China backed sea cucumber farms bring doom to fishing in North

Fishermen engaged in traditional fishing in Northern Sri Lanka lamented that their livelihood has been severely affected by the sea cucumber farms mushrooming in the region.

Sea cucumber farms backed by Chinese firms have been set up by enclosing shallow coastal areas with thick fences. This has prevented fisherfolk from venturing into their traditional and familiar sea fishing routes.

Manualpillai Thoms Dehol, a 56-year-old fisherman from Pasaiyoor in Jaffna, said he had to give up fishing last year because he no longer can venture into the familiar sea areas since the sea has been restricted by cucumber farms.

Today, he repairs fishing nets for a living instead of fishing.

Over 600 fishermen from the region have switched to sea cucumber farming in the coastal belt of Jaffna and Kilinochchi where a Chinese firm started a hatchery five years ago.

China’s joint venture Gui Lan hatchery in Jaffna’s coastal village of Ariyalai was started when many northern fishermen were finding it harder to catch large fish which is blamed on outlawed bottom trawling employed by Indian vessels.

Gui Lan Hatchery was China's first project in the North. Some legislators in the North, however, have raised concern over growing Chinese presence where India has historically had held more sway given in strong cultural and religious ties. 

Sri Lankan sea cucumbers are exported to countries like Singapore, China, Hong Kong, South Korea and Taiwan where they are highly prized and are being sold for hundreds of dollars per kilo, bringing the much-needed foreign exchange to Sri Lanka. In 2020, Sri Lanka exported about 326 tonnes of sea cucumbers worth Rs 1.5 billion and has become an important source of income for fishermen in the north, east, and north-western coastal region.

Sri Lanka has been earning millions in USDs by exporting sea cucumber but at a high cost. In recent months, not many fishermen are seen engaging in traditional fishing since the sea space is being usurped by cucumber farms.

As a result of the proliferation of sea cucumber farms, about 3,200 families of small-time fishermen face a bleak future.

According to fishermen, these cucumber farms extend from one acre to ten acres in size. Only about 4,000 sea cucumbers can be bred at a given time in a one acre of coastal waters which are given on lease by the Fisheries Ministry for entrepreneurs to set up cucumber farms.

In the Jaffna District alone, some 220 permits have been issued so far. In addition, more than a hundred applications are being reviewed. In Kilinochchi District, 270 permits have already been issued and another 100 applications are being processed.

According to the Fisheries Ministry’s 2021 progress report, around 5,000 acres of coastal land with high potential for sea cucumber farming have been identified in the shallow sea areas of Mannar, Jaffna, Kilinochchi and Kalpitiya.

In February this year, a fisherman from Gurunagar filed a petition to the Assistant Director of the Department of Fisheries, expressing his opposition to grant a lease permit to an individual to set up a farm in Ariyalai East where he has been engaged in fishing for the last 37 years.

“This is like evicting us from my home and settling someone from outside. How can the authorities simply declare a coastal region as suitable for sea cucumber framing without consulting us in the first place?” the fishermen asked.

A group of youths from the same Ariyalai East also staged a protest alleging that the allocated land including a bathing area would be barred to them  if permits were issued.

Meanwhile, President of the Pasaiyoor Fishermen Federation, P. Mathan said many rural fishermen federations were disturbed by the development and he had brought their concerns to the notice of Fisheries Minister Douglas Devananda.

Fisheries Minister Devanada said that sea cucumber farms would be a good economic boost for the fisherfolk to increase their livelihood. “More fishermen are willing to invest in this new aquaculture business and hundreds of fishermen have already submitted their proposals.”

Asked about the damage the sea cucumber farms had caused to the livelihood of the traditional fishermen, the minister said it had been mentioned in the permit itself that the permit could be annulled if the farm was found to be detrimental to the livelihood of local fishermen or causing any environmental damage.

Meanwhile,  A. M. Riyas Ahmed, researcher and senior lecturer attached to the South Eastern University of Sri Lanka raised concerns about the way sea cucumber farms are being set up.

He said the biggest fish breeding sites are located near the coastal lands due to the availability of sunlight and rich marine resources including seagrass and plants.

“Prawns and shrimps breed near coral reefs. Depending on the salinity of the waters, these organisms live near coastal areas or move towards the sea. Setting up sea cucumber farms in these areas poses a huge threat to the long-term sustainability of the region,”he said.