Xu Chengyu/Emergency Department Pray for White Hairtail! Fisheries Department to suspend direct sailing of white hairtail carriers to China, so that fishery resources can last forever

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The Fisheries Department has announced the draft measures for the Administration of Shipping of White Belt Fish along the Offshore on a trial basis, which has not set a fishing ceiling for the export of white belt fish to China, causing concerns from all walks of life that it will cause havoc.

The founders of responsible Fisheries indicators, Xu Chengyi, Zhan Manse (Associate Professor, Institute of Applied Economics, National Ocean University), Huang Shu-de (Supervisor of Housewives' Union Life consumption Cooperative), and Chen Yongsong (Assistant Professor, Department of Biotechnology and Animal Science, National Ilan University), initiated emergency co-signatures, requesting the Fisheries Department to suspend the implementation of the "measures for the Management of Shipping of fishing vessels along the Coastal Sea"

The notice period of the draft is only 14 days and is about to end on August 9. It calls on all sectors of the community to sign together and request the Fisheries Department to suspend the "pilot measures for the management of the movement of fishing vessels along the coastal waters" to ensure the sustainability of Taiwan's offshore fishery resources. (co-signed, please click here)

Co-signed reason summary: ask for the life of the white belt fish!

Taiwan's catch of frozen fish exported to China surged from 4 tons in 2014 to 13720 tons in 2018, which has had a huge impact on Taiwan's offshore resources. On July 24, 2019, the Council of Agriculture announced the "pilot measures for the Administration of Shipping of White Belt Fish along the Offshore" (notice No. 1081327625), which will open up the management measures for direct shipping of refrigerated white belt fish to the mainland, which will greatly reduce the transportation cost and time of white belt fish. Taiwan's white belt fish will have more sales advantages, but it can be expected that more Taiwan will catch white belt fish along the coast and sell them to China.

China has a great demand for white belt fish in recent years, and it is still not enough to catch more than 1 million tons a year, and it continues to import large quantities, and even hollowing out Taiwan's waters is not enough to plug China's teeth. The management method announced by the Fisheries Department does not set a "fishing ceiling" or "total quantity management", lacks an environmental assessment, and does not take into account the overall interests of society. If implemented hastily, it seems to increase the income of fishermen in the short term, but it may lead to the depletion of fishery resources in the long run, eroding the development rights and interests of all fishermen and harming the fishery resources shared by all citizens. It is hoped that the implementation of the case will be suspended through a co-signature and will not be opened until a better management method has been formulated.

Five-point co-signature appeal: suspend the implementation of the draft, be invited to gather full discussion from all walks of life, and formulate a reasonable plan

(1) the suspension of the management measures should not be implemented hastily: the Fisheries Department warned that the absence of restrictions on the fishing of white belt fish would seriously harm the fishery resources along the coastal waters.

(2) holding a public hearing: the AFD should hold a public meeting to invite experts, the industry and civic groups concerned about marine issues to discuss the appropriate mode of resource management of white belt fish.

(3) immediately launch a research survey: establish the resource information of Taiwan's white belt fish, launch the discharge declaration, and investigate the overall catch.

(4) avoid overfishing and control the export quantity of white belt fish produced in Taiwan: before the survey of Taiwan's white belt fish resources is completed, a cautious attitude should be taken for export, and the discharge declaration should be strictly implemented to conduct a rolling review of the monthly catch to avoid overfishing.

(5) the principle of giving priority to domestic sales of Taiwan production: the marine resources in Taiwan's waters are shared by all citizens. In order to protect the rights and interests of Chinese people in consuming excellent local fishery products, it is necessary to establish the principle of giving priority to domestic sales.

Why should we co-sign it? Ten reasons in detail

I. the number of exports to China in 2018 was 381 times higher than that in 2015.

White belt fish is one of the important economic fish species caught along the coastal waters in China, which was mainly sold domestically in the past. In recent years, China's demand for white belt fish has greatly increased. According to customs statistics, sales rose sharply from 36 metric tons in 1994 to 6525 metric tons in 1986, and doubled again to 13,720 metric tons in 107, and the quantity continued to rise sharply.

Second, the opening of direct flights between China and Taiwan fishing ports will only make things worse!

In view of the popularity of white belt fish in China, the Fisheries Department has announced the formulation of the "measures for the Administration of the handling of White Belt Fish by trial fishing vessels along the Offshore", which will open up handling vessels to China through designated fishing ports, thus greatly reducing transport costs and shortening the voyage. It is estimated that more white belt fish caught in Taiwan will be sold to China. However, how many resources are there along the coastal waters of our country, and is it enough to support a large number of sustainable fishing? Apart from selling, how much white belt fish is consumed in Taiwan each year? The AFD frankly admitted that there were no statistics at present and there was no information on fish unloading declaration for reference.

Third, it will take 2 years for the white belt fish to reproduce the next generation, and once it is found that the catch has declined, it will be too late!

The main species of white belt fish caught in Taiwan is the Japanese belt fish Trichiurus japonicus, and most of the fish need a 2-year growth period to mature.

Fourth, the white belt fish is gone, even the local mackerel may also be gone!

The white belt fish is an important middle-class fish species in the waters of Taiwan. the resource impact includes higher-order species such as swordfish, swordfish, sharks, cetaceans, and so on. When the white belt fish is overfished, it also affects other fish that feed on the white belt fish. For example, the small number of toddlers last winter may be one of the warnings.

5. There is too little research and investigation on white belt fish in Taiwan, once it is too late for fishing.

There is little literature on the white belt fish in China, and we know nothing about the population number. the only thing that is certain is that the white belt fish is not suitable for culture, and once it is overfished, it can not be used as an alternative. The AFD should conduct a detailed investigation as soon as possible and manage it in the most stringent manner before clear information is available.

Sixth, the price of export to China is 3.6% off the Taiwan market, selling Taiwan's white belt fish resources cheaply!

From 2013 to 2015, the average transaction price of white belt fish in Taiwan's 14 major consumer wholesale markets was 146. after losing China in 2016-2018, the average price of white belt fish rose to 163yuan, an increase of 11.6%. Export to China caused domestic prices to rise, resulting in national subsidies for export. However, a large number of exports have led to a drop in the ship's side price, with an average price of 62.2 yuan in the wholesale markets of the 10 major producing areas from 2013 to 2015, and 58.7 yuan in 2016-2018, a drop of 5.6%, which is tantamount to selling Taiwan's precious marine resources cheaply.

7. What will be the impact if this Law is hastily implemented?

(1) due to the reduction in cost, the wholesale price of white belt fish in the market will decline, which will stimulate greater export demand.

(2) the average price of white belt fish in Taiwan's consumer market continues to rise sharply.

(3) the amount of marine resources is declining rapidly, and the resources of white belt fish are facing collapse.

8. Why is there no problem with direct shipping of other fishery products?

Because at present, only Taiwan's white belt fish is Taiwan's offshore fishery, and its characteristics are completely different from those of ocean-going and aquaculture fisheries.

The private property of live grouper culture does not involve domestic management. The white belt fish belongs to the offshore state-owned resources, and the government is the only unit with management power, and its responsibility is far greater than that of ocean-going and aquaculture fisheries, so it should be carefully considered.

IX. Cheap export, suspected of tax evasion and money laundering

In recent years, China is Taiwan's largest exporter and importer of aquatic products, but the management of trade in aquatic products between the two sides of the strait is extremely loose. Smuggling, tax evasion, money laundering and food safety violations are the norm. The government should first strengthen management to protect the rights and interests of consumers and industries. In addition, the opening of cross-strait trade channels should be strictly managed to avoid further harming national rights and interests.

X. fisheries are subsidized by the state, and on the basis of sustainable marine resources, priority should be given to the well-being of the whole people in Taiwan.

Taiwan's fishing industry is exempt from business tax, income tax and export duty-free, and enjoys various subsidies, which are government concessions provided by all taxpayers on the basis of joint maintenance of the marine environment. Therefore, we can not only think about the management approach in terms of a pure business model, but also include social perspectives such as environmental sustainability and the supply of national high-quality seafood to find out an appropriate management model.

What can we do for the white belt fish in Taiwan?

(1) share messages with relatives and friends through Facebook, line and other channels and invite them to join the co-signed http://bit.ly/33jbJzI

(2) inform the Agriculture and Fisheries Department of the Council of Agriculture of your comments or co-signed request as soon as possible: chiatsen@ms1.fa.gov.tw, Tel: 02-23835839, Fax: 02-23327536.

(3) reflect it to your legislator > http://bit.ly/2GKA47N (after pressing the name of the legislator, there is a message board on the left)

(4) anything that you feel is conducive to the demand for action.

Co-signed sponsors and organizations:

Xu Chengyi (founder of responsible Fisheries Index), Huang Shude (Supervisor of Housewives' Union living consumption Cooperative), Zhan Manse (Associate Professor, Institute of Applied Economics, National Ocean University), Chen Yongsong (Assistant Professor, Department of Biotechnology and Animal Science, National Ilan University) (continuing invitation according to joining order)

For the current number of co-signatures, please click here: http://bit.ly/2yxxXjj

The co-signed content is compiled with the assistance of Chen Ruibin of the Environmental Information Association. Contact information: Tel: + 8862-2933-2233, Email: service@e-info.org.tw

Extended reading

(upstream and downstream news) Taiwan's white belt fish is popular in China, and there are no restrictions on fishing. Will the direct shipping of handling vessels in advance affect fishery resources?.

(environmental Information Center) [see what small fish can be eaten] the predator of the blue deep sea: White ribbon fish (Environmental Information Center)