Fishing ban helps boost biodiversity

Aquatic biodiversity in the Yangtze River is showing clear signs of recovery, according to new monitoring data that points to a reversal of the degradation of biological resources in the river, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs announced on Tuesday.

From 2021 to 2025, the aquatic biological integrity index in key sections of the Yangtze River improved by two levels compared with the period before the fishing ban between 2017 and 2020, indicating that the long-term decline of aquatic biological resources in the river has been decisively reversed.

The findings were released on Tuesday at a national meeting in Shanghai reviewing progress of the country's 10-year fishing ban on the Yangtze River.

China launched the fishing ban in 2021 across the main stream of the Yangtze River and key tributaries, aiming to restore depleted fish populations and ecosystems.

Data shows that aquatic resources have rebounded markedly since the full implementation of the ban in 2021, according to the 2025 bulletin on aquatic biological resources and habitat conditions in the Yangtze River Basin released during the meeting.

Between 2021 and 2025, monitoring across the Yangtze basin recorded 351 native fish species, an increase of 43 species compared with surveys conducted from 2017 to 2020 before the ban took effect. In 2025, the monitored stock level in the river's main stream recovered to roughly twice the level observed before the fishing prohibition, the ministry said.

Law enforcement has also been strengthened along the river, helping curb illegal fishing and related trafficking networks.

In 2025, criminal cases related to fisheries fell by nearly 40 percent year-on-year. Compared with 2021, administrative cases involving illegal fishing dropped by 65 percent, the ministry said.

Authorities have simultaneously worked to assist former fishermen affected by the ban. A total of 231,000 fishermen have quit fishing activities, with 141,000 of them largely securing other forms of employment. About 220,000 have been covered by pension insurance programs, while 12,000 people facing financial hardship have been included in temporary assistance programs.

To deepen conservation efforts, the ministry released a 2026 action plan outlining 60 measures to strengthen enforcement, expand habitat restoration and improve the livelihoods of former fishermen.

Key priorities include restoring wetlands and ecological shorelines to expand habitats for aquatic species. Protection programs will be intensified for flagship species such as the Yangtze finless porpoise and the Chinese sturgeon.

The plan also calls for increased funding and technological research to overcome bottlenecks in artificial breeding, establish additional conservation waters for ex-situ protection, restore spawning grounds and carry out large-scale release programs for endangered species.

On Saturday, a stock release program for the Chinese sturgeon released about 550,000 juveniles into the Yangtze River. The releases were carried out in Jingzhou and Yichang in Hubei province and Chongming district in Shanghai as part of ongoing efforts to restore populations of the critically endangered species.

Officials stressed that maintaining strict enforcement will remain critical to prevent the resurgence of illegal fishing, while continuing to provide employment and social security support for former fishermen.

zhaoyimeng@chinadaily.com.cn