- Designated “No. 10 Jeonbuk Buan Gomso Sea Salt Farming and No. 11 Jeonnam Heuksan Skate Fishing”-

The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (MOF; Minister MOON, Seong-Hyeok) announced on September 10 (Friday) that it designated ‘Gomso Sea Salt Farming in Buan-gun, Jeollabuk-do’ and ‘Skate Fishing in Heuksan Island of Sinan-gun, Jeollanam-do’, as nationally important fisheries heritage system No. 10 and 11, respectively.

The Oceans and Fisheries Ministry has designated nationally important fisheries heritage from among the tangible and intangible fisheries resources formed over a long period of time by the fishing community and adapted to a region’s environment, society and customs, etc., that are worth conserving. Starting with the designation of Jeju Haenyeo Fisheries System, Boseong Tidal Flats Fisheries Heritage and Namhae Bamboo Weirs Fisheries System in 2015, a total of nine heritages has been designated to date.

The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries conducted the document evaluation (July) and on-site and final evaluation (September), etc., with an evaluation committee composed of advisory members on fishing heritage to designate the 10th and 11th nationally important fisheries heritage systems this year. As a result, ‘Gomso Sea Salt Farming in Buan-gun, Jeollabuk-do’ and ‘Heuksan Skate Fishing in Sinan-gun, Jeollanam-do’, which received high evaluations in the historical importance of traditional fishing, heritage value and culture, surrounding landscape and eco-friendliness and willingness of engagement by local residents, were selected as Nos. 10 and 11.

‘Gomso Sea Salt Farming’, designated as No. 10, is a traditional production method of the local fishing community that produces sea salt by evaporating seawater in an eco-friendly and natural way using sunlight and wind in the clean waters protected under Byeonsan Peninsula National Park, Wetland Protected Area and Ramsar Wetland.

Gomso Salt Farm, with its unique checkerboard-shaped landscape, is the only salt farm in Jeollabuk-do with more than 500,000 annual visitors, and the sun-dried salt from the farm is being supplied to nearby Gomso Village. Gomso salt farming has been continually developed by incorporating modern facilities such as ceramic tile flooring while preserving traditional methods such as a salt storage warehouse with a 70-year history.

Designated as nationally important fisheries heritage system No. 11, ‘Heuksan Skate Fishing in Sinan-gun, Jeollanam-do’ is an eco-friendly traditional method of fishing that does not use bait but installs Junak* along the areas where skate travel. Heuksan skate fishing is a heritage shared by the village, contributing to the formation of a community culture in which all residents participate, such as by preparing Junak, fishing, auctioning, attending skate slicing school and hosting the skate festival, etc.

* Junak: Fishing equipment designed to catch fish by attaching multiple hooks to a long fishing line and dropping it in the water

Skate is also recorded as a precious ingredient presented to the king according to the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, and in particular, skate caught near Heuksan Island is a historical ingredient recorded in Jasan Eobo (Korean Atlas of Fish)by Jeong Yak-jeon and Pyohae-simal (Adrift at Sea: An Account) by Mun Sun-deuk, a 19th-century skate fisherman. Skate has been considered a representative feast food of the Jeolla-do region since ancient times. Heuksan Island is truly the home of skate, as skate from Heuksan Island accounts for 80-90% of the total skate catch in Korea.

The central and local governments will support the budget necessary for the restoration and succession of the heritage system for the next three years in order to preserve nationally important fisheries heritage systems No. 10 and 11. Through this, it is expected to contribute to the revitalization of the local economy by not only preserving the traditional fishing culture, but also increasing the income of fishing communities, attracting tourists to fishing villages and enhancing the value of local brands.

Choi Hyun-ho, Fishing Village Aquaculture Policy Officer of the Ministry, said, “We will continue to actively discover tangible and intangible heritage related to local traditional fisheries to preserve the endangered traditional fisheries, while also actively promoting the World Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) registration as a World Important Agricultural Heritage. We will do our best to help revitalize the fishing villages.”