Recently, a large number of dead fish appeared in Suzhou Creek in Shanghai due to the blind release of citizens, and even 1 ton of dead fish was fished out in one day, which attracted public attention. The lack of scientific evidence not only leads to the death of animals and pollutes the environment, but also may cause the invasion of alien species and endanger the ecological environment. Why is blind release intensifying? How to solve the problem of "killing" when releasing life?
A large number of animals are now released in disorder in Suzhou Creek in Shanghai
Up to 1 ton of dead fish is fished out in 1 day
After the 42-kilometer shoreline of Suzhou Creek in Shanghai is completed, the water surface is clean and the shoreline is beautiful, attracting many citizens to come to release the animals on a specific day, and some people even said: "If you want to put it, you can release it here." ”
Image source: Shanghai Environment (taken by netizens on August 10, 2024)
According to the operator, with the release of more and more people, the difficulty of fishing is increasing year by year, and this year also set a "new record" of 1 ton of dead fish in one day. By the end of the year, the salvage weight is expected to exceed last year's 7.9 tonnes.
The reporter learned that a number of departments in Shanghai jointly issued a document last year to regulate the release of animals in public waters, but with little effect.
Recently, a video of "a woman releasing cockroaches in the community" has also gone viral on the Internet. In the video, a woman put cockroaches in the flower bed of the community, and was filmed and questioned by the owner of the community. The woman asked, "Why are you shooting?" ”
Image source: online media platform
According to the response of the staff of the street office of the community involved, after the release of cockroaches, the property company carried out a comprehensive sanitization in the surrounding area.
Although the original intention of the release is good, if there is a lack of scientific basis and reasonable planning, it may bring unexpected consequences. The reporter combed through and found that similar behaviors of "folk release" occur from time to time. Hundreds of snakes have been released in parks, and exotic species such as Brazil tortoises have even been released in freshwater lakes.
The release of a large number of alien species endangers ecological security
They were sentenced to pay 58,000 yuan in various types of damages
Last year, the country's first civil public interest lawsuit against the illegal release of alien species was concluded in Jiangsu. Xu bought 25,000 catties of catfish native to the Nile River system in Africa from Liu, and released them to Changdang Lake without authorization. Xu Junhua, deputy director of the management office of the Changdang Lake Aquatic Products Management Committee, said that the fishery administration supervision team lasted 10 days and salvaged a total of 20,208 catties of dead catfish.
In the end, the court held that the defendants Xu and Liu constituted joint infringement and should jointly and severally bear 35,000 yuan in compensation for ecological resource damages, 18,000 yuan in expert assessment fees and 5,000 yuan in punitive damages.
Chen Ying, the presiding judge of the case and president of the Nanjing Environmental Resources Court, said that after the case, the Nanjing Municipal People's Procuratorate believed that Xu violated national regulations by deliberately releasing a large number of alien species into Changdang Lake, seriously endangering the safety of the water ecosystem of Changdang Lake.
"According to the Biosecurity Law, anyone who releases or discards alien species without approval shall be ordered by the relevant government departments to arrest them within a time limit and impose a fine of not less than 10,000 yuan but not more than 50,000 yuan. In addition, the waters of Changdang Lake belong to the Yangtze River Basin, and the Yangtze River Protection Law clearly prohibits the cultivation and release of alien species or other non-native species in the open waters of the Yangtze River Basin. ”
Chen Ying said that the leatherbearded catfish, also known as the African catfish, is an invasive alien species and is carnivorous. This fish has basically no natural enemies in the waters of Changdang Lake, which will form a competitive relationship with native fish, seriously impact the survival of native fish, and thus affect biosecurity.
During the trial, Xu repeatedly expressed remorse for the illegal release: "I don't know what an alien creature is, what a native creature is, and the laws and regulations ......." ”
Chen Ying believes that this case has a certain exemplary warning effect, reminding the public to have biosecurity awareness and legal awareness. If it involves the release of invasive species, it constitutes a criminal offence.
Disorderly release or destruction of ecosystems
Experts: Strengthen the standardized management of animal release
Relevant state departments and some localities have paid attention to the harm of unauthorized release, and have issued documents and related measures. In 2023, the No. 1 document of the central government proposes to crack down on the illegal introduction of alien species, implement the prevention and control of major harmful invasive species, and strengthen the standardized management of the trade and release of "exotic pets".
The Guangzhou Municipal Regulations on the Management of Wildlife Release, the first local regulation in China that specifically regulates the release of wild animals, came into force on November 1 last year, which clearly states that it is necessary to delineate areas for the release of wild animals, establish a management platform for wildlife release information, and establish a daily supervision mechanism for the release of wild animals.
Gong Shiping, a professor at Jinan University's School of Life Science and Technology, believes that the release of large numbers of animals may cause environmental overload and cause damage to ecosystems.
"If 10,000 fish are released in a place that can only hold 1,000 fish, the excess fish will deplete local resources, lead to the death of native fish, and destroy the balance of the ecological environment. In addition, disorderly release may also destroy the genetic resources of local species through hybridization, causing far-reaching negative impacts. ”
According to Gong Shiping, the management measures formulated by Guangzhou have relatively clear operability. Due to the large number of aquatic animals released by the private sector, the limited manpower of the agricultural sector makes it difficult to fully manage the release business, and the mandatory force is relatively weak, so the main focus is on guidance. Groups that require the release of animals need to go to the government department for the record, and release the species within the specified range at the designated location, which has a certain effect. Law enforcement capacity and resources need to be further strengthened in the future.
Mao Kangshan, a professor at Sichuan University's School of Life Sciences, believes that people's release behavior has problems such as strong arbitrariness and difficult supervision, and needs to be managed in a multi-pronged manner. He suggested that a special department should be set up to standardize and manage the approval of release activities, manage species, and be responsible for the implementation at the grassroots level.
"Disorderly releases, which can seriously harm ecosystems, especially those like the release of cockroaches and invasive alien species, are strictly prohibited. It is suggested that a blacklist could be established indicating the species that are prohibited for release, or a white list of species that are allowed to be released. ”