Bonanza for poachers?

[Bushcraft]

a senior political figure in the national government had visited KZN
some months ago and expressed “horror” that coastal communities were subjected to
minimum fish size and bag limits by Ezemvelo officers

"Horror"

These limits are the only reason anything is left

Hook and cook with no thought of tomorrow is typical of the "Africa mentality"

However

I have actively fished this KZN coastline for 35 years and frankly there’s been very little Ezemvelo management over the last 10 years anyway and I have personally seen massive corruption from some of their officers who turn a blind eye for a few rand. I’m not sure what qualifications one has to achieve to become a marine conservation officer but most of the officers I have met are fairly clueless anyway and many can’t even ID the fish they are looking at.

I can provide a list of many areas these “officers” could visit whenever the sea is fishable or when there’s a spring tide (rock rape crowd comes out then and poach thousands of mussels) and this is clearly known and understood by anyone who actually knows the coastline. I mean at any stage one can drive on the freeway between Elysium and Port Shepstone and purchase undersize shad/crayfish/etc from guys selling them on the freeway, whether it’s shad/crayfish season or not and this has been the case for 10 years.

The point is that it's already a Bonanza for poachers and has been for years

There's an issue with educating the bulk of the population in this country about the value of land based wildlife, but there's a far bigger task to save coastal waters and I fear it's a task that's already lost when clowns make statements about bag limits and fish size.

[Puff Addy]

Hook and cook, I like that!

[Richprins]

Ja...once again, not feeding starving families, but making profit, however small. Zero overheads, tax, license fees etc.

[Toko]

And there is a market for the illegal trade in marine species. Restaurants as well as private individuals buy fish or lobsters from local divers or on the roadside stands Not all the poached marine species are for illegal exports!

As with all kinds of poaching and wildlife crime, a lack of education on the consumer side is part of the problem, too

Small guesthouses offer lobster to tourists for dinner outside the season, offical tourist guides encourage their guests to buy fish from road side vendors and the list goes on

And that's the situation not only in KZN!

[Toko]

http://www.ehowzit.co.za/news/local/coa ... o-to-daff/

Coastwatch KZN deeply concerned about transfer of marine and coastal responsibility from Ezemvelo to DAFF
STATEMENT BY COASTWATCH KZN:

Coastwatch KZN actively promotes best practice in Integrated Coastal Management and is deeply concerned by the stated intention of Government to transfer responsibilities for marine and coastal issues from Ezemvelo KZN-Wildlife to the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries with effect from end June 2016.

Coastwatch’s particular concerns are for Monitoring and Compliance issues and in particular the roll-out of Marine Protected Areas.

We believe that the Monitoring and Compliance function exercised by Ezemvelo should be strengthened rather than transferred. Ezemvelo currently also has responsibility for monitoring vehicles on the beach. which includes all Boat Launch sites in KwaZulu-Natal. As part of their function they administer the collection and distribution of data from the Catch Registers completed by each fishing boat which launches.

Coastwatch is concerned at the potential loss of the knowledge base and experience of Honorary Officers, who have been acting in a voluntary capacity for decades on behalf of Ezemvelo. Their local knowledge, passion and years of experience they bring to their voluntary positions could be wasted, unless a plan is urgently put in place to ensure a smooth transition from Ezemvelo to Fisheries.

Coastwatch would like assurances that an approved protocol for the breaching of estuaries, which currently is administered by Ezemvelo, will be adhered to and enforced.

As part of Operation Phakisa, South Africa proposes to implement an overarching, integrated ocean governance framework aimed at balancing the economic opportunities of the ocean space while maintaining its environmental integrity.

Key outcomes include an enhanced and coordinated enforcement programme, a National ocean and coastal information system and national ocean and coastal water quality monitoring programme as well as the creation of a Marine Protected Area (MPA) representative network with accompanying research and monitoring programme.

To date Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife have played, and must continue to play, a crucial role in the roll-out of the MPA network as well as the development of the National Framework for Marine Spatial Planning in terms of their National Environmental Management: Protected Areas Act 2003 (Act 57 of 2003 conservation mandate.

The removal of the ‘marine compliance mandate’ from this long standing, scientifically rigorous, KZN based state agency will therefore be in direct conflict with the intent of the supposed ‘integrated’ ocean governance system – which includes a coordinated enforcement programme.

[Richprins]

And there is a market for the illegal trade in marine species. Restaurants as well as private individuals buy fish or lobsters from local divers or on the roadside stands Not all the poached marine species are for illegal exports!

As with all kinds of poaching and wildlife crime, a lack of education on the consumer side is part of the problem, too

Small guesthouses offer lobster to tourists for dinner outside the season, offical tourist guides encourage their guests to buy fish from road side vendors and the list goes on

And that's the situation not only in KZN!

Thanks, Toks, this is very important!


Regarding the takeover, Ezimvelo is obviously buggered, and good of Coastwatch to state the facts and request proper confirmation as an NGO!

[Toko]

Concern over marine management changes
While most are against the move to dump Ezemvelo as KZN’s coastal monitors, small-scale fishermen welcome the move
4 hours ago

THE recent announcement that the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) has decided to withdraw Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife‘s coastal management contract, has received much attention.

But how will it affect Zululand’s coastline?

For decades, Ezemvelo has managed KZN’s coastline, a crucial service in light of the steady increase in poaching, and the announcement to withdraw its contract, seemingly without a backup plan, has caused much concern in the conservation fraternity.

‘The implications are pretty serious. KZN probably has the best coastal monitoring system in the country and if this now goes over to fisheries, I fear we will lose that,’ said Judy Mann, Conservation Strategist for the SA Association for Marine and Biological Research.

Other skeptics, including the DA’s Anne McDonnell, KZN Spokesperson on Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs, are convinced the move is a political one ahead of the forthcoming local elections.

A senior official in national government allegedly visited KZN and expressed ‘horror’ at the fishing restrictions imposed on coastal communities.

Ezemvelo Spokesperson Musa Mntambo declined to comment, saying it is a DAFF issue.

iSimangaliso Wetland Park’s Commercial Director, Terri Castis, said, ‘iSimangaliso’s understanding, following discussions with the Department of Environmental Affairs, is that this action on the part of DAFF applies to areas outside of protected areas.

‘Ezemvelo will continue to do compliance in the iSimangaliso Wetland Park’.

Fishermen pleased

Meanwhile, small-scale fishers have, in recent years, been campaigning for such a move, citing an unfair permit-controlled system and heavy-handed treatment by Ezemvelo officers.

Fishermen marched through Mtubatuba on Human Rights Day in 2014 to highlight their stance.

Masifundise Development Trust together with Coastal Links, the conduit through which small-scale fishers air their concerns, has therefore welcomed the decision.

‘Time and again our fishers have complained about Ezemvelo and how they have been treated,’ said Lindani Ngubane, a Masifundise fieldworker in uMkhanyakude.

‘We have organised marches and spoken to the minister and the municipality about the treatment of our people’.

Mr Shezi, fisher and Chairperson of Coastal Links SA in KZN, said that if this was a political move, it was not a bad one but it is sad if such decisions are taken only to gain votes.

‘I have to say, the government should not make life changing decisions only when they are rigging for votes.

‘We only hope this decision was made because the government listened to our cries and supports the struggle of the fisherman’.

DAFF could not be reached for comment and has failed to provide reasons for the move.


http://zululandobserver.co.za/107887/co ... t-changes/

[Richprins]

We must therefore guard against attempts by the right to `wither away` the democratic state, which attempts to reduce its capacity to intervene in the economy. The parastatal capital resources in the public domain are, potentially, a major strategic asset, enabling the democratic state to give leadership and catalyse major reconstruction, development and growth, attracting in the process private investment as well.

It is this strategic potential that is critical, and not the accumulation, for its own sake, of public-owned assets. It is also from this strategic perspective that the question of restructuring state assets, which might involve strategic partnerships, partial and even total privatisation should be evaluated.

We reject, however, the ideological notion that privatisation is, by definition, the only sensible route. As with nationalisation, we must be guided by the processes as instruments to be used to achieve our reconstruction and developmental objectives.


http://www.anc.org.za/show.php?id=2356


Marine resources along the South African coastline form a substantial fishing industry. In the development of this industry, however, access to the resource was removed from many traditional fishing communities. Moreover, although current management strategies - which are based on a mix of limits on catch and limits on access - have shown an improvement over past strategies, there are indications that some stocks are still being over-exploited, particularly by foreign fleets.

Accordingly, the ANC favours restructuring the fishing industry by moving away from large fishing conglomerates to smaller, community-based fisheries. Management of stocks on a sustainable yield basis will be continued and improved. This could be done through the introduction of a more conservative, and longer-term quota allocation system which would impart a greater measure of stability to the industry. The development of additional fish stocks, and the mariculture industry - within environmental constraints - will also be encouraged.


http://www.anc.org.za/show.php?id=227

[Klipspringer]

https://northcoastcourier.co.za/135813/ ... er-threat/

Chaka’s Rock tidal pool under threat from poachers
Sea urchins are collected for their roe, which you will find on sushi menus as uni and are considered a culinary delicacy in Asian cuisine.
6 hours ago



Under the cover of darkness a Ballito resident stumbled on poaching activity recently, highlighting the threat to the area’s marine life from lack of policing.

The resident, whose apartment has a direct view of the Chaka’s Rock tidal pool, spotted the poachers at around 8.30pm about two weeks ago, at full moon.

“I noticed lights on the tidal pool and I thought it was maybe an educational group, but all I could see was two figures. I looked more closely and could see two men reaching down and removing things from the water and placing them into bags. They went around the pool in a few minutes and I waited to see where they were going but they came up the alley that comes out at Salt Cafe and then disappeared. Two nights later they were back again and I rushed down to the pool but they had disappeared.

“The only thing they could be removing with gloves would be the sea urchins, which come up along the wall at night,” the resident said.

Ballito’s coast is dotted with seawater pools that serve as sanctuaries for numerous sea creatures, which use the calm waters and the side walls and rocks for breeding and shelter.

According to Di Jones of the the Dolphin Coast Conservancy, the area’s tidal pools are rich with sea life habitats made up of fish, coral and invertebrate species.

Along with sea cucumber and star fish, sea urchins belong to a group called echinoderms. Sea urchins are critical to marine ecosystems all over the world, cleaning the sea floor of small particles and waste materials and turning them into nutrients that other creatures can use, much like earthworms on land.

South African Association for Marine Biological Research’s, Dr Sean Porter, a scientist with reef ecology specialisation, said urchins were an important component of coral and rocky reefs.

“They control algae and provide an important source of food for many fish.

“They also play key roles in terms of biological interactions with other species, such as with juvenile abalone, resulting in more healthy rock pools and reefs in general,” said Porter.

“All sea urchins within a Marine Protected Area are formally protected by the National Environmental Management: Protected Areas Act, and therefore cannot be harvested.

“Sea urchins outside of protected areas are conserved and sustainably managed by the Marine Living Resources Act,” he said.

However within the last decade this ecologically important species has been exposed to intense harvesting. Sea urchins are collected for their roe, which you will find on sushi menus as uni and are considered a culinary delicacy in Asian cuisine.

KDM marine safety manager Steve Honeysett said the Chaka’s Rock tidal pool was a marine protected area and no aquatic wildlife was allowed to be collected from it.

“Anyone caught poaching or collecting marine life will be prosecuted,” he added.

Since Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife lost its mandate to protect KwaZulu-Natal’s marine resources at the end of July 2016, reports of poaching and illegal fishing have increased substantially along KZN’s coastal shores.

“The amount of poaching taking place and the disregard for bag and size limits has increased since Ezemvelo staff were removed from the coast,” said Honeysett.

The decision not to renew Ezemvelo’s contract was taken by the Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries (DEFF) in spite of its good track record and its many years of experience.

For close to 32 years, well-trained Ezemvelo officials were responsible for maintaining wildlife conservation areas and biodiversity in KZN but the policing of the coastlines was handed back to the DEFF.

Conservation organisations have slammed the increase in illegal fishing and poaching and have accused the DEFF of not monitoring the beaches as closely.

“The situation urgently needs to be addressed by increasing the number of well-trained control officers along the KZN coast, or bringing back Ezemvelo,” said Jones.

To report poaching, illegal fishing and gill netting contact the DEFF’s Thanduxolo Ntshangase on 079 444 9951 or Govender on 072 231 6070.

[Lisbeth]

They don't leave anything alone

The urchins will go bad almost immediately; can the poachers keep them alive