TAIPEI (Business Today) — Declining mackerel stocks around Yilan's Nanfangao Fishing Port are creating challenges for fishers required to follow new sustainability regulations.

As he unloaded his first post-Moon Festival catch, a Nanfangao fisherman of more than 60 years told Business Today he was worried about the industry’s future. He had caught 20 tons of mackerel, but said even with a good catch, he would not encourage a new generation to enter the industry.

Mackerel accounts for 60% of the fish caught in Taiwan’s coastal fishing areas. Most of this comes from fishing areas near Nanfangao, where the fish are declining in size and number.

“Forty years ago, the annual mackerel production in Nanfangao was 100,000 tons, and now it's about 70,000 tons," Taiwan Mackerel and Trevally Fisheries Association Chair Chuang Chin-wang (莊清旺) said.

Chuang said mackerel is key to fishers’ livelihoods and 20 fleets set out from Nanfangao most days fishing is possible. That is despite Nanfangao’s mackerel fishing being subject to some of the most restrictive regulations in the country.

The Fisheries Agency first implemented measures to manage mackerel and trevally fishing in 2013. The regulations meant fishers operating in the Northeast Coast National Scenic Area, depending on a ship's tonnage, were restricted from fishing 6 to 12 nautical miles offshore (11.1 to 22.2 kilometers) and other regulations.

Two fishing bans were also imposed each year to allow the fish to grow (in June and from the beginning of the year to February) and fishing is also not allowed during the fish’s spawning. This means Nanfangao’s fishers cannot fish for at least 50 days a year.

The strict regulations were imposed after researchers noted mackerel were shrinking, and their numbers were falling.

Professor at National Taiwan Ocean University Lu Hsueh-jung (呂學榮) said his researchers found the average size of blue mackerel caught in the area shrunk from 30 centimeters in 2001 to 25.7 cm in 2012. Despite a brief turnaround after the regulations were introduced, the average body size fell again to 26.9 cm last year.

Smaller fish means fewer are reaching maturity, less reproduction, and fewer mackerel overall. To combat this, tighter regulations were implemented about three months ago.

Now, the total amount of mackerel that can be caught in all areas is capped at 90,000 tons, each vessel has an individual quota, and the Fisheries Agency can order fishing to stop if the limit is nearing. 

Even with these regulations and the pressure on fishers, Lu said many support the measures. He said this is because of the unique conditions of Nanfangao’s fisheries. 

“Almost all local catches are mackerel, and they are all auctioned locally. Fishers can build consensus here, which is difficult to find in other ports.”

Lu added that climate change impacts mackerel more than overfishing. He noted that in the years that Taiwan’s mackerel stocks declined, Japan's and South Korea’s did too.

The new regulations are still hotly discussed among fishers in Nanfangao. Chuang said they made it much harder for him to work, and younger generations who are more open to sustainability changes have also expressed doubt.

Lin Chi-Hsiang (林啟翔) is 40 years old and worked in the technology industry before returning to his hometown to fish eight years ago. He supports sustainable fisheries and is willing to abide by the limits but said he was concerned about supporting measures for fishers.

Lin questioned how market prices would be affected by reduced catches, and how strictly the regulations should be enforced. “If we see fish during a busy month, should we be told to let them go?”

There are also concerns that the Fisheries Agency and the Coast Guard lack resources to clamp down on illegal fishing. Legal fishers said they feel it is unfair to see others who do not follow the regulations get away with it because of poor enforcement.

Some fishers have also taken issue with the fact the regulations covering Nanfangao’s fisheries only cover boats using seine fishing. Li Hsin-liang (李信良), a 45-year-old fishing boat captain, said not all boats use this method.

Li said some use the bottom trawling method to catch the same fish as the seine fishers. This "destroys the terrain, trawls the fish until all they are all gone, (and) it’s too late to deal with it," he said.

Fisheries Agency Director Chang Chih-sheng (張致盛) stressed that a transformation is needed because of the ocean’s condition. He said the agency encourages fishers to upgrade to seine nets and the Coast Guard will clamp down on illegal fishing.

Lu said the stakes for Taiwan’s fisheries are high. "If mackerel management fails, Taiwan's fishing industry will collapse." In addition to local issues, he noted that Taiwan faces competition from Norwegian mackerel, and said the industry faces a crisis.

“If the fishing disappears completely, it will be a backward step for our culture.”