Fishing ban begins on Poyang Lake

The annual fishing ban on Poyang Lake, China’s largest freshwater lake, took effect on Tuesday. Scores of fishing boats were docked in the bay area near Nanchang’s Hongwei village. Any form of fishing is strictly banned from March 20 to June 20. Poyang Lake has rich water and fishing resources, but those have been degraded, both by natural causes and overfishing. Starting in 2002, the fishing ban has been put in place each spring. Authorities said they would patrol frequently to weed out any illegal activity.