Namhae-gun, Coastal Waters to See Increased Abundance of High Value-Added Marine Resources

Selected for Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries Public Contest: Fisheries Resource Spawning and Habitat Sites and Marine Forest Creation Project

Namhae-gun Office, Gyeongnam.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Song Jong-gu] Namhae-gun, Gyeongnam Province, has been able to accelerate the creation and recovery of coastal fishery resources as it was consecutively selected for the Fisheries Resource Spawning and Habitat Site and Sea Forest Creation Project contest conducted by the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries.

The "Fisheries Resource Spawning and Habitat Site Creation Project" is a project implemented by the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries since 2015 to increase region-specific specialized species.

The "Fisheries Resource Spawning and Habitat Site Project" selected through this Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries contest by Namhae-gun targets cuttlefish, a high value-added cephalopod.

The project is carried out in the waters of Eunjum and Daejipo in Samdong-myeon and the waters of Maando in Mijo-myeon, with a total project cost of 3.8 billion KRW. From 2023 to 2027, 760 million KRW will be invested annually for five years to install artificial structures necessary for cuttlefish habitat and spawning, along with seed release, environmental improvement, and management.

The "Sea Forest Creation Project" is promoted in the 158.59-hectare waters of Woncheon in Idong-myeon. Through the Korea Fisheries Resources Agency, a specialized institution for sea forest creation, sea forests will be created in the first year, 2023, by improving barren rock areas, cleaning tidal flats, transplanting seaweed, and installing underwater low-tide nets, followed by a three-year post-management period from 2024 to 2026.

A county official said, "We will do our best to ensure that the fisheries resource spawning and habitat sites and sea forests selected in this contest contribute to the creation and recovery of coastal fishery resources and are linked to increasing fishermen's income."