Waters around Korea are becoming warmer and warmer.... and not only is the rising sea temperatures affecting the local fishing sector.... its also likely to bring about more heatwaves to Korea in the near future.
Seo Eun-kyung reports.
The seas surrounding the Korean Peninsula are getting warmer.
According to a report from the Korean Meteorological Administration released Thursday, the average temperature in July stood at 21-point-36 degrees Celsius in 2010, but was 24-point-25 degrees Celsius during the same month this year.
That's a rise of nearly 3 degrees Celsius.
The weather agency says the average water temperature in July in the West Sea, the Southern Sea, and the East Sea surrounding the Korean peninsula has jumped by an average of zero-point-34 degrees Celsius per year since 2010.
The weather agency anticipates that warmer seas around Korea could lead to a number of negative socio-economic effects, and also bring worse annual heat waves to the Korean Peninsula.
"There are number of reasons... first of course, the fish catch will drop due to the rising temperatures and fish farms will suffer from this result. This will lead to a massive shutdown of fish farms."
Prolonged heatwaves caused by climate change are one of the main reasons for the rising sea temperatures.
Another reason for the warmer sea temperature is that the Korean Peninsula has been directly hit by typhoons in recent years, which has prevented the cold water deep below the sea's surface from mixing with the warm surface water.
The meteorological agency says it will work with the South Korean government to try to minimize the impact of rising sea temperatures.
Seo Eun-kyung, Arirang News.
