In this study, the risk factors of coastal purse seine fisherman were analyzed through a survey of fishery workers of coastal purse seine fishery and the accident compensation insurance data of the fisheries workers of the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives (NFFC). The classified fishing operation accident data was analyzed through 4M (Man, Machine, Media, Management) model of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the accident prevention measures were presented using Harvey's 3E (Engineering, Education, Enforcement) model. The rate of accidents on coastal purse seinens each year was 75.8‰, 36.7‰ and 74.8‰ from 2015 to 2017. The accident frequency resulting from slipping was the highest, and the risk of a contact with gear was low. When comparing each insurance data, the average value of the contact with gear accident was the highest. This research result is expected to be important data in identifying and preventing safety hazards of coastal purse seiner fisherman in the future.

This study aimed to analyze the economic feasibility of the reduction of working safety accidents in stow net fishery through the prevention education to fishing crews. The benefit was evaluated by estimating insurance payment amount that was reduced through prevention education. The decreasing rate of working safety accidents was presumed to follow the experience in Japan. The cost was assumed as the cost of textbook development. Results indicated that IRR was estimated to be 79.9% in case of scenario assuming no additional operating costs while IRR was 56.3% in case of scenario assuming 10% additional operating costs. In addition, the economic feasibility would be secured when annual operating costs increased to 274 million won according to the result of sensitivity analysis.

According to the statistics of KMST (2010~2019), 68.5% of marine casualties have been occurred in fishing boats in the last 10 years. Although the incidence rate of annual average per ship is 10.4% for merchant ships and 2.3% for fishing boats, it is necessary to first reduce the marine casualties of fishing boats in order to reduce the occurrence of the whole marine casualty, considering that the number of registered fishing boats are 86.5% of the total. In this study, the top 10 fishing types with high occurring marine casualties in the past 10 years were selected using the statistics of KMST. Then, the causes of the marine casualties, focusing on the collision, were analyzed and counterplan were suggested. The biggest marine casualty that the top 10 fishing types have caused in the past 10 years was a collision, accounting for 71.7% of the total, and the rest were less than 10.0% each. Also, it was found that the biggest environment and cause of the collision were due to human factors such as poor look out or negligence of duty. Eventually, it was concluded that a reduction in the human factors for the causes basically, could lower the incidence of the marine casualties. Therefore, if the continuous and systematic correcting education of the attitude toward the ship operating of seafarers could conducted with the focus on the main human factors, the whole marine casualties will be expected to decrease gradually.

The adjudication of Korean Maritime Safety Tribunal (KMST) was analyzed to collect basic data to identify the cause of the risk that did not appear in the current data provided by the fishermen’s occupational accidents of the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperative (NFFC) in stow net fishing vessel from 2015 to 2019. The personnel’s carelessness was the most common in 29 out of 33 accidents (87.9%), followed by 25 cases (75.8%) of inadequacy of instructions, 24 cases (72.7%) of inadequacy of education on hazard factor, 20 cases (60.6%) of no personal protection equipment, 18 cases (54.5%) of poor guard, 17 cases (51.5%) of inadequacy of work method, 16 cases (48.5%) of absence of emergency stop button, 14 cases (42.4%) of work practice of poor safety precautions that affected more than 40% of all accidents as accident causes. These causes had a strong influence on each other, and the ratio of accident causes is high. With this relationship, accidents can be prevented or the severity of human injury can be reduced if types of accident process can be estimated with a scenario, and the key points before the accident in the scenario are switched to safe points.

The questionnaire survey was carried out to collect basic data to identify the cause of the risk that did not appear in the current data provided by the fishermen’s occupational accidents of the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperative (NFFC) to the onsite specialist, such as a fishing master, chief engineer and fisher in stow net fishing vessel from June to July 2018. The results are as follows. A total of 134 cases were surveyed, including 53 cases in Yeosu, 44 cases in Mokpo, 30 cases in Boryeong and 7 cases in Gunsan. Approximately 60% of the respondents on board the stow net fishing vessel were more than 20 years old, and the boarding experience was seasoned and suitable for the respondents. In the 4M analysis by safety accident factor during fishing work, the mechanical factors included 51 cases (25.0%) of decrepit equipment or poor maintenance and 49 cases (24.0%) of systemic error of fishing equipment. The environmental factors exhibited 71 cases (33.5%) of poor communication by mixed manning of foreign fishermen and 63 cases (29.7%) of poor environment such as heavy weather etc. The human factors showed 78 cases (37.3%) of personnel’s carelessness and 45 cases (21.5%) of unskillfulness of operating net and haulers. The management factors exhibited 59 cases (32.1%) of work practice of poor safety precautions and 56 cases (30.4%) of inadequacy of education on hazard factor. The results are expected to contribute to the creation of a safe operating environment for stow net fishery, such as a fisher boarding a stow net fishing vessel, enabling the analysis of major causes of working safety accidents by cause.

Stow net fishery is one of the fishery with high fishing work accidents in southwestern sea of Korea. We conducted to serve as basic data for improving the healthy and safe working environment of fisher using risk assessment process (ISO45001) with fishermen’s occupational accidents of the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperative (NFFC) from 2016 to 2018. The average occurrence rate of victim in this fishery was 9.04%, 16.7 times more than such rate in all industries. In addition, the average fatality rate was found to have a very serious level management to 31.06‱, 27.7 times more than such rate in all industries. The safety hazards of stow net fishery was more likely to occur by other general industrial groups, with more severe consequences after the accident. According to 4M analysis, 58.6% of all accidents were caused by human factors, 24.0% by environmental factors, 16.0% by mechanical factors, and 1.5% by managerial factors, respectively. The occurrence frequency by accident type was the highest in 187 cases (32.2%) for struck by object, 158 cases (27.2%) for slipping, and 94 cases (16.2%) for being in contact with machinery. Severity is the highest for others such as diseases etc., in the order of being struck by object, being in contact with machinery, falling from above slipping, collapsing, bumping, and burning. Being struck by object, being in contact with machinery, and slipping are high-risk groups, falling from above others, bumping, and burning are medium-risk groups based on the risk assessment using the occurrence frequency and severity of accident. The obtained results are expected to contribute to the safe operation environment subsidy for fishing crews on the stow net fishing vessel.

The change of fishing power index was analyzed to identify the development of the vessel and gear technology that may improve the fishing efficiency of the offshore conger eel pot fishery from 1980s to 2015. Gross tonnage per fishing vessel was rapidly increased annually. The standard of pot was maintained, but the number of pot used rapidly increased by using conger eel pot hauling devices, carrying and loading devices, main line hauler, casting devices and slide type pot. Fish finder system to identify fishing ground information and the conger eel pot hauling devices were modernized, and supply rate was also increased. Therefore, the relative fishing power index in the offshore conger eel pot fishery increased from 1.0 in 1980 to 1.3 in 1990, to 1.8 in 2000 and to 2.0 in 2015. The results are expected to contribute to reasonable fisheries stock management of the offshore conger eel pot fishery.

Thousands of pelagic and demersal fishes inhabit the waters around Korea and many of them are overexploited. One of the reasons is technological development, which increases the efficiency of the vessels continuously. The analysis was conducted to identify the change of fishing power index to develop the vessel and gear technology that may have improved the fishing efficiency of the otter trawl fishery from 1960s to 2010s. Gross tonnage was decreased stably, but horse power was increased annually. The perimeter of net mouth was somewhat longer, but little changed. Color fish finder was utilized from the mid-1960s. Hydraulic net drum were introduced in the early 1990s, and supply rate was gradually increased. Surveys on the supply and upgrading of fishing equipment utilized visiting research. Therefore, the relative fishing power index in the trawl fishery increased about two to three times in the 2010s compared to the 1980s. The results are expected to contribute to reasonable fisheries stock management.

Thousands of demersal fishes inhabit in the waters around Korea and most of them are overexploited. One of reasons is technological development, which increases the efficiency of the vessels continuously. The analysis was conducted to identify the change of fishing power index to develop the vessel and gear technology that may have improved the fishing efficiency of the Danish seine fishery from 1960s to 2010s. Gross tonnage was decreased stably, but the horse power was increased annually. The length of ground rope, warp and hand rope was somewhat longer, but changed a little. Color fish finder was utilized from the mid-1960s and positioning system was used five years later. A hydraulic line hauler were introduced in the mid-1980s, and supply rate was gradually increased. Surveys on the supply and upgrading of fishing equipment utilized visiting researchers. Therefore, the relative fishing power index in the Danish seine fishery increased stably from 1.0 in 1970 to 1.0 in 1980, to 1.2 in 1990, to 1.3 in 2000 and to 1.3 in 2010. The results are expected to contribute to reasonable fisheries stock management.

The small yellow croaker (Larimichthys polyactis) is one of the representative high-class fish species in Korea. The catch of small yellow croaker in adjacent water fisheries has been continuously decreasing from 59,226 tons in 2011 to 19,271 tons in 2016. The small yellow croaker is caught by gillnet, stow net and bottom trawl, among which about 55~65% is caught by gillnet. For the sustainable use of small yellow croaker, the fishing power of small yellow croaker drift gillnet is very important. Therefore, the change of fishing power index were analyzed to identify the development of the vessel and gear technology that may have improved the fishing efficiency of the small yellow croaker drift gillnet fishery from 1960s to 2010s. Gross tonnage and horse power per fishing vessel was increased annually. The mesh size was 75.0 mm in the 1960s, but reduced to 60.6 mm in the 1980s and to 51.0 mm in the 2000s. In the 1960s, it was hauled out by manpower. However, the net hauler were modernized and supply rate was also increased since 1970. Due to the mechanization of the net hauler, the number (length) of used net gradually increased from 1.5 km in the 1960s to 7.5 km in the mid-1980s and to 15 km in 2010. Colour fish finders and positioning system were introduced and utilized from the mid-1980s. Surveys on the supply and upgrading of fishing equipment utilized visiting research. Therefore, the relative fishing power index in the small yellow croaker drift gillnet fishery increased from 1.0 in 1980 to 0.8 in 1970, to 1.1 in 1990, to 1.6 in 2000 and to 1.9 in 2010. The results are expected to contribute to reasonable fisheries stock management of the small yellow croaker drift gillnet fishery.

The coastal composite fishery has the highest rate of around 30.0% in registered fishing vessels of Korea for the last three years. The risk analysis for the fisher’s safety of coastal composite fishing vessels was conducted to serve as a basic data for improving the healthy and safe working environment of fisher using fisher’s occupational accidents of the national federation of fisheries cooperatives (NFFC) from 2016 to 2018 (n = 1,105). As a result, the occupational accident occurrence rate of coastal composite fishery was 3.76% in all industries, 7.8 times the rate of that. In addition, death and missing rate was found to have a serious level management to 10.10‱. Among the accidents, 76.0% occurred at sea. The slipping, others and contact with machinery or fishing gear occurred more frequently in order in the frequency of accident occurrence pattern. In the risk assessment using frequency and severity, slipping, contact with machinery and others showed high risk during fishing. The results are expected to contribute to identification and assessment of safety hazard occurred in coastal composite fishing vessels.

The International Labor Organization (ILO) selected fishing as the most dangerous group of jobs in the world, and it is well known in Korea as a 4D industry. Offshore large purse seine accounts for the largest portion of the fishing industry in the coastal region with high death rate and the accident rate. The repeated disaster rate survey by the Korea Maritime Institute (KMI) shows offshore large purse seiner is the highest at 22.3 percent and coastal gill nets and offshore stow net are following at 12.4 percent and 11.9 percent in order. Therefore, risk factors occurring in offshore large purse seiners were analyzed based on data from the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives (NFFC) for three years from 2015 to 2017 and 4M (Man, Machine, Media, Management) 3E (Engineering, Education, Enforcement) techniques were used to provide a safe fishing environment. The number of accidents on offshore large purse seiners each year was more than 150, and the number of accidents on every fishing boats was as high as 17 percent in 2015. If the accident rate and the risk level were divided by insurance, the accident resulting from contact with machinery was the highest, and the risk of a contact with gear was low but frequently occurring. This was caused by collisions and contact with gear in situations where death and disappearance risk are not high, and accident types in situations where death and loss risk are considered to be contact with machinery, falls or other accidents. Through these analysis techniques, the frequency and risk of each type of accident on a offshore large purse seiners can be demonstrated, and it is expected to raise awareness of a safer fishing environment and contribute to the reduction of accidents.