The sailors of the ships, all from the province’s Quảng Yên Commune, were caught storing and using electrocution to catch fish in Hạ Long Bay.
Tuesday last week (16 Jan 2018), police of the province’s Cô Tô Island District arrested four ships for illegally exploiting seafood in the water areas of Đồng Tiến Commune. They seized a 300m plastic pipe with electric wires, four sets of converters used to generate high-voltage electricity from batteries and eight self-modified electric guns used to catch fish. Local authorities fined the fishermen in line with current regulations and informed them about the importance of protecting maritime resources.
Fishing using particular electric tools is prohibited in the country as it endangers users and reduces the number of fish. High-voltage electricity kills fish before the fishermen can harvest the fish using a net.
August last year, on the beach along Hải Đông District, Móng Cái City, groups of fishermen use electric generators to catch clams. When the clams are stunned by the electric current, fishermen scoop them up. This fishing practice has been used in the commune for years, however, until now, no one has been punished.
VFM
