International Journal of Marine Science, 2024, Vol.14, No.2, 74-82 http://www.aquapublisher.com/index.php/ijms 75 1 Socioeconomic Background of Fishery Resource Decline Behind the decline of global fishery resources is fishery dependence caused by population growth and economic development, overfishing caused by poor policies, and the impact of climate change caused by social vulnerability. In this socioeconomic background, fishermen's livelihoods are threatened, community vulnerability is intensified, and economic pressure triggers overfishing, forming a vicious cycle of unsustainable fishery resources (Froese et al., 2023). 1.1 Definition and impact of fishery resource decline The decline of fishery resources is a serious threat to the global marine ecosystem and human socioeconomics. The definition of this phenomenon is that due to the combined effect of multiple factors, including but not limited to overfishing, environmental pollution, and climate change, the number of fish, shellfish and other fishery resources in the ocean has decreased sharply (Rashid et al., 2023). This phenomenon not only has a lasting and far-reaching impact on the balance of the ecosystem, but also directly threatens the sustainable development of global fisheries and the economic prosperity of human society. Overfishing is one of the main causes of fishery resource decline. Globally, fisheries are overly intensive and exceed the natural ability of fish to reproduce and grow. The unsustainability of this fishing has led to the decline of some key fishery resource populations, even pushing them to the brink of extinction. At the same time, unreasonable fishing methods have also exacerbated the excessive loss of resources, forming a vicious cycle. Environmental pollution is another important factor leading to the decline of fishery resources. Water pollution caused by industrial emissions, agricultural pollution, and coastal development directly threatens the living environment of fishery resources. This kind of pollution not only destroys the habitat and causes many fishery resources to lose their breeding and growth places, but also causes them to be polluted by various harmful substances, which has a negative impact on the quality of fishery resources. Climate change is an emerging factor affecting fishery resources in recent years. Global climate warming has led to rising ocean temperatures and intensified acidification, which have had a profound impact on fish migration (Figure 1), breeding seasons and habitat selection. This has caused many traditional fishing areas to face changes in resource migration and distribution, bringing huge uncertainty to fishing activities. Figure 1 Large numbers of fish migrating in the ocean The decline of fishery resources has had a profound impact on human society and economy in many aspects. The economic losses are obvious, because fisheries are an important economic pillar for many countries and regions, and the depletion of resources has led to a sharp decline in catches, which in turn threatens the steady development of related industrial chains. Threats to fishermen’s livelihoods further exacerbate the problem, as fishing is the main source of livelihood for many communities and the depletion of the resource directly affects the lives and employment of millions of fishermen. At the same time, the decline of fishery resources has also
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