Gwangyang City Distributes 10 Tons of Seedlings to Expand Jaecheop Resources in Seomjin River

Expanding Jaecheop Habitat in Seomjin River and Initiating Jaecheop Resource Development for Sustainable Production

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Heo Seon-sik] Gwangyang City in Jeonnam announced that on September 28, city officials, Jeonnam East Fisheries Cooperative, and local residents released 10 tons of Semjin River jaches (freshwater clams), a specialty product of the Semjin River, along the branch from Semjinpo Port in Daap-myeon to Gwandong Village.

This event involved transplanting and releasing jaches from the lower Semjin River in Jinwol-myeon to the upper Semjin River area in Daap-myeon. The released jaches undergo an adaptation period of about one month in the release area, settle, and then naturally grow by repeating growth and spawning from May of the following year.

Since 2008, the city has transplanted and released about 80 tons of jaches, contributing to the recovery of jache resources and income generation for local fishermen. The city plans to continue promoting the expansion of jache habitats and sustainable production in the Semjin River.

Lee Hyun-seong, Director of the Steel and Port Division, said, “We will continue the transplantation and release project to restore the jache habitats severely damaged by the 2020 Semjin River flood and to recover the drastically reduced jache fishery resources. We will do our best to widely promote the excellence of Gwangyang Semjin River jaches to contribute to increasing the income of local fishermen.”

Meanwhile, since the ‘Semjin River Jache Hand-net Fishery’ was designated as National Important Fishery Heritage No. 7 in November 2018, Gwangyang City has been working with Hadong County to register it as a Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System (GIAHS) with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), actively promoting the Semjin River jache brand.

Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Heo Seon-sik hss79@asiae.co.kr