Xinhua Insight: Overexploitation, pollution threaten China's coasts

Depleted fisheries and pollution have left Wu Ruiwei and his peers from Qiaogang Town in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region with fewer fish and shrimp in their usual fishing spots.

"When I was a child, our boat could be filled immediately with fish in one net near the port. But now only small fish can be found," fisherman Fan Chengjin told Xinhua ahead of the annual World Oceans Day, observed on June 8.

Wu Ruiwei said he shares Fan's worries. He was able to earn at least 300,000 yuan (about 48,400 U.S. dollars) annually five years ago. "Without the country's diesel subsidies to fishermen, I would be losing money now."

There are more than 10,000 fishermen in Qiaogang Town, accounting for over 60 percent of the total population.

In order to survive, some of them have had to fish farther from shore, while others have left the industry.

In addition to depletion of fisheries, Wu said excessive coastal development and pollution have caused degradation of China's marine environment.

South China's Hainan Province, an island the size of Belgium, has earned a reputation as the perfect holiday destination, leading to a local economic boom. However, swarms of tourists and overdevelopment of coastlines have posed a serious risk to local marine ecology.

Researchers say more than 90 percent of the island's east coast has been used for real estate development.

Wang Ying, a marine geologist with the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said at a forum Sunday that mass construction of tourist facilities, such as hotels and scenic spots along the coast, will lead to increased shoreline erosion.

A total of 4,200 meters of beach in the bays and harbors east of Haikou City were eroded by sea water between 2009 and 2014, Wang said, adding that bedrock was also exposed due to erosion along the beach near hotel and villa developments west of the city.

Pollution is another serious problem in China's coastal areas.

Industrial and agricultural discharge, along with a jump in the amount of household garbage as the island urbanizes, are mostly to blame for the pollution.

"It is difficult to find pristine clear waters and white sandy beaches anymore in some seaside areas," a resident with the surname Luo from Hainan said.

Her sentiment is supported by research. The majority of China's coastal areas have unhealthy ecosystems due to heavy pollution, a report from the State Oceanic Administration (SOA) said.

Of the areas monitored by the SOA in the summer of 2014, 81 percent, or 41,000 sq km, were polluted. According to the report, most of the polluted water was concentrated in river estuaries or sea bays. The main pollutants were inorganic nitrogen, reactive phosphate and oil.

Along with the rapid development of industry and cities, coastal pollution has caused and worsened frequent episodes of red tide, a type of harmful algal bloom, said Lyu Shuguo, a researcher with the Hainan Research Academy of Environmental Sciences.

Lyu said 14 bays along Hainan's 1,528-kilometer-long coastline are at risk for red tide, which may threaten the health of locals and damage the environment.

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT NEEDED

In his message for World Oceans Day, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said that two out of every five people live near a shore, and three out of seven depend on marine and coastal resources to survive.

He called on people to use ocean resources peacefully, equitably and sustainably for generations to come.

To ease environmental strain, China has adopted measures including massive tree-planting and coral restoration campaigns, clamping down on illegal wastewater discharge, treating polluted rivers and launching public education activities.

Experts have called for local governments to enact rules and policies and evaluate the effects of projects near straits or islands before construction to prevent possible damage to the environment.

During this year's fishing off-season in Guangxi, which lasts from May until August, Wu Ruiwei and other fishermen will gather to discuss their future: deep-sea fisheries.

"When there are fewer fish in the coastal areas, we have to go farther from shore," he said, sighing. But he does not want to bring the problems of overfishing and pollution with him, farther out to sea.

"I hope with technology and fishery management, most fisheries can be made sustainable to protect our ocean," he said. Endi