Depleted fisheries and pollution have left Wu Ruiwei and his peers from Qiaogang Town in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region with fewer fish and shrimp in their usual fishing spots.
"When I was a child, our boat could be filled immediately with fish in one net near the port. But now only small fish can be found," fisherman Fan Chengjin told Xinhua ahead of the annual World Oceans Day, observed on June 8.
Wu Ruiwei said he shares Fan's worries. He was able to earn at least 300,000 yuan (about 48,400 U.S. dollars) annually five years ago. "Without the country's diesel subsidies to fishermen, I would be losing money now."
There are more than 10,000 fishermen in Qiaogang Town, accounting for over 60 percent of the total population.
In order to survive, some of them have had to fish farther from shore, while others have left the industry.
In addition to depletion of fisheries, Wu said excessive coastal development and pollution have caused degradation of China's marine environment.
South China's Hainan Province, an island the size of Belgium, has earned a reputation as the perfect holiday destination, leading to a local economic boom. However, swarms of tourists and overdevelopment of coastlines have posed a serious risk to local marine ecology.
Researchers say more than 90 percent of the island's east coast has been used for real estate development.
Wang Ying, a marine geologist with the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said at a forum Sunday that mass construction of tourist facilities, such as hotels and scenic spots along the coast, will lead to increased shoreline erosion.
A total of 4,200 meters of beach in the bays and harbors east of Haikou City were eroded by sea water between 2009 and 2014, Wang said, adding that bedrock was also exposed due to erosion along the beach near hotel and villa developments west of the city.
Pollution is another serious problem in China's coastal areas.
Industrial and agricultural discharge, along with a jump in the amount of household garbage as the island urbanizes, are mostly to blame for the pollution.
"It is difficult to find pristine clear waters and white sandy beaches anymore in some seaside areas," a resident with the surname Luo from Hainan said.
