Sustainability Analysis Of Fishery Activities In South China Sea During 1950-2013

Population growth and economic development have increased the demand for fish production,and thus fishery resources.Surrounded by many countries,including several main fishery countries that largely contribute to the global fishery catches,South China Sea(SCS)has been under intensively exploitive fishery activities for decade.Along with the degradation of ecosystems,the problem of fishery resource degradation is especially severe in the South China Sea.In this study,two indicators,i.e.Resource Detriment Index(RDI)and Resource Detriment Weight(RDW)were proposed and calculated,combined with Reginal-based Marine Trophic Level(RMTI),Stock-Status Plot(SSP).The patterns of fishery activities of eight main fishery entities(countries and regions)during 1950-2013 have been described.The respective process and features of fishery spatial expansion,stages of fishery activities,as well as capture taxa echelon and substitution were analysed.Most entities,China Mainland excluded,have been spatially expanded during these 64 years.The tendency of overfishing and the lack of effective fishery management were common.Four stages of fishery activities(initate,increase,boomlet,and crisis)were identified according to the results.With the resource degrading,to sustain or increase fishery yields,various measures,including capture effort increase,spatial expansion and capture trophic adjustment,have been taken by the main entities.A steadily increasing detriment of fishery resources and their continued degradation were noted.In fishery field,there are no winners,but only accomplices.Simple landing control measures are not sufficient to reduce the detriment and cease the degradation.Realization of the importance of integration,sense of duty,and mutual benefits is essential to break the prisoner's dilemma and ensure sustainability in the open access fishery in the South China Sea.