Mekong River Commission

Aquatic biodiversity preservation urged in Laos
Vientiane Times, June 7, 2008

At a workshop on aquatic biodiversity and nutrition in rice-based ecosystems, organised June 4-5 in Vientiane by FAO and the Lao Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, participants discussed the potential role of aquatic biodiversity in the alleviation of malnutrition. This depends on good management practices which combine enhancement of aquatic biodiversity with increased rice production.

Recommendations were made for future activities and immediate steps towards enhancing aquatic biodiversity and increasing rice production. Laos has a rich aquatic biodiversity which has always been tapped for food, barter and income, and numerous studies have shown its importance for the nutrition and livelihood of the Lao people.

Rice-based ecosystems, usually seen as a source of rice only, form part of the intricate system of wetlands found throughout Laos and therefore harbour a highly diverse set of aquatic organisms. The catch from rice fields is usually modest and only sufficient for a single day. For this reason, the fish and other aquatic animals caught from rice-based ecosystems go largely unnoticed - making it an "invisible" fishery. Nevertheless, since many people are involved in this type of fishery day after day, the total amount can be quite significant.

A household survey conducted on 240 households across three provinces from 2006-2007 revealed that about two-thirds of all aquatic organisms consumed by the targeted households originated from ricebased ecosystems. Among the organisms caught and consumed regularly were fish, frogs, snails, shrimps and aquatic insects. The findings once again underlined the importance rice fields as a source of non-rice foods.

The International Rice Commission has acknowledged the importance of aquatic biodiversity and recommended its member countries pay more attention to the nutritional contribution of aquatic organisms in the diets of rural people. The global shortage of rice has led to increased rice production through traditional intensification, namely increased input of chemical fertilisers and pesticides, plus expansion into natural wetlands. This may worsen the overall nutritional situation of rural people by reducing biodiversity, and ways must be found to combine increased rice production with enhanced riceassociated aquatic biodiversity for the benefit of the Lao people.

New law to protect Lao fisheries
Vientiane Times, June 11, 2008

A new fisheries law should protect Lao aquatic resources by ensuring their sustainable use, according to FAO representative Serge Verniau. Mr Verniau made the comments at a workshop with the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry's Department of Livestock and Fisheries in Vientiane.

The workshop was the latest step in a process which began prior to December 2007, when a national workshop agreed there was an urgent need for a new fisheries law. One month later a draft law was presented to the Lao government and FAO was asked to become involved.

"FAO financially supported this process as we consider the country is at risk during a time of massive investment in mining, hydropower and agro-industry," Mr Verniau said. "The new law takes into account the push for increased rice production and the increased input [into waterways] of mineral fertilisers and pesticides that negatively affect aquatic biodiversity."

The workshop was held to resolve issues that must be addressed before the law can be adopted by the government. Mr Verniau said the law must reflect local conditions and take into account the importance of aquatic resources to Lao people. It should detail a new management system for the sector, which can be adapted to changing situations. "The draft law has been the subject of review by provincial stakeholders and experts from the Ministry of Justice," he said. "In only six months, we moved from a mere concept note to a substantive draft law."

"The challenge is to ensure the collective effort invested in drafting the law is not wasted," Mr Verniau said. Following the workshop, the new draft will be sent to the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry for consideration. 

Giant catfish population dropping amid changing eco system
June 24, 2008,
Thai News Agency http://enews.mcot. net/view.php?id=4896

The scene of giant catfish being caught in the Mekong River is now a rare one, as the catfish population has dropped and some fishermen have stopped hunting them, joining the conservation trend to protect the big freshwater fish. Boonrien Chinarat is a founding member of the giant catfish club and the Headman of Had Krai Village in the northern province of Chiang Rai. He used to fish for giant catfish but stopped ten years ago.

He said "People outside of the village did not understand our way of life. They think we harm the fish. Nowadays, most of the giant catfish hunters have stopped due to the reduction of the fish population." Boonrien said the main reason for the reduction in giant catfish numbers was the change in eco systems, caused by rapids blasting and clearing of water channels, the habitat of the fish. The spots where the fish lay eggs are gone. Another reason is the practice of fishing by electric shock and dynamite.

In Chiang Rai's Wiengchai district is a giant catfish farm called wang pla beuk. It is owned by a retired fisheries officer, who set up the farm to help build up the stocks of giant catfish. In 1983, he became the first person in the world to successfully breed giant catfish. "We have cooperation from the fishery department to breed giant catfish for conservation." This farm has been producing over 100,000 fish a year. It has also been helping the Had Krai villagers raise their own fish.

Many markets in Chiang Rai province sell the farmed giant catfish. At Chiang Saen market, this seller says she's been selling the fish for five years at a cost of 170 baht per kg. The farmed fish is famous although some customers say wild giant catfish, which are harder to find and more expensive, are tastier. Cutting catfish for higher export prices June 27, Thanh Nien, http://www.thanhniennews.com/ business/?catid=2&newsid=39680 Pangasius (tra and basa catfish) production, which has grown rapidly recently, needs to be reduced to help loser supply and boost the fish's export value, an industry leader has suggested. Ngo Phuoc Hau, deputy chairman of the Viet Nam Association of Seafood Exporters and Processors, said free breeding had increased the catfish output significantly but farmers had to sell at low prices as supply surpassed demand.

Catfish farmers blamed local businesses for paying them low prices. While this is true, it's also true that local catfish companies are being forced to lower their prices by foreign customers who know about the domestic production surplus, Hau said. The Mekong Delta region is home to 84 catfish processing factories and the region's catfish output has reached over 1.2 million tonnes this year. He suggested supply in the catfish industry, one of the country's most lucrative agricultural industries, should be adjusted to a lower level than demand to help raise catfish prices.

The Southern Institute of Fisheries Economics and Planning said the catfish industry in the Mekong Delta region has yet to be sustainable and is vulnerable to market changes while also potentially detrimental to the environment. 

Scientists breed rare Mekong River fish
5 July, 2008, VNA, http://www.vnagency.com.vn/Home/ EN/tabid/119/itemid/257165/Default.aspx

CUU LONG - Scientists from the National Centre for Freshwater Fish Breeding of Southern Viet Nam have successfully bred several rare species of fish indigenous to the Mekong River, saving them from the threat of extinction.

Dr Pham Van Khanh, director of the centre, which is based in the delta province of Tien Giang, said the centre had successfully bred more than 20 species that either had high commercial value or faced extinction. They included ho (Catlocarpio siamensis) and ca coc (cyclocheilichthys enoplos).

Khanh, who was in charge of a project to breed and raise ca coc said the centre had succeeded in artificially propagating the fish after six years of study. He said the centre's scientists had to go to the Tien and Hau rivers, two Mekong distributaries, to buy rare the species from fishers.

Huynh Huu Ngai, who was in charge of the project breed ho fish, said when the project began in 2003 he and his colleagues had to go to An Giang, Vinh Long and Dong Thap provinces to find ho, also known as giant barb. In June 2005, Ngai and his team successfully hatched the first ho by artificial means, with a success rate of 13%. The rate now tops 40%, he said. Ho live mainly in the lower Mekong basin in Viet Nam and Cambodia, but population has declined sharply due to overfishing. Ngai said since April 2002 he had not heard of anyone catching a ho weighing more than 150 kg in the delta. The fish grow to 300- 400 kg when fully mature.

The centre now has 84 breeding pairs of ho, with the largest weighing 25 kg. The centre has supplied more than 10,000 ho fry to farmers in An Giang and Dong Thap provinces and to an aquaculture company in Ho Chi Minh City. It annually supplies around 20 million breeding fish to farmers, including rare species like ca et moi (Morulius chrysophekadion) and ca chai (Leptobarbus hoevenii).

The centre is also one of the leaders in artificial propagation of catfish like tra and basa, which are now bred in the Delta in large quantities for export. Khanh said the centre was also studying artificial propagation of other rare fish species, including ca lang (Hemibagrus clongatus) and ca ket (Kryptopterus bleekeri).

One million fish released for Wildlife Conservation Day
July 14, 2008, Vientiane Times

One million fish were released into Houayson Reservoir in Naxaithong district, Vientiane to mark Wildlife Conservation Day yesterday. Vientiane Agriculture and Forestry Department Head Latsanivong Amarathithada said the event was held to educate people about conservation. "In Vientiane we have a lot of rivers and reservoirs, which are home to a range of aquatic life and wildlife," he said. "People need to be aware of the importance of preserving this wildlife and also preserving our natural biodiversity."

Mr Latsanivong said it was necessary for individuals and private and state organisations to make conservation a priority, because it was linked to development, economic growth and the sustainable management of natural resources. This year's slogan is "Don't catch, kill, or sell wildlife". "It is essential to talk to people, such as people at the markets, and give them information about regulations and the law as it's related to the protection of wildlife," he said.

Mr Latsanivong said he hoped releasing fish would become an annual custom to encourage people to think about the survival of threatened species. The department has released more than 12 million fish between 1994 and 2007. Wildlife Conservation Day aims to provide a wake-up call about the devastating loss of wildlife and aquatic life. 

Australian scientist lends helping hand to Asian neighbour
July 15, 2008, ABC, http://www.abc.net.au/news/ stories/2008/07/15/2304058.htm

A Narrandera scientist has returned from Laos, where he helped build trial fishways to revive the Asian nation's declining fish stocks. Research scientist Lee Baumgartner says weirs have severely cut fish numbers in the Mekong Delta.

Mr Baumgartner says on his recent six-week visit to Laos there was great help from locals keen to see their wetlands return to productivity. "Most of the local villagers who actually helped us out with our work were quite excited that up to 70 species of fish will be returning to that wetland sometime next year," he said. "Hopefully once the fishways are built they'll see a big increase in their sustenance fishery upstream of the wetland."

Mr Baumgartner says the research also has potential to help Australian fish stocks. "We learnt quite a bit about the behaviour of their small bodied fish in terms of the actual dimensions of the fishway," he said. "We'll be investigating that for some of our local species. We've also collected a lot of information on fish in the Mekong that are potential invaders over here, so that if they do get released over here we might be able to coordinate a response." 

Cambodian freshwater fish resources under increasing pressure
22 August, 2008, IRIN. http://www.irinnews.org/Report. aspx?ReportId=79937

PHNOM PENH, - Each year, between July and October, Cambodia's Tonle Sap river, swollen by monsoon rain and excess flow from the nearby Mekong River, reverses its course. As water pours back into Cambodia's Great Lake, swelling its size by over four times, the flood-plain is transformed into a vast breeding ground for over 250 species of fish - a vital source of livelihoods and sustenance for Cambodia's rural poor.

But population growth and economic development in the Mekong basin are threatening fish resources, according to scientists, who say the country's food security could be hanging in the balance. "This is one of the most intensely fished freshwater areas in the world," said Eric Baran, a research scientist at the World Fish Center, an international fisheries research institute. "The 2.6 million tonnes of fish caught annually in the Mekong basin represent seven times more than the catches of the North American inland fisheries sector and more than 10 times the entire [inland] fish catch in Australia."

But population growth and increased fish consumption is straining Great Lake's fish resources. "Between 1940 and 1995, fish production increased twofold, but population increased threefold," he said. "We are close to a maximum level of production, but the population keeps growing," Baran said.

So Nam, deputy director of the Cambodian government's Inland Fisheries Research and Development Institute, told IRIN: "Population growth is the main concern. Although the catch is now 400,000 tonnes per year," he said, "most of the [fish] are small sized." The trend to smaller fish was also observed in River At Risk, a 2004 report by Milton Osborne, who noted the "regular complaints from [Great Lake] fishers about the difficulty of catching their desired quantities of fish."

Cambodia's heavy reliance on freshwater fish as a source of protein makes it particularly vulnerable to fluctuations in production, said Baran. "[Cambodia] is a country where fish production is three times pig production and 20 times chicken production. If it loses fisheries, the agriculture sector will not be able to catch up," he said.

A rise in illegal fishing due to collaboration between outlaw anglers and local officials, is also a growing problem. Nao Thuok, director of the Cambodian Fisheries Administration, said the law was difficult to enforce in a country as reliant on fish as Cambodia. "Families can fish year round," he said. "But the [2006] Fisheries Law only enables them to use small-scale fishing gear. The problem is that families complain they cannot survive and are using larger gear in the spawning season." To combat illegal fishing and encourage the long-term sustainability of Cambodia's freshwater fisheries, the government has devolved decision-making powers and enforcement to the local level.

According to So Nam, the central Fisheries Administration is focusing its efforts on educating fishermen about the challenges of sustainable development. "Education is very important. One of the aims is to strengthen the community by building the capacity of the community, teaching people to do their management, their conservation and their planning," So Nam told IRIN. 

Over 500 "community fisheries" have been established so far throughout the kingdom, which act as focal points for law enforcement, conservation and the adoption of new fish cultivation methods, including aquaculture, according to So Nam.

Generating accurate information for decision-makers is critical, according to Baran. The World Fish Center is experimenting with computer modelling to predict variations in fish levels and guide policy decisions relating to fisheries. One such model, known as BayFish, is bringing together all of the complex variables that impact fisheries - including flood levels, water oxygen levels and rainfall - enabling scientists to predict how changes in one variable will effect overall fish levels. "But it's a work in progress," said Baran. "Our raison d'être is to produce scientific information on fisheries. That's the way to help national governments make informed decisions, he said. Having this scientific information integrated in national and regional policies would be a significant step forward."