Korea's aquaculture takes full blow of climate change

Korea's aquaculture is being battered by climate change in Tongyeong and other South Gyeongsang Province waters, where rising sea temperatures have killed millions of farmed fish. High water temperature alerts have lasted 57 straight days, while experts and officials say the industry needs structural change, not just compensation after losses. The article says fish farmers are facing steep deaths and losses, with nationwide damage already severe this year.

South Gyeongsang Province authorities said they received reports of 12,000 fish and 140 ropes of farmed sea squirts dying in a single day.

Preliminary figures from the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries showed 13.533 million farmed fish had died at 455 fish farms nationwide as of Sept. 4.

Over the past five years, high water temperatures have killed a total of 125.048 million farmed fish and caused losses of 205.56 billion won.

The average water temperature in the seas around the Korean Peninsula reached 28.56 degrees Celsius from Aug. 1-7, the highest recorded for that period since 2000.

Government disaster relief for fish farming is capped at 50 million won per household, and aquaculture disaster insurance enrollment remains at around 40 percent.

Published Sep 15, 2026 12:00 am KST

Soaring sea temperatures during record heat wave leave fish farms reeling from mounting losses

Workers haul dead farmed fish ashore near Dara Port in Sanyang-eup, Tongyeong, South Gyeongsang Province, Wednesday. Korea Times photo by Park Eun-kyung

I’ve been farming fish for 38 years, but with sea temperatures rising each year and losses snowballing like this, I don’t know how we’re going to hold on.

A putrid stench blanketed the area as about a dozen fishing boats docked one by one at Dara Port in Sanyang-eup, Tongyeong, South Gyeongsang Province.

Every deck was piled high with dead fish. Most were cold-water species, such as Korean rockfish and grey mullet, but there were also considerable numbers of warm-water fish, including filefish.

Groups of three or four men boarded the boats and shoveled the carcasses into an excavator bucket to be hauled ashore. Despite their nonstop work, it took more than half an hour to empty a single boat of dead fish.

“This is the sixth boatload of dead fish from our farm alone today. More than 30 percent of the fish at our one-hectare cage farm have died, and we’ve already lost more than 500 million won ($371,500),” said one fish farmer with resignation as he watched the carcasses being unloaded.

“I’ve been farming fish for 38 years, but with sea temperatures rising each year and losses snowballing like this, I don’t know how we’re going to hold on.”

A fish farmer inspects dead fish piled aboard a docked boat near Dara Port in Sanyang-eup, Tongyeong, South Gyeongsang Province, Wednesday. Korea Times photo by Park Eun-kyung

13.53 million fish dead due to rising sea temperatures

Soaring sea temperatures during this year’s record heat wave have left fish farms reeling from mounting losses. High water temperature alerts, first issued off South Gyeongsang Province’s southern coast on July 16 before expanding nationwide, have remained in effect for 57 consecutive days and have only recently been downgraded in some areas as air temperatures have begun to ease.

The damage has prompted calls for an urgent overhaul of aquaculture production, including developing varieties more resilient to temperature changes and adopting new farming methods.

South Gyeongsang provincial authorities said they received reports of 12,000 fish, including mullet and Korean rockfish, and 140 ropes of farmed sea squirts dying that day alone. Cumulative losses in the province now stand at 7.691 million fish and abalone, along with 2,729 ropes of sea squirts.

The nationwide toll is also severe. Preliminary figures from the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, provided to Rep. Moon Dae-lim of the Democratic Party of Korea, show that high water temperatures had killed 13.533 million farmed fish at 455 fish farms nationwide as of Sept. 4.

Over the past five years, including this year, high water temperatures have killed a total of 125.048 million farmed fish, causing losses of 205.56 billion won.

Boats loaded with dead farmed fish line up near Dara Port in Sanyang-eup, Tongyeong, South Gyeongsang Province, Wednesday. Korea Times photo by Park Eun-kyung

High water temperature alerts last twice as long as four years ago

High water temperatures are becoming an increasingly serious problem. The average water temperature in the seas around the Korean Peninsula reached 28.56 degrees Celsius from Aug. 1-7, the highest recorded temperature for that period since 2000.

High water temperature alerts are also lasting longer, stretching from 43 days in 2021 to 85 days last year.

“This year’s alerts began later than last year’s, but the time it took to escalate from preliminary alerts to advisories and warnings was actually shorter,” said Kim Hyung-chul, a climate change research officer at the National Institute of Fisheries Science. “As heat waves intensify, seawater temperatures seem to be rising at an increasingly rapid pace.”

Despite recurring and mounting losses, the response remains focused on compensation after the damage is done, and even that support is insufficient. Government disaster relief is capped at 50 million won per fish-farming household.

Aquaculture disaster insurance is another option, but enrollment remains at around 40 percent. Premiums run into tens of millions of won, and policies expire after one year with no refund of premiums if no claim is made.

An excavator operator transfers dead farmed fish ashore near Dara Port in Sanyang-eup, Tongyeong, South Gyeongsang Province, Wednesday. Korea Times photo by Park Eun-kyung

Calls to overhaul aquaculture production

Experts point to the need to restructure aquaculture production itself to adapt to climate change, instead of relying on compensation after losses occur. Proposed measures include digital breeding, which uses genetic data to select and breed fish that tolerate higher temperatures; vertical aquaculture, which makes use of cooler waters more than 30 meters below the surface; and a switch to subtropical species.

“Until now, aquaculture has focused on reliably producing particular species. But we now need to rethink which species to raise, and where and how, to adapt to changing conditions at sea,” said Jung Yoon-hwan, head of the Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology’s Tongyeong offshore testing station.

“With aging fishing communities and high up-front costs slowing change on the ground, the government and private sector need to invest more proactively to safeguard food security,” he said.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.

韩国庆尚南道统营市及其他海域的养殖业正遭受气候变化的重创，不断上升的海水温度已导致数百万养殖鱼类死亡。高温预警已连续发布57天，专家和官员表示，该行业需要的是结构性改革，而不仅仅是损失后的补偿。文章指出，养殖户正面临严重的死亡和损失，今年全国范围内的损失已十分惨重。

庆尚南道当局表示，他们接到报告称，一天之内有 12000 条鱼和 140 串养殖海鞘死亡。

海洋水产部初步数据显示，截至9月4日，全国455个养鱼场共有1353.3万条养殖鱼死亡。

过去五年，高温水温共导致1.25048亿条养殖鱼死亡，造成2055.6亿韩元的损失。

8月1日至7日，朝鲜半岛周围海域的平均水温达到28.56摄氏度，这是自2000年以来同期记录的最高水温。

政府对水产养殖户的灾害救济金上限为每户 5000 万韩元，水产养殖灾害保险的参保率仍然只有 40% 左右。

发布于2026年9月15日凌晨12:00（韩国标准时间）

创纪录的热浪导致海水温度飙升，养鱼场损失不断增加，处境艰难。

周三，在庆尚南道统营郡山阳邑达拉港附近，工人们将养殖死鱼拖上岸。（韩国时报 朴恩京摄）

我养鱼已经38年了，但是随着海水温度逐年上升，损失像滚雪球一样越滚越大，我不知道我们该如何坚持下去。

一股腐臭味笼罩着这片区域，大约十几艘渔船一艘接一艘地停靠在庆尚南道统营郡山阳邑的达拉港。

每个甲板上都堆满了死鱼。大部分是冷水鱼，例如韩国石斑鱼和灰鲻鱼，但也有相当数量的暖水鱼，包括丝鳍鱼。

三四个人一组登上船，用铲子把鱼尸铲进挖掘机铲斗里，然后拖到岸上。尽管他们不停地干活，清空一艘船上的死鱼也花了半个多小时。

“这已经是我们养殖场今天运来的第六船死鱼了。我们一公顷网箱养殖场的鱼死了30%以上，我们已经损失了超过5亿韩元（约合37.15万美元）。”一位养鱼户无奈地看着鱼尸被卸下。

“我养鱼已经38年了，但是随着海水温度逐年上升，损失像滚雪球一样越滚越大，我不知道我们还能坚持多久。”

周三，在庆尚南道统营郡山阳邑达拉港附近，一名养鱼户正在检查停泊在码头的一艘船上堆积的死鱼。（韩国时报 朴恩京摄）

由于海水温度上升，1353万条鱼死亡

今年破纪录的热浪导致海水温度飙升，养鱼场损失惨重。高温水温预警最初于7月16日在庆尚南道南部沿海地区发布，随后扩大至全国范围，已连续生效57天，直到最近随着气温开始回落，部分地区的预警级别才有所下调。

此次损害促使人们呼吁对水产养殖生产进行紧急改革，包括培育更能适应温度变化的品种和采用新的养殖方法。

庆尚南道当局表示，仅当天就接到报告称，有1.2万条鱼（包括鲻鱼和韩国石斑鱼）以及140串养殖海鞘死亡。目前，该省累计损失的鱼类和鲍鱼已达769.1万条，海鞘损失达2729串。

全国范围内的损失也十分惨重。韩国海洋水产部提供给韩国民主党议员文大林的初步数据显示，截至9月4日，高温水温已导致全国455个养鱼场的1353.3万条养殖鱼死亡。

过去五年（包括今年），高温水温共导致1.25048亿条养殖鱼死亡，造成2055.6亿韩元的损失。

周三，满载养殖死鱼的船只在庆尚南道统营郡山阳邑达拉港附近排成一列。韩国时报朴恩京摄

高水温警报持续时间是四年前的两倍。

水温过高正成为一个日益严重的问题。8月1日至7日，朝鲜半岛周边海域的平均水温达到28.56摄氏度，这是自2000年以来同期最高水温记录。

水温过高警报持续时间也更长，从 2021 年的 43 天延长到去年的 85 天。

“今年的预警发布时间比去年晚，但从初步预警升级到咨询和警告所需的时间实际上更短，”国立水产科学研究所气候变化研究员金亨哲（Kim Hyung-chul）表示。“随着热浪加剧，海水温度似乎正在以越来越快的速度上升。”

尽管损失不断增加，但政府的应对措施仍然侧重于灾后补偿，而且即使是这种补偿也远远不够。政府对每个养鱼户的救灾援助上限为5000万韩元。

水产养殖灾害保险是另一种选择，但参保率仍然只有40%左右。保费高达数千万韩元，保单有效期为一年，如果未提出索赔，保费不予退还。

周三，在庆尚南道统营郡山阳邑达拉港附近，一名挖掘机操作员正在将养殖死鱼运上岸。（韩国时报 朴恩京摄）

呼吁彻底改革水产养殖生产

专家指出，水产养殖生产本身需要进行结构性调整以适应气候变化，而不是在遭受损失后才寻求补偿。建议的措施包括：数字化育种，即利用遗传数据选择和培育耐高温鱼类；垂直养殖，即利用水面以下30米以上的冷水进行养殖；以及改养亚热带鱼类。

“迄今为止，水产养殖一直专注于稳定生产特定品种。但为了适应不断变化的海洋环境，我们现在需要重新思考养殖哪些品种，以及在哪里、如何养殖，”韩国海洋科学技术院统营近海试验站站长郑允焕表示。

他说：“由于渔业社区老龄化和前期成本高昂，导致实际情况的改变缓慢，政府和私营部门需要更加积极主动地进行投资，以保障粮食安全。”

本文来自《韩国日报》（《韩国时报》的姊妹报），由人工智能生成系统翻译，并由《韩国时报》编辑。