Fish cage operators encroach on Pangasinan fishing grounds, locals say

SUAL, PANGASINAN — Small-scale fishermen in this coastal municipality are escalating calls for authorities to remove hundreds of fish cages they say are encroaching on their traditional fishing grounds and threatening their livelihoods.

The cages, reportedly operated by Chinese companies, have blocked access to fishing areas that marginal fisherfolk have relied on for generations. The situation mirrors broader concerns among Philippine fishermen in the West Philippine Sea, where Pangasinan and Zambales-based fishing communities have reported losing access to traditional grounds amid increased foreign fishing operations in disputed waters.

Local fishermen argue the fish cage operations in Sual represent an extension of these larger maritime resource conflicts into provincial coastal areas. They contend that the structures obstruct navigation routes and deprive them of fishing spots critical to their survival. The fisherfolk have formally demanded that government agencies take action to remove what they characterize as illegal or unauthorized installations.

The dispute underscores mounting tensions between foreign commercial aquaculture operations and indigenous small-scale fishing communities across the Philippines' coastal regions. Authorities have not yet publicly responded to the removal demands or clarified the regulatory status of the fish cage operations in question.