It's more valuable to leave the fish in the sea! Captain Agui put away his fish gun and dived into the ghost fishing net to let the reef fish take a deep breath.

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Ever since he was a child, watching his father dive and fish, Chen Chih-Kui sensed the fact that "catch year after year is not as good as a year." he also saw the sad song at the bottom of the sea caused by the accidental killing of marine life by abandoned fishing nets, so he put away his fish gun and picked up net tools instead. It has been in the ocean clean-up project for ten years. Now he has given full play to his diving expertise, changed his career as a coach, guided the underwater scenery, and promoted the idea that "leaving fish in the sea is more valuable." he was recognized as a "model fisherman" this year (108). He also hopes to drive the possibility of change for more fishermen through his own experience.

Captain Agui preached the idea that it is more valuable to leave fish in the sea. (provided by / Chen Zhigui) the most veteran diving instructor has been operating in the field for 40 years.

Chen Zhigui, nicknamed "Captain Ah Gui", has dark skin and smiles like a childish big boy. He is warm and cheerful, like the sun of the little Ryukyu, radiating all day.

At eight o'clock in the morning, Captain Ah Gui's first ship set sail, not fishing, but carrying potential passengers ready to go to sea. "Today I'm going to take you to see the turtles." According to the trainee's preference for arranging a diving itinerary, he explained in detail the sea topography of this area on board, and did not forget to mention some points for attention in going to the sea. "some people like to watch sunken ships and schools of fish, and some people want to take pictures specially. The bottom of the sea is so big. You must first understand the purpose of diving before you can arrange a suitable itinerary."

Chen Zhigui led guests to dive for 26 years. The diving shop in his family has registered the first recreational fishing boat in Xiao Ryukyu. For nearly 40 years, the number of gas cylinders in the store has expanded from more than 30 to more than 800 now. The scale is so large that other diving shops have to dispatch gas cylinders to them during the peak tourist season. "at that time, when everyone went to Little Ryukyu, they would say they were looking for turkey to dive. Turkey was my father's nickname. Or 'turkey son'. "

Since diving is a high-consumption entertainment, in the past, only those with excellent economy had the opportunity to enjoy the beauty of the sea, and at that time, Little Ryukyu had not yet opened its popularity for sightseeing, and it was common to pick up only one or two guests a day. For decades, through word of mouth among people and tourists, the fame of their own diving industry has gradually spread. However, when it comes to the motivation of father and son to start scuba diving, it is not to see the booming business opportunities of tourism.

Captain Agui started diving at the age of 17 and opened the earliest diving shop in Xiao Ryukyu. (photo / Lin Shijun) diving and fishing to see the sad songs of the sea, the ghost of the fishing net is very lethal.

When he was young, he followed his father fishing along the coast of Xiao Ryukyu, and his father went into the sea with simple scuba equipment to catch schools of coral reef fish. At the age of 13, Chen Zhigui had to practice driving bamboo rafts and "follow his father's bubbles" on the surface of the water. My father was hospitable and often entertained his friends for scuba diving. one day, following the advice of his friends, he started a small business as a "diving club", but there were not many guests at that time, so he still took fishing as his main business in order to take care of the whole family's stomach.

"as long as anyone who is fishing knows that the catch here is getting worse year after year!" After graduating from junior high school, Chen Zhigui went to this island to apply for a job, returned to his hometown at the age of 20, and continued to carry his lungs and lungs into the sea, only to find that there may not be any fish to catch: schools of fish are no longer close to the coast, and there are many abandoned fishing nets in the sea.

He described that hundreds of meters of fishing nets will inevitably break when they close the nets, and the remaining gear will sink directly to the bottom of the sea. The nets are made of fiberglass and are not easy to decay and decompose, and some of them are stuck in the reef and form a wall, threatening the fish that swim here. Cetaceans and sea turtles are often seen trapped and unable to move, or even suffocated because they are unable to return to the surface to breathe.

In addition, abandoned fishing nets and ropes are also easy to cover the entire coral reef, making it impossible for the coral to photosynthesize and die, which in turn affects the fish and creatures that live with the coral reef. "if you often go into the water, you will know that many 'ghost fishing nets' hurt innocent fish, and they are visible killers in the sea!" Waste seriously threatens the living environment of marine life and accelerates the depletion of fishery resources.

A small fish trapped in a fishing net. (provided by Chen Zhigui) Rescue the ocean and clean up the fishing net to let the coral take a deep breath

Seeing that the calm small fishing village is suffering from a fishing crisis, and the beautiful coral reefs are covered with abandoned nets until they die and disappear, Chen Zhigui is determined to "save his hometown by himself." each diving, in addition to salvaging plastic garbage, also brought ashore abandoned fishing nets accumulated on the bottom of the sea, being the first pioneers in the local area to cooperate with the county government to carry out net-covering work. "because I know more about the topography of the sea floor, I know where it is easy to get stuck. I usually take passengers to dive and know which areas have the most fishing nets." Born and raised in the ocean character, but also cherish a sense of mission to the sea.

"it may be clear today and there will be (fishing nets) tomorrow. This is the most helpless thing to do, but we can only continue to clear it. At the beginning, there is really no goal, that is,'as much as there is clear!'" It takes time to wait for the restoration of benthic ecology, and it also depends on the joint efforts of others. He said bluntly that to appreciate the beauty of underwater, you should not only be a spectator, but also be willing to contribute to the ocean.

Captain Agui and his team members regularly go to sea to clean up abandoned fishing nets. (courtesy of / Chen Zhigui)

After Moyo has continued to clean up for six or seven years, there are signs of a decrease in undersea rubbish. At the same time, with the enhancement of residents' awareness of marine conservation, the Ryukyu fishing Association has launched a campaign to ban the use of Gill nets in the Ryukyu Sea area. In addition, in January 102, the Pingtung County Government announced that the use of all kinds of Gill nets in Ryukyu three miles from the coast is prohibited, and the Fisheries Department subsidizes the fishing vessel transformation plan (note). Let the marine environment of Little Ryukyu show the dawn of restoring its natural appearance. "the most obvious thing is that the turtles come back, and then the tourists come in, and you will find that Little Ryukyu is starting to be different!"

Chen Zhigui said that there are many corals in the waters of Little Ryukyu, which attract schools of migratory fish every year, and coral reefs provide comfortable shelter and delicious algae food. Whenever the water is turbid, there is also abundant plankton for small fish to find food. when the sea becomes clear, a group of small fish leave, and all kinds of seasonal migratory fish species visit all the year round.