Coastal waters pillaged by poachers
The two anglers had apparently caught 10 black musselcrackers, despite regulations which state that only one of these fish may be caught per person per day.
IT has been said that, if man were taught to fish, he would never go hungry. Unfortunately, mankind has become more and more hungry and within him, it seems, lies a want that cannot be satisfied.
Despite local fishermen being strictly opposed to government’s Operation Phakisa – which aims to protect our marine biodiversity by expanding current Marine Protected Areas as well as creating a few new ones – something has to be done to drastically reduce the speed at which our oceans are being plundered.
During the course of last week, a fishing vessel – licensed to carry a maximum of people – launched from Winkelspruit, its alleged destination being the Aliwal Shoal Marine Protected Area.
When the fishermen returned to shore, images of their catch quickly surfaced online.
The two anglers had apparently caught 10 black musselcrackers (poenskop), despite regulations which state that only one of these fish may be caught per person per day.
Quickly, it was claimed that there were 10 fishermen on board the vessel, despite its being allowed to carry only five people.
The black musselcracker, which can be found only in South African waters, had just entered its breeding period.
A concerned environmentalist and ocean lover told the Mail that 300 years’ worth of species had easily been eradicated by the fishermen.
The case is currently being investigated by Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife.
However, fishing vessels are not the only concern. A spate of illegal gill netting operations have struck the coast over the past months.
“An Amanzimtoti resident was driving along the R102 towards Umkomaas recently, when he saw a vehicle belonging to a man known to catch fish illegally with gill nets,” said Scottburgh SAPS communications officer, Captain Vincent Pandarum. “He reported this to authorities.”
Three gill nets were confiscated from the man. They had also found more than 100 fish which had been caught illegally.
Amongst the fish were juvenile grunter, rock salmon and mud bream.
“The 44-year-old man faces charges of fishing with gill nets without a permit, as well as capturing undersized fish,” said Captain Pandarum.
The case is being investigated by Detective Constable Sibonelo Dube of the Umkomaas SAPS Detective Service.
To date 49 nets have been confiscated from people illegally fishing on the coast.
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