Natural aquatic resources in the Dong Nai River branches and Tri An Lake are increasingly scarce and difficult to catch. However, many fishermen still persist in sticking to the river, living in raft villages to make a living.

“It is better to catch a small amount of shrimp and fish but sell them at a good price than to catch a lot but sell them at a low price, causing resource depletion and wear and tear on fishing gear” - fisherman Tam Nghia (raft village, Long Binh Tan ward, Bien Hoa city) explains why at the age of 67 he is still “floating” on the river.

Still clinging to rivers and lakes despite reduced fish and shrimp

The little dog on Mr. Tam Nghia's fish raft barked loudly when he saw us passing by. After scolding the dog not to make noise, Mr. Tam Nghia slowly told us that since he took the surface of the Long Binh Tan raft village as his home, the fish and shrimp he caught from the branches of the Dong Nai River were very difficult to weigh accurately. However, he himself could count, a few kilos a day, a few dozen kilos a day when he diligently cast 6-7 nets (each net was 20-40m long).

"Fish and shrimp in this river area are not as abundant as before, but the price is 3-4 times higher, so my family's life is still okay," Mr. Tam Nghia confided.

Long Binh Tan raft village used to have hundreds of fishermen, small and large boats crowded the wharf. Now there are not many fish and shrimps left and most of the villagers have changed their jobs, so the fishing wharf is deserted.

“The number of people doing this job is now less than 1/3 and they are mainly elderly people. However, as long as there are fish, shrimp, snails, mussels… on the river, we will still patiently stick with this job,” said Mr. Van Thanh (61 years old), a fisherman from Long Binh Tan raft village.

The fishing village in Ward 5, Buu Hoa Ward and the Hiep Hoa floating village, Hiep Hoa Ward (Bien Hoa City) have only a few dozen fishermen left. Because fishing is increasingly difficult, the fishermen have to rely on their children to survive, not just on their netting and fishing.

“Each time I cast my net and fish, I only catch a few fish to eat and sell, but I am happy because I have income and do not depend entirely on my children, so I have not given up my job yet,” said fisherman Chin Tinh (64 years old, Hiep Hoa ward).

According to Mr. Chin Tinh, fish and shrimp in Dong Nai river are now scarce and difficult to catch, but in return they can be sold at a good price; the fish caught are brought to the village and market to sell, and there are buyers, so it is enough to cover gasoline and daily expenses.

Coming along with the flow of overseas Vietnamese in Cambodia to return to their homeland in the 1990s, Mr. Lam Thach (residing in Truong An hamlet, Thanh Binh commune, Vinh Cuu district) chose Tri An lake (Dong Nai Nature and Culture Reserve) as his place to make a living. His family's small raft is also his home, so for decades his feet have been touching the planks of the boat and the raft more than the ground.

Mr. Lam Thach said that fish such as white-bream, snakehead fish, reed fish, elephant fish or green-legged shrimp are now harder to catch than before. In return, these types of fish and shrimp have now become specialties of Tri An Lake, so their prices are many times higher. Each fishing trip also earns him several hundred thousand dong. Thanks to that, he can still make a living from this profession.

Thoughts on the profession

Tri An Lake is over 32 thousand hectares wide, with 6 raft villages with about 600 rafts and more than 1 thousand fishermen. Specifically, the raft villages are: Quarter 1, Vinh An town and Hamlet 1, Hamlet 4, Ma Da commune (Vinh Cuu district); La Nga (La Nga commune), Phat Thanh Son (Thanh Son commune), Tri An Lake area (Dinh Quan district). Although fishing on the lake is controlled, shrimp and fish are regularly replenished, there are conservation areas, fishing is prohibited... but fishermen always complain that shrimp and fish are increasingly difficult to catch.

Fisherman Ut Cuong (residing in Ben Nom 2 hamlet, Phu Cuong commune, Dinh Quan district) said that the aquatic resources of Tri An lake in recent years are not as abundant as they were a decade ago. However, it still ensures a living for fishermen who persevere in their profession, combining fishing with farming. Therefore, Mr. Ut Cuong firmly declared that as long as Tri An lake still has water to generate electricity, there will still be people fishing because there will still be fish and shrimp.

Freshwater anchovies caught by fishermen in La Nga raft village (La Nga commune, Dinh Quan district, Dong Nai province) are brought to the market for sale.

All night long, he strained his eyes to steer the boat to chase the fish. By morning, exhausted, Mr. Ba Lanh (residing in La Nga commune, Dinh Quan district, Dong Nai province) struggled to get ashore with several baskets of iced anchovies.

Last night, Mr. Ba Lanh caught over 30 kilos of anchovies. The fish cost 25,000 VND/kg, so he pocketed 750,000 VND.

Although the money Mr. Ba Lanh brought home for his wife from selling fish today was 300-500 thousand dong less than other nights, he was still satisfied, because there was still a month left until the anchovy season, so there was no need to rush.

At 6am, Ben Nom fish market (Phu Cuong commune) had many boats and vehicles coming in to sell and buy shrimp and fish. At Mr. Pham Kien's small coffee shop (Ben Nom 2 hamlet, Phu Cuong commune), fishermen came in and sat around chatting about their jobs and lives.

What the fishermen are most upset about is not that they caught less shrimp or fish last night or that prices have dropped with each market session, but rather that the "unscrupulous" fishing methods of a small number of fishermen, such as using electric shock, nets, folding cages (wire traps, eight-sided traps, cob nets, traps)... have caused a bad reputation for fishermen who follow fishing regulations in Tri An Reservoir.

“As long as there is water in rivers and lakes, there will still be shrimp and fish. But whether there are many or few fish depends on the determination of the competent authorities in eliminating destructive fishing methods using banned fishing gear, not knowing how to save shrimp and fish for the future,” said Mr. Tu Hai (57 years old, living in Suoi Tuong raft village, Ma Da commune, Vinh Cuu district).