FISHERY BULLETIN: VOL. 70, NO. 2 



It is important to know how the Japanese gov- 

 ernment encouraged the license holders of the 

 trawl fisheries to move into distant waters. A 

 policy for the otter-trawl fishery was established 

 as early as 1950; those wishing to use otter 

 trawlers currently licensed for fishing in the 

 China Seas, or those proposing to abolish licen- 

 ses for China Sea fishing in return for trawling 

 in distant waters, were given priorities. A new 

 policy on the replacement of distant-water trawl 

 licenses (issued in 1967) is summarized in Table 

 2 as an interesting example of license conversion. 



Coastal traivl fishery. — The trawl fisheries in 

 coastal and inshore waters fall in two categories 

 in the fishery administration of Japan: (1) in- 

 shore fisheries conducted by various primitive 



types of draggers of less than 15 gross tons each 

 and (2) those by Danish seiners of over 15 gross 

 tons and pair trawlers, pair trawlers being much 

 less important except in the western part of 

 Japan. What was referred to as the coastal 

 trawl fishery in this section is the latter.' By 

 the time the authority to license the coastal trawl 

 fishery in waters east of long 130 °E was again 

 transferred to the central government, Japan 

 was left with some 2,500 vessels plus a sub- 

 stantial number of illegal boats, and the number 

 further increased to a maximum of over 2,800 

 in 1951, when a new plan for reducing them was 

 instituted. 



' The Japanese word for this category literally means 

 "offshore powered trawl fishery." 



Table 2. — Requirements for replacing a distant-water trawl vessel (in the North Pacific 

 waters, including the Bering Sea, east of long 170°E, the Atlantic waters south of lat 

 40°N, and other distant areas) with a larger vessel. 



Gross tonnage of 

 existing license 



less than 550 

 550-1,000 

 over 1,000 



less than 550 



less than 550 



550-1,000 



Gross tonnage of 

 new license 



Licenses to be abolished 



up to 550 

 up to 1,000 

 over 1,000 

 less than 1,000 



over 1,000 



over 1,000 



Source: Fishery Aoency of Japan (1970). 



None 

 None 

 None 



(a) One or more distant-water trawlers, or 



(b) One or more Danish seiners (or pair trawlers) east of long 130°E 

 with minimum aggregate tonnage of 50 RGT; or 



(c) One or more pair trawlers west of long 130°E; or 



(d) One or more large or medium purse seiners with minimum ag- 

 gregate tonnage of 100 RGT; or 



(e) One or more distant-water tuna longllners with nninlmum aggre- 

 gate tonnage of 300 RGT; or 



(f) One tuna mothership with three or more deck-loaded catchers. 



(a) Same as above; or 



(b) Two or more Danish seiners (or pair trawlers) east of long 130°E 

 with minimum oggregate tonnage of 100 RGT; or 



(c) Same as above; or 



(d) Two or more large or medium purse seiners with minimum aggre- 

 gate tonnage of 150 RGT; or 



(e) One or more distant-water tuna longliners with minimum aggre- 

 gate tonnage of 6(X) RGT; or 



(f) One tuna mothership with three or more deck-loaded catchers. 



(a) Soma as above; or 



(b) One or more Danish seiners (or pair trawlers) east of long 130° E 

 with minimum aggregate tonnage of 50 RGT; or 



(c) Same as above; or 



(d) One or more large or medium purse seiners with minimum aggre- 

 gate tonnage of 50 RGT; or 



(e) One or more distant-water tuna longliners with minimum aggre- 

 gate tonnage of 300 RGT; or 



(f) One tuna mothership with one or more deck-loaded catchers. 



232 



