FISHERY REGULATIONS ADOPTED FOR COASTAL AND OFFSHORE FISHERIES IN JAPAN

With particular reference to the Fishing Right System

by

Tadashi Yamamoto
College of Economics
Nihon University
Tokyo, Japan

1. INTRODUCTION

The major objective of the present paper is to review the Japanese system for the regulation of coastal fisheries, with special reference to the biological knowledge required for the effective allocation of resources to the communities concerned along the coast. In tackling this subject, however, some difficulties are encountered because Japanese fishery legislation is designed as a single package combining coastal, offshore and distant-water fisheries. There is no measure dealing exclusively with the regulation of fisheries for coastal communities - regulations established for coastal fisheries usually are closely related to those for offshore fisheries. It may be desirable, therefore, before going into detail with reference to fishery regulation specifically for coastal fisheries, briefly to describe the entire system and the historical development of Japanese fishery legislation.

2. GENERAL REVIEW

2.1 Development of the Fishery

The marine fisheries in Japan are composed of: (i) the coastal fishery, (ii) the offshore fishery and (iii) the distant-water fishery. The first two operate mostly in waters adjacent to the Japanese coast, which in general fall within the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of Japan. Although a precise definition of any of the three fisheries does not exist, the coastal fishery may be considered as the one operating in coastal waters with relatively small fishing craft, i.e. usually those of less than 10 gross tons (GT). This fishery also includes mariculture. The offshore fishery operates in waters farther off shore with larger vessels, usually over 10 GT, and the distant-water fishery operates far beyond the waters around Japan, i.e. on the high seas or in the EEZs of other nations.

The coastal fishery in Japan has a long history, extending as in many other countries over several centuries. It had been developed substantially even when the country was still under the feudal regime. Various types of fishing operations already had been employed during that period, including the manual collection of shellfish and seaweeds as well as the use of hand-lines, long-lines, gill-nets, beach-seines, boat-seines and set-nets (large, barrier-type stationary gear). Most of these types of operation were carried out on an individual basis, with the participation of fishermen's family members. Beach-seines and boat-seines, however, were operated by groups of fishermen under partnership arrangements, i.e. for sharing net ownership. Only the set-net fishery, operated by an entrepreneur who hired many fishermen, was capitalistic in nature during the feudal era. The coastal fishery as thus constituted remained essentially unchanged until about the 1950s. After World War II, the mariculture of several fish species, e.g. yellowtail, red sea-bream and Kurama prawn became an important component of coastal fisheries, being supported by advanced rearing technique and technology. Recently mariculture has played a highly significant role in these fisheries in terms of both the quantity and the commercial value of production.

Figure 1. Areas closed to trawling

During the period 1904–08, some otter trawlers of British type were built and trial operations subsequently were carried out in coastal waters around Japan. As serious conflicts arose between these trawlers and coastal fishing craft, however, the government restricted the grounds for the former vessels to the East China Sea. They represented, nevertheless, the forerunner of the Japanese distant-water fishing fleet. Thereafter, trawling with a single vessel, which resembled Danish seining, and pair-trawling were developed by Japanese fishermen themselves and these techniques spread rapidly, i.e. within seven years (1913–20), around the coast of Japan. As a result of renewed conflict between trawlers and coastal fishermen, the government established a system of closed areas for trawling in 1921, the details of which are shown in Figure 1. In the meantime, modernization along other lines emerged, e.g. purse-seining, pole-and-line fishing (for skipjack) and long-lining (for tuna), together with the use of larger craft and more powerful engines. These technologies and that of the aforementioned trawling formed the core structure of the present offshore fishery.

Striking development of the distant-water fishery occurred following World War II, with operations extending to fishing grounds throughout the world. This expansion ceased about the mid-1970s, however, as a result of the extension by many States of fishery jurisdiction over a 200-mile coastal zone.

2.2 Historical Evolvement of Fishery Regulations

Fishery regulations in Japan have evolved in pace with progress in development of the fisheries. The historical changes fall into three stages.

(1) The Feudal Era (to 1900)

Fishery regulations first appeared in the early 1700s as a basis for the collection of royalties/taxes by local feudal lords from farmers and fishermen. For this purpose all coastal villages were defined as being either agricultural or fishing villages. Only dwellers in communities classified as fishing villages were permitted to fish in waters off the shoreline of such villages. Those living in defined agricultural villages were allowed only to remove seaweeds (for fertilizer). Certified fishermen, however, could harvest the waters off neighbouring agricultural villages. On occasion, a lord granted special fishing privaleges to an individual or a group of people who had made a substantial contribution to his government. Such grants often pertained to grounds far from the village where the person or persons lived. In those days, the fishing rights and privaleges bestrowed by feudal lords were recognized as hereditary properties. The feudal era ended in 1869 but the rights established by feudal lords remained in force until 1900.

(2) The Old Fishery Law (1901–48)

In 1901, a law was enacted which in this report is referred to as “the old fishery law”. This law legalized all traditional fishery-management arrangements, i.e. all fishing rights and privaleges granted earlier by feudal lords were converted by statute into “exclusive fishing rights”. Since these usually specified the area of operation and the species to be caught, however, there remained some room for the issuing of additional exclusive rights. Two types of fishing rights thus came into force: those based on tradition and others newly instituted. Irrespective of their origin, such exclusive rights were classified as (a) those for mobile harvesting gear, e.g. long-lines, gill-nets, etc., (b) those for beach seines, (c) those for set nets and (d) those for mariculture. These rights, in principle, were conferred on the fishery associations organized by the fishermen in each village.

In every case, the fishing ground(s) to which the exclusive right applied was (were) clearly demarcated. During the initial stage, the areas allocated under class (a) rights, i.e. for mobile harvesting operations, were restricted to a comparatively narrow band of coastal waters. When these rights were renewed, about 1935, the areas were extended seaward to include the range of migratory species. Progess in the motorization of fishing craft had made such grounds accessible to coastal fishermen.

Application of the old fishery law, confirming traditional arrangements, gave rise to numerous disputes related to perceived unfairness in fishing opportunity. Due to the fact that the ownership of rights off one village might belong to another village, fishermen could be forced to pay fees for operating in waters bordering their own community. Conflict consequently tended to occur as between communities rather than individuals.

Development of an offshore fishery, which had taken place during the period of the old fishery law, also resulted in conflict between divergent interests. The most serious instances occurred between coastal fishermen and trawler operators over the effects of trawling on nearshore fishing grounds. Eventually the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry was led to establish special regulations for the trawl fishery. Excepting a limited number of exceptional cases, all types of trawling, including operations by otter-trawls, pair-trawls and Danish seines, were prohibited in coastal waters. This was the first occasion in Japan that numbers of fishing vessels were restricted by licence; a similar approach was adopted afterwards for other fisheries in turn.

(3) Current Fishery Law (1949 to present)

The 2nd World War ended in August 1945, and Japan was under the control of Allied Forces until April 1952. During this period, a number of measures were taken by government to reform the socio-economic structure of the nation and establish a truly democratic system. A typical such measure was the agricultural land reform. The area that a landlord might own was limited and any acreage in excess of the defined limit was purchased by the government. The farmlands thus acquired by the government were resold to tenant farmers, with the result that tenants without their own land no longer exist in Japan.

A similar measure was applied to the exclusive fishing rights conferred by the old fishery law. All such rights, regardless of their origin in tradition or law, were cancelled. This provided an ideal opportunity for the establishment of a modern system based on principles of equity. The fishing grounds were reallocated among the coastal fishermen who wished to participate in the fisheries. At the same time, the government issued compensatory bonds (cashable in five years) to those who had lost fishing rights through reallocation. The new regime was established under the current fishery law, enacted in 1949, which, among other things, incorporated the licensing approach of the previous legislation without change in principle.

3. FISHERY REGULATIONS CURRENTLY IN EFFECT

As indicated in the preceding section, fishery regulations in Japan constitute a dual system, viz. fishing-rights regulations and fishing-licensing regulations. The former apply principally to the coastal fisheries and the latter to the offshore and distant-water fisheries. The present study is focussed on the regulation of fishing rights but, since some coastal fishermen with larger boats possess licences for the harvest of widely distributed fish stocks, reference may be made also to licensing regulation. For details on the latter, see the comprehensive paper entitled “Licence Limitation Regulations: the Japanese system”, prepared by Y. Asada and presented to the FAO Technical Conference on Fishery Management and Development at Vancouver in February 1973.

3.1 The Role of the Fishery Law

Japan is an island country, surrounded by the Pacific Ocean and several seas. For that reason alone, fish has been a major animal protein source for the Japanese people throughout the centuries. Almost all the aquatic animals and plants available in adjacent waters are made use of by fishermen employing a variety of fishing gear and a range of vessel types and sizes. Fishing communities are well developed and widely dispersed around the entire coast of the country.

During the period of the old fishery law, numerous conflicts arose over the joint use of fishing grounds or fish stocks. Such conflicts occurred among users of the same gear as well as between users of different gears or of different sizes of fishing craft. Large-scale conflict sometimes occurred between neighbouring fishing communities. Due to a lack of fairness in principle and coordination in practice, the old law, which carried over traditional regulatory arrangements, was largely responsible for these problems.

The fishery law enacted in 1949 was designed primarily to realize the most effective and rational use of fishing grounds and fishery resources, the basic philosophy being that, through democratic organization by fishermen themselves, productivity would be stimulated and incomes and living standards eventually improved. To achieve this goal, the fishing rights entrenched under the old law were cancelled and replaced by modern democratic arrangements. An important mechanism for this purpose was the Fishery Coordinating Committee, on which fishermen were adequately represented. All proposals for the reallocation of fishing grounds and fishery resources among fishermen and fishing communities originated in this committee. In this respect, specific consideration was given to the avoidance of further disputes among fishermen, and to the conservation of the fishery resources involved.

3.2 Fishing Rights and Fishing Licence Systems

(1) The Fishing Rights System

Since coastal fishermen generally are powerless in the socio-economic sphere, the fishing-rights system is designed primarily to protect the coastal fisheries against deterioration from other fisheries. Under the fishery law, a fishing right is a recognized property right (right in rem). It may not be mortgaged, however, nor be rented or transferred. It is an exclusive right to fish in a defined water area with specified fishing gear - invasion by a third party is completely excluded. Examples of area and gear specification are provided in Figure 2 and Table 2.

There are three types of such rights, viz. common fishing rights, set-net fishing rights and demarcated fishing rights, a brief explanation of each being given in Table 1.

Common Fishing Right:

A common fishing right is granted only to fishery cooperatives and on condition that fishery resources are utilized in a coordinated manner by all members of the cooperative concerned. This type of right is further divided into three sub-types, viz: Type 1 for the harvest of littoral species attached to the seabottom, Type 2 for the use of small stationary gear at depths of less than 27 m and Type 3 for the use of beach seines. The allocation of resources and fishing grounds for each sub-type of operation and the selection of fishermen for engagement in each are determined in accordance with principles of equity and through a concensus of all members of a particular cooperative. The procedural details are defined in the statute.

The common fishing right corresponds more or less with the former exclusive right conferred by the old fishery law. The substantive difference is that Type 1 rights are confined to stocks of bottom-attached species, e.g. lobster, shellfish and seaweeds. Mobile species are thus made available for exploitation by means of other, more effective fishing gears.

Set-Net Fishing Right:

The set-net referred to in this categeory of right is defined as a net of this kind set at depths of more than 27 m. This means that the net is relatively large and that a substantial amount of capital is required for its construction and operation. For that reason, priority in the granting of set-net fishing rights is given to fishermen and groups of fishermen that have sufficient capital for the investment involved and experience in set-net operation. At an earlier stage, a number of individual fishermen obtained set-net rights but in recent years such rights are granted mainly to fishery cooperatives financially capable of handling the investment and operation. In the allocation of these rights, the sea area for the operation and the major species to be caught are specified. Due to the characteristics of this gear, however, a variety of species usually are taken.

Demarcated Fishing Right:

A demarcated fishing right is a right for the conduct of mariculture in a specific sea area. In principle, this right is granted to fishery cooperatives. Mariculture of finfish, crustaceans and molluscs also requires comparatively large amounts of capital. The same priority as mentioned for

Table 1
Illustration of fishing right and fishing licence system in Japan

Table 2
Example of Fishing Right granted to Nagai Fishery Cooperative ¹

¹ This table is prepared to show briefly how Fishing Rights are granted to a fishery cooperative. Therefore, actual contents of Fishing Rights granted to Nagai Fishery Cooperative are not always the same as indicated above.

² Fishing periods for some species are specified in accordance with closed seasons determined by prefectural governor.

³ Fishing gears used for common Fishing Right Type 1 are specified by the prefectural fishery regulation.

Figure 2. Illustration of fishing right system in Japan