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9 The Role of Exotics in Chinese Inland Aquaculture183China is heavily populated. Local consumption of aquaculture produce tantamountto a huge market. The red swamp crayfish was one of the earliest exotic species inChina. But aquaculture of the crayfish did not receive attention, and in fact, was eventhought as a pest species, since there is perception that it might burrow into dams.However, when the dish “chilly crayfish” came to the table, most Chinese acceptedthe dish, which brought about a large scaled production of crayfish.9.6 Risk Assessment and ControlThough exotic species in aquaculture in China bring about vast economic returnsand provide huge employment opportunities, its risk to local fish diversity andecosystem is a major concern (Ding 2007 ; Hu et al. 2006; Wang and Cao 2006 ; Buet al. 2008 ; Wang et al. 2002) .Admittedly, China has insufficient knowledge on systematic studies on exoticspecies. So far, there is no complete exotic species list, though 16 species wererecorded as invasive by the government. None of the 129 aquatic exotic speciesreported (Wang and Cao 2006) was included in these 16 invasive listed.Thus far, China has no specific laws or regulations for the management of exoticspecies, and no strict risk assessment mechanisms, comprehensive control mechanisms,and trace mechanism for exotic species.However, there are a lot of laws and regulations related to exotic species control,such as the Environmental Protection Law of the People’s Republic of China, theMarine Environment Protection Law of the People’s Republic of China, theAgriculture Law of the People’s Republic of China, Fisheries Law of the PeoplesRepublic of China, and the Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Entry andExit Animal and Plant Quarantine. For instance, the Environmental Protection Lawis related to the protection of environmental organisms, but not to exotic speciesinvasion and relevant control. In the Agriculture Law of the People’s Republic ofChina, introduction of exotic species should be examined, approved, and registered,and relevant safety measures need to be taken.9.7 Administration Institutions for Exotic SpeciesMany institutions are involved with the administration of exotic species, includingGeneral Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine ofChina, the Ministry of Environment Protection, Ministry of Agriculture, and StateForestry Bureau, but there is no united administration institution for exotic species.In the current context, it may be desirable to have one single authority dealing withexotic species and their impacts, and regulation of new introductions.In spite of the relative lack of stringent procedures in regard to species introductioninto China, in a manner China has been lucky in that none of the aquatic exotics