Tag: fish

Yangtze fishermen take a hit

(July 29, 2011) Since the construction of the Gezhouba and Three Gorges dams, Yangtze River’s fish stocks have been declining. The government’s solution – the “Fisherman on Land” program – has forced “boat families,” who once earned a living from the fish bounty of the Yangtze, to move ashore and find work in factories.

Yangtze fish take a hit

(July 19, 2011) China’s weekly newspaper, the Economic Observer, says the Three Gorges dam is the primary reason for the demise of the Yangtze’s “big four” fish species. By changing the hydrological regime downstream of the dam, the fry population of the black, grass, silver, and bighead carp have plummeted by 97%. Attempts to simulate the original hydrological conditions with forced water releases and restocking the river with broodstock will be futile say experts.