"Seafood Sashimi May Be Hard to Find for a While": 30,000 Fish Die-Off in Boiling Seas Leaves Fish Farms in Distress [On the Scene]

Flounder Death Rate Hits 40% in Boiling Seas: Defenseless Against High Water Temperatures

Full Compensation for Livestock, But Fisheries Face "Penalty Premium" Bomb

"Insured Fishermen Face Reverse Discrimination" as Frustration Grows Over In

A flounder farm in Wando-gun, Jeollanam-do. Dead flatfish, their white bellies turned up, are continuously being hauled from the water.

This is the reality of the so-called "high water temperature disaster" caused by the ongoing heatwave, which has led to a rapid surge in seawater temperatures. Fishermen are lamenting massive property damage, but critics point out that the government's disaster relief system for the fisheries industry remains in a systemic blind spot.

A flounder farm in Wando-gun, Jeollanam-do. Due to the heatwave, the seawater temperature far exceeded the flounder's growth limit, turning the entire farm into a large field of carcasses. Photo by Lee Jungkyung

Seawater Temperatures Far Above Optimal Range... Mass Deaths Caused by Oxygen Shortage

The damage at the Wando fish farm visited by reporters on August 2 was severe. At the farm owned by Mr. A, more than 30,000 out of approximately 70,000 stocked flounder have died, pushing the damage rate over 40%.

The optimal water temperature for flounder growth is between 20 and 25°C, but the current temperature in this farm fluctuates between 27 and 28°C. Water temperatures in the nearby southern coast and Jeju waters have also soared to around 29°C. For fish, a one-degree increase in water temperature causes stress equivalent to a more than ten-degree change for terrestrial animals.

At the site, employee Mr. B sighed as he showed a freezer packed with dead flounder. Owner Mr. A explained, "Flounder are a species that normally stay at the bottom of the tank, but when temperatures rise, they leap to the surface due to lack of oxygen and then die the next day," adding, "It is an extreme situation where fishermen have no way to intervene."

This year, the impact of climate change made the arrival of high-temperature waters unusually early. The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries recently raised the high water temperature crisis alert to “Severe I” and activated an emergency response headquarters. Since early July, water temperatures across major coastal regions nationwide have already been observed to exceed normal levels.

Mr. A, the owner of a fish farm in Wando, raised his voice, saying, "More than 30,000 fish, accounting for over 40% of the total stocked quantity, died, resulting in losses worth hundreds of millions of won in an instant." Provided by the company

The Stark Contrast Between Livestock and Fisheries... Systemic Contradictions Lead to Reverse Discrimination

According to the reporting, what upsets fishermen the most is the issue of policy fairness compared to other primary industries. Currently, for livestock farming, when a deadly disease such as African Swine Fever (ASF) occurs, it is classified as a national disaster and a compensation system is in place, including direct government compensation for culling to prevent the spread.

Fishermen unanimously point out, "Just like infectious diseases, high water temperatures brought about by unavoidable climate disasters severely undermine the industry, yet there is no direct support system for fisheries comparable to that for livestock."

Even when suffering the same heatwave disaster, livestock and agriculture benefit from a range of protections such as insurance riders for heatwaves, various disaster recovery funds provided by local governments, and support for heat-resistant facilities. In contrast, for fish farmers dealing with boiling waters, all responsibility for high-temperature damage is shifted onto a single, flawed “aquaculture disaster insurance” system.

The greatest flaw in the current aquaculture disaster insurance system is its “reverse discrimination” structure, in which fishermen who responsibly pay insurance premiums are actually penalized. In the event of a disaster, those without insurance can receive up to 50 million won in disaster relief from the government, but those who paid for insurance are completely excluded from this support.

Moreover, they face the burden of paying millions of won in non-refundable insurance premiums each year, and if they are forced to make a claim, they will face a sharp increase in "surtaxed insurance premiums" the following year, essentially a penalty. This is why people on-site are angry that “the more you insure, the more you lose.” Mr. A stressed the need for systemic reform, saying, “Despite being a natural disaster at the national disaster level, there is no direct government financial support whatsoever.”

Inside a frozen warehouse in Wando County. Tens of thousands of deceased flatfish are stacked layer upon layer from the floor to the ceiling. Photo by Lee Jung-kyung

That day, Assemblyman Park Ji-won, Wando County Mayor Kim Shin, and County Council Chairman Choi Jeong-uk visited the scene to assess the situation, but other than Wando-gun’s partial support of “dead fish disposal costs,” there have been no fundamental nationwide government countermeasures.

Mass Deaths Shaking the Supply Chain... Growing Fears Over Soaring Sashimi Prices

The chain of mass deaths at the Wando fish farms is expected to not only impact farmers but also lead to higher seafood prices in the second half of the year. Wando-gun is the largest producer of flounder in the country, accounting for about 37% of national production, with 192 fish farms currently operating.

Main aquaculture species such as flounder and rockfish require at least one year of rearing from fry to shipment. Because it is structurally difficult to restore supply quickly, large-scale deaths inevitably drive up farmgate prices. In fact, after last year’s high water temperature event, the farmgate price of rockfish surged by more than 50% compared to the previous year.

As the climate crisis becomes normalized, high-temperature water damage is now a recurring annual disaster. On the ground, calls are growing for a realistic “fisheries policy to address the climate crisis,” including the establishment of a direct national compensation system similar to that for livestock diseases and reform of the unreasonable insurance system.

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Title: [Right to Reply] <"Eating Sashimi Will Be Difficult for a While": 30,000 Fish Die En Masse in Boiling Waters... Suffering at the Fish Farms [On Site]> - Related

Body: In the article titled "Eating Sashimi Will Be Difficult for a While: 30,000 Fish Die En Masse in Boiling Waters... Suffering at the Fish Farms [On Site]" published on August 2, this outlet reported concerns that unlike the livestock industry, which has comprehensive national compensation systems, the fisheries sector lacks proper government support in the event of natural disasters such as high water temperatures, and that the only remedy—disaster insurance—has structural flaws, including the exclusion of policyholders from emergency disaster relief, which amounts to reverse discrimination.

In response, a representative from the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries stated, "National support for natural disaster damage in both the livestock and fisheries industries is provided in the same manner under the same legal framework. In fisheries, support systems include comprehensive disaster countermeasures for high water temperature, the distribution of response equipment, culling support during epidemics, and unlimited insurance payouts distinct from disaster relief funds."

The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries further pointed out, "Compensation for deaths caused by natural disasters such as high water temperatures and compensation for culling during livestock disease outbreaks are separate systems, based on different legal grounds and with different natures, and thus cannot be directly compared."

This report was made in accordance with the arbitration of the Press Arbitration Commission.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.