The government will expand the fishing area near Yeonpyeong Island by 14 square kilometers beginning Saturday to assist the livelihoods of South Korean fishermen in the region increasingly afflicted by illegal Chinese fishing.

The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries said Friday that under the measure, the fishing zone near Yeonpyeong that is currently 801 square kilometers will be expanded to 815 square kilometers.

The daily fishing time in nearby areas will also be extended by 90 minutes during the blue crab fishing seasons, which span four months—once between April and May and once between October and November.

The government has regulated the size of the fishing zone and operating hours near Yeonpyeong for security reasons because it is close to the maritime border with North Korea.

Fishermen near Yeonpyeong had long produced more than one-thousand tons of blue crabs every year, making up seven percent of the total annual blue crab produce from South Korea. However, production has dwindled sharply in recent years after Chinese fishing vessels trespassed the Northern Limit Line, which is the de-facto maritime border with the North.