Inland Fisheries in China: Past, Present, and Future

ABSTRACT

As the largest fisheries producer nation (including capture fisheries and aquaculture in both inland and marine waters), information about China (excluding Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan) is essential to evaluate the status of aquatic natural resources, the challenge of food security, and to guide policy implementation for future sustainable fisheries development. In this study, the official Chinese statistical data on inland capture fisheries and aquaculture from the earliest available year of 1949 to the latest year of 2013 were first summarized. Chinese inland fisheries in current status were evaluated by maximum net primary productivity, and their future development was projected from a scientific point of view. As a result, Chinese inland fisheries are already unsustainable and overexploited, and some species have been extirpated or are facing extirpation. Because of the unbalanced, geographic distributions of water resources and human density, inland aquaculture is oversaturated in eastern China, which also suffers from water pollution, species invasions, and fauna reconstruction. To continue to provide freshwater aquatic food for the increasing human population, a precautionary plan, as well as new techniques, are needed, along with an awareness of possible ecological after-effects.

KEYWORDS:

• Aquaculture
• capture fishery
• dominant species
• prediction
• threat

Acknowledgments

The authors give great thanks to Professor Tony J. Pitcher for the constructive suggestions and careful language editing.

Funding

This work is supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 41476149 and No. 31560181).