# Yangtze River experiences major recovery after 2021 fishing ban — retained record

> Retained news record from news:semafor.

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source: [news](https://highsignal.app/data/news) (news:semafor)  published 2026-07-28 13:18 ingested 2026-07-29 08:29

[original source ↗](https://www.semafor.com/article/07/28/2026/yangtze-river-experiences-major-recovery-following-a-fishing-ban-in-2021)

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A fishing ban on China’s Yangtze River has led to a remarkable recovery of biomass in the waterway. The 6,300-kilometer (3,900-mile) river, Asia’s longest, had for decades been an environmental disaster: It was a depository of industrial waste, sewage and rubbish, while unsustainable levels of fishing had caused the extinction of some iconic species, like the near-blind baiji dolphin.
However, a 2021 protection campaign has led to a remarkable turnaround, with the total weight of fish in the river tripling in the last few years after decades of decline. The recovery will allow China — the world’s biggest polluter by CO₂ emissions — “to cast itself as a champion of biodiversity,” The Economist reported.
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