Quynh Thuan Border Guard Station effectively prevents destructive fishing practices.

(Baonghean.vn) -The Quynh Thuan Border Guard Station (Nghe An Border Guard Command) is responsible for managing 8 coastal communes in Quynh Luu district, with over 1,000 vessels and 6,000 workers at sea.

Over the years, marine fisheries have played a crucial role in the economic development of households in communes such as Quynh Long, Quynh Nghia, and Tien Thuy. Although fishing is the livelihood of the people in the region, for short-term gain, some fishermen (both within the area under the management of the local police station and in neighboring areas) still secretly use destructive fishing methods. Prominent among these are the use of explosives and explosive materials for offshore fishing; and the use of high-powered electric shock devices and low-power electric nets for nearshore fishing.

Quynh Thuan Border Guard Station inspects fishing vessels at sea.

Lieutenant Colonel Tran Huy Thanh, Commander of the Quynh Thuan Border Guard Station, said: “Faced with this situation, we have implemented many comprehensive measures to resolutely prevent this phenomenon. On the one hand, we have been campaigning and educating people to abandon dangerous practices that harm the environment, and on the other hand, we have organized patrols to catch and prosecute those who deliberately violate the law.”

According to Lieutenant Colonel Thanh, the implementation of measures to prevent destructive fishing practices has been positively received by many local fishermen, who have voluntarily signed commitments not to violate the regulations. However, some difficulties have arisen during implementation, namely that some fishermen from outside the unit's jurisdiction (mainly from the two districts of Tinh Gia and Quang Xuong in Thanh Hoa province) still deliberately violate the regulations. These fishermen use small boats to fish about 1-2 nautical miles from the shore, using high-powered electric shock devices attached to trawling nets. Due to short-term gains and insufficient deterrent penalties, these individuals continue to operate secretly, arranging lookouts to notify each other by phone when they spot Border Guard vessels leaving the port, allowing them to escape.

To ensure the safety of fishermen and contribute to environmental protection, the Quynh Thuan Border Guard Station has resolutely dealt with violating vessels and individuals. Since the beginning of 2012 alone, the unit has detected and apprehended 28 cases involving 21 vessels and 26 individuals. They seized 0.8 kg of explosives, 9 detonators, and 10 electric shock devices; and imposed administrative fines totaling 117 million VND on 28 cases/28 individuals, which were remitted to the state budget. A notable example occurred on March 30th, when a patrol team from the station, in coordination with the Provincial Fisheries Resource Protection and Exploitation Sub-Department, inspected fishing vessel NA 93637 TS captained by Nguyen Van Truc (born 1967, residing in Tien Thuy commune, Quynh Luu district), seizing numerous items related to destructive fishing practices. In addition, the Quynh Thuan Police Station, in coordination with the Fatherland Front and the Quynh Luu District Police, mobilized the people to surrender 11 kg of various types of firecrackers, 600 grams of TNT explosives, and 54 AK bullets…

According to Station Chief Tran Huy Thanh, in the coming time, to prevent and completely eliminate destructive fishing methods, the Quynh Thuan Station will continue to promote efforts to encourage fishermen in the area not to use or assist unscrupulous individuals. Along with that, they will coordinate with border guard stations and functional forces inside and outside the province to strictly inspect fishermen's vessels before they go out to sea.

Hung Phong