BEIJING, May 1 (Xinhua) -- An annual summer fishing ban began on Saturday in China's major seas in the north, east, and south to preserve the marine fishery.

The fishing ban covers the Bohai Sea, the Yellow Sea, the East China Sea, and the waters north of 12 degrees north latitude in the South China Sea.

The moratorium in the South China Sea lasts until Aug. 16. During the ban period, safety inspections on fishing gear and a clean-up of illegal fishing vessels will be carried out in Hainan Province. China first imposed the annual fishing ban in the South China Sea in 1999.

More than 50,000 fishing boats in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and the provinces of Guangdong and Hainan suspend operations during the fishing moratorium.

On Friday, a joint special law enforcement action by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, the Ministry of Public Security, and the China Coast Guard was launched in Ningbo, east China's Zhejiang Province, to prevent illegal marine fishery activities during the fishing ban.

Cooperation among departments and regions will improve. The law enforcement authorities said they would target major violation cases and severely clamp down on organized marine fishery crimes to promote marine ecological progress and realize high-quality fishery development.

In Qinzhou City, Guangxi, fishery authorities said they would hold at least three patrols each day if weather permits to crack down on illegal fishing during the ban period.

The fishing ban lasts until Sept. 1 for the Yellow Sea and the Bohai Sea waters north of 35 degrees north latitude.

The summer marine fishing ban involves more than 100,000 fishing ships and nearly one million fishermen nationwide. Enditem

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