A US delegation headed by John Davis, chief of fisheries enforcement for the US Coast Guard, is in Shanghai Wednesday on its second stop of a seven-day trip to China. The delegation is working with Chinese agencies to set up a cooperative effort to end illegal fishing in the Pacific.

"Cooperation in fighting driftnet fishing is very important to preserve fish stocks and marine traffic," said Lu Wei, an official with the Fisheries Bureau of the Ministry of Agriculture.

Driftnets, known as "curtains of death," sometimes extend for up to 40 nautical miles. They can have a devastating impact on marine life and pose a danger to other ships.

Preventing driftnet fishing will also protect the interests of those who fish legally: they harvest fewer fish with legitimate methods and have to sell their catch at higher prices, Lu said.

As part of its visit to China, the American delegation will visit the Ministry of Agriculture's fisheries enforcement and fishing ports supervisory administration in the East Sea region, then view a port in Zhoushan, one of China’s largest fishing bases.

On Monday, the delegation was in Beijing to meet with Li Jianhua, deputy director of the Fisheries Bureau of the Ministry of Agriculture, and a Chinese delegation headed by Peng Xiaohua, deputy director of the China Fisheries Command Center.

The US side commented positively on China's efforts to fight large-scale driftnet fishing, the fisheries command center reported.

The United Nation's General Assembly issued a resolution in 1991 on large-scale high-seas driftnet fishing, prohibiting the use of nets longer than 2.5 kilometers.

Based on the UN resolution, China and the United States signed a boarding/shiprider agreement in 1993 that allows Chinese officials to ride on US cutters each driftnet season. When China-flagged vessels are encountered, the Chinese riders participate in boarding and investigation.

(China Daily May 19, 2004)