Report on Qianjiang Hubei Province Red Swamp Crayfish Fisheries
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Report on Qianjiang Hubei Province Red Swamp Crayfish fisheries A Technical Review Document for the Development of a Fishery Improvement Project SAI Global Marine Office Dave Garforth Senior Consultant, Seafood SAI Global /Global Trust Quayside Business Park, Mill Street Dundalk, County Louth, Ireland T: +353 (0) 42 932 0912 M: +353 (0) 87 7978480 E: [email protected] http://www.saiglobal.com COMMERCIAL IN CONFIDENCE Issue Date: 8 April 2016 © SAI Global Limited Copyright 2012 - ABN 67 050 611 642 I Page 1 of 38 Contents 1. Background ....................................................................................................................... 3 1.1 Responsible fishery management practices in the Red Swamp Chinese Crawfish (Crayfish) Fishery ........................................................................................................................... 3 2. Hubei Province Crayfish Fishery Review ............................................................................. 5 2.1 Geography of the Hubei Province ....................................................................................... 5 2.2 Biology and Habitat of the Species ..................................................................................... 6 2.3 History and Production of Crayfish fisheries in China and Hubei ....................................... 8 2.4 Crayfish fishery Systems ..................................................................................................... 9 2.5 Chinese Fishery Management .......................................................................................... 12 2.6 Habitat and Environmental Interactions of the Fishery ................................................... 15 2.7 Commerical Development of the Fisheries in these Provinces ........................................ 19 3. Summary and Scope of a FIP ............................................................................................ 21 3.1 Summary ........................................................................................................................... 21 3.2 FIP Objectives .................................................................................................................... 24 3.3 Specific to Enhanced Relay Crayfish fisheries ................................................................... 26 References ................................................................................................................................... 27 Appendix 1: FAO Ecolabeling Guideline Criteria for Inland Fisheries (2011) ............................. 30 Photographs Taken During the Site Visit ..................................................................................... 37 Photographs taken during site visit 37 COMMERCIAL IN CONFIDENCE Issue Date: 8 April 2016 © SAI Global Limited Copyright 2012 - ABN 67 050 611 642 I Page 2 of 38 1. Background 1.1 Responsible fishery management practices in the Red Swamp Chinese Crawfish (Crayfish) Fishery The Big Prawn Company commissioned a study visit and initial technical report of the sustainability parameters and to establish the responsible management credentials of the Chinese Red swamp Crawfish (Procambarus clarkia) fishery in the Hubei Province of China, focusing on the Qianjiang region. This report provides a first technical overview of the fisheries in this region. The Purpose of a FIP The purpose of a FIP is to provide a transparent and credible process that supports the sustainable development of a fishery and demonstrates this to interested parties. The Hubei Province Red swamp crayfish FIP will lead to: - Better documentation of the operational characteristics of the fishery - Improvement in data collection and use across the key areas of data deficiency and thereby, - Allow for better informed management decisions that will lead to it’s long term sustainable development Work conducted and presented in this report identifies Hubei Province Redswamp crayfish as a data deficient fishery. Data deficiencies exist across key aspects of stock distribution, dynamics, fishing effort, deployment, catch records etc. A work plan has been developed and aims to improve upon the data availability, data collection systems and data use to support the long, term sustainable management of Hubei Province Red swamp crayfish. Objective of the Work COMMERCIAL IN CONFIDENCE Issue Date: 8 April 2016 © SAI Global Limited Copyright 2012 - ABN 67 050 611 642 I Page 3 of 38 Sourcing policies within the supply chain require that fishery products come from well managed fisheries; either demonstrable via accepted international standards and third party certification or through formal fishery improvement projects (FIP’s) that can track the progress of the fishery towards effective management and sustainable stocks. A study visit was organised to review the fishery practises and meet with key stakeholders within the Hubei Province. Stakeholders included; fishers, collectors, local fishery district managers, major crayfish processors and key experts in the field. The visit took place on the 27-29th October and included visits to 3 crayfish production areas and 3 major fisheries/ processing businesses. A meeting and then followed by a workshop was held on the 28th October to present an overview of a fishery improvement project and discuss the operational practices, available information, gaps in information and identify opportunities for improvement in the fishery practices. The meetings were hosted by Big Prawn Co. and were attended by two of the main supplying companies of Crayfish in the Qianjiang region of Hubei (Hubei Qianjiang Huashan Aquatic Food & Product Co. Ltd and Hubei Laker Aquatic Product Co. Ltd). The meetings were also attended by representatives of the Qianjiang Fisheries Bureau, local fishermen and collectors. These collective stakeholders (fishers, producers, managers, supply chain) propose to develop a FIP in order to demonstrate the responsible management of the fishery and undertake improvement activities in a recognised and credible manner. A FIP is normally based on a gap analysis of the fishery against measurable criteria, often derived from existing market facing standards such as the Marine Stewardship Council’s Standard for Sustainable Fisheries or other accepted criteria. Due to the diverse nature of crayfish fisheries (there are wild and enhanced components to the fishery), a broader evaluation is first conceived in order to consider the most appropriate Standards. Suitable criteria can form part of the FIP proposal and in this report, a number of FAO based criteria, derived from the Eco-labeling Guidelines for Inland fisheries are presented in the Summary section. This was considered a good first step in the evaluation and consistent with all relevant Standards that may ultimately be used as part of the fishery development. COMMERCIAL IN CONFIDENCE Issue Date: 8 April 2016 © SAI Global Limited Copyright 2012 - ABN 67 050 611 642 I Page 4 of 38 2. Hubei Province Crayfish Fishery Review 2.1 Geography of the Hubei Province Situated north and in the middle reaches of the Changjiang (Yangtze) River, Hubei, is a province of considerable rivers and lakes, and known as the "land of thousand lakes". The Yangtze River cuts through the Wushan Mountain as it flow eastwards, forming the famous gorges linking Hubei with the neighbouring Sichuan. The Province has an area of 180 thousand square kilometres and a population of some 60 million comprising the Han, Tujia, Hui, Manchu, Miao and Mongolian nationalities. The capital city is Wuhan. Hubei has a sub-tropical, humid and monsoon climate. It has distinctive seasons with a changeable spring, a humid and hot summer, a pleasant autumn and a dry and cold winter. Its annual mean temperature ranges from 13ºC to 18ºC (55.4 ºF to 64.4 ºF) with lowest monthly mean in January being 1C to 6C and highest monthly in July being 24ºC to 30ºC (75.2 ºF to 86 ºF). Its annual precipitation averages is between 750-1,500mm, which is concentrated in the summer period. Hubei abounds in fish, lotus seeds and roots, water caltrop, water fowl and pearls, and boasts significant inland fishery and aquatic resources. The Red swamp crayfish (Procambaris Clarkii) was introduced into China in the early part of the 20th century and have since become an established, naturalised species. It is a native of Southern Americas but has gradually spread north and also exits in parts of Western and Central Europe. Its introduction in China pre-dates International Agreements such as the Convention of the Law on Bio-diversity, 1991. There are mainly 5 provinces in China where Crayfish are caught, along the Yangtze River from east to west – Jiangsu, Anhui, Jiangxi, Hubei & Hunan provinces. COMMERCIAL IN CONFIDENCE Issue Date: 8 April 2016 © SAI Global Limited Copyright 2012 - ABN 67 050 611 642 I Page 5 of 38 Figure 1: Location of Hubei Province in China 2.2 Biology and Habitat of the Species Crayfish species are considered successful colonizers and r-strategists, exhibiting a short life cycle and high fecundity. When they become established they eventually become a keystone species. These traits are typically associated with animals that live in warmer environments, i.e., short- lived (2 years or less), high juvenile survival, and can alternate between reproductively active and inactive forms. Crayfish are herbivores, detritivores, omnivores, and obligate carnivores. They can feed on small fish and shrimp, a range of invertebrates