acipenser dabryanus,finless porpoises,and Myxocyprinus asiaticus.

The White-flag Dolphin National Nature Reserve in the Xinluo section of the Yangtze River is 135.5 kilometers in length,covering Jianli County,Honghu City,Chibi City,and Jiayu County of Hubei Province and Linxiang City of Hunan Province.The Jiayu section of the Yangtze River is 109 kilometers in length,of which 87 kilometers belong to the reserve.In late October of 2019,Jiayu County completed the task of a fishing ban in the reserve.The county retrieved and disassembled 324 fishing vessels and gears with licenses,resettled the fishermen and transferred them to other industries,and distributed transitional living subsidies.Now,the Honghu Lake section of the Yangtze River has been completely banned to fishing,255 fishermen all been brought ashore,instituting a beautiful picture of “no fishing boats on the river,no nets on the shores,and no river fish in the market.”

(Translation:Qing Run)

2018年7月成立以来，该渔政协助巡护队共巡护800余次，观测到江豚上百头次，巡护里程约8000 公里。如今，在宜昌至喜长江大桥上看江豚已成为宜昌长江大保护一张靓丽名片，长江宜昌段成为中华鲟、达氏鲟、江豚、胭脂鱼等珍稀水生生物的温馨家园。

长江新螺段白鳍豚国家级自然保护区全长135.5 公里，涉及我省监利县、洪湖市、赤壁市、嘉鱼县和湖南临湘市。长江嘉鱼段全长109 公里，其中87 公里属于白鳍豚保护区范围。嘉鱼县2019年10月下旬完成保护区退捕禁渔，对持有捕捞许可证的324 条渔船渔具进行回收拆解，安置退捕渔民转产，发放过渡期生活补贴。目前，长江洪湖段已全面禁捕，255 户渔民全部上岸，基本实现“江上无渔船、岸边无网具、市场无江鱼”。