Crayfish Licences and Regulations from 1967

Dersley Kenyon's Crayfish Licence from 1967

A good friend of mine Stephen Farrer sent me his grandfathers old Crayfishing License from 1967!! Have a close look, it only cost R2.00 !! Now days they are almost R100,00 but you can get it from the post office. Back then you had to go to the Parks Board offices in your area, in some cases these were only found in major cities or tourist centres.

8 crayfish at 2.5 inches (approx 65mm) - the same as it is today.

What is more interesting is the conditions of the license, which is 8 crayfish at 2 and half inches. This is the same as it is today 46 years later. It kind of makes you wonder why it has not changed? Many other fish species have had bag limit and size restrictions adjusted over the years to insure the populations are healthy.

But why not with crayfish? I guess the catch returns the guys get show that at the current size and bag limit the population is sustainable. I suppose it is true, because you can go to almost any reef in some of the most heavily dive spots and still get your crayfish. Maybe they won't jump into your bag and you will have to scratch around .... but they are there.

So thumbs up to good bag and size restrictions :-)

Coatesman

Fishing Permit Levies Controversy Continues

I dont think this is one of those things that just goes away, unless we make a firm stand I think this will be just another failure of the apathetic South African.

There is a lot of complaining going on, and many letters sent to the 'Minster' or to where ever the listed address goes. I am sure the 'Minster' does not read even a percentage of them ....let alone reply!

I got all excited when I saw a news clip entitled "State defends increase in fishing permit levies". I quickly droped everything to read the article and see if there was any answers to this whole thing.
Well ..as you guessed nothing ..... well only one line, "PROPOSED increases in the cost of fishing permits will help the Marine and Coastal Management authority enforce regulations and protect SA’s fishing resources, environmental affairs spokesman Zolile Nqayi said on Friday"

Who are these guys fooling they need to come up with something better than that! Here is the whole article published in Business Day by Charlotte Mathews

PROPOSED increases in the cost of fishing permits will help the Marine and Coastal Management authority enforce regulations and protect SA’s fishing resources, environmental affairs spokesman Zolile Nqayi said on Friday.

He was responding to an outcry among fishermen and the media last week after the gazetting of proposed new levies on fish caught in South African waters — both for the commercial and recreational sectors — harbour fees and other activities such as shark-cage diving and boat- based whale watching.

The most controversial proposals include increasing the cost of a recreational fishing permit 567% for catching crayfish, to R500 from R75, and 300% for spearfishing, to R300 from R75. In the commercial sector, the levy on hake has increased 71% to R350 a ton from R205 a ton.

Angry recreational fishermen, writing on the South African angling and boating community website Sealine, suggested that the steep increases were unaffordable and would simply increase the amount of illegal fishing activity.

They questioned how the coastal management authority was spending the money raised from such fees and suggested that hikes could be lower if its enforcement was more effective.

“Commercial vessels come in after hours in Hout Bay, offload their catch and do not pay any levies, because there are no fisheries officers who want to work overtime and weigh the catch, so the commercials just walk away scot-free. Where is the justification here?” one commentator wrote.

Nqayi said the proposed rises for recreational fishing were generally inflation-related and took account of affordability. For example, the cost of a permit for a subsistence fisherman had risen only 10% to R6. For commercial fishing, the proposed increases were still affordable.

Coatesman

Marine and Coastal Managment - MCM Divided

With the whole hike on license fees MCM - Marine and Coastal Management will have some explaining to do. On top of that MCM are also trying to sort out who runs them. Or should I say the governmental departments are fighting over who runs MCM.

I cant help but wonder if all these price hikes have something to do with this split in the departments and MCM? All I can say is it just sounds like the mess that is MCM is ...looks like it is only going to get worse. Best of all its going to cost us a whole whack more!
Typical government pay more for less!

See the article published in the Times:

Marine division a government mistake
Feb 4, 2010 11:25 PM | By LAUREN COHEN

Marine scientists, fishermen and trade union Nehawu claim the government is crippling the fishing industry by proposing to divide fisheries functions between two departments.
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    quote Zuma's new proposal for fisheries functions slammed quote

During his government restructure last year, President Jacob Zuma incorporated the fisheries functions into the newly created Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (Daff), moving it from the control of the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA).

Last week, Razeena Omar, acting deputy director-general of marine and coastal management, which falls under the DEA, called a meeting with Nehawu representatives to inform them that a final proclamation was about to be signed by Zuma detailing a further split in research and coastal management functions.

The union has condemned the public declaration, saying certain senior officials had driven the process to create "fiefdoms" for individual officials.

In terms of the proclamation, conservation and environmental functions will be separated from fisheries functions - a move which Rhodes University ichthyology professor Peter Britz said would be "impractical and hugely damaging to the government's ability to administer the Marine Living Resources Act".

"It is a turf war between two departments as to who has a mandate," Britz told The Times.

In a letter to Daff minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson, Britz said it was impossible to split MCM without damaging service delivery. "The organisation should be ring-fenced and moved entirely to Daff."

Shaheen Moolla, director of marine regulatory law company Feike, said the split had caused confusion as to who was really in charge of fisheries.

The ANC Overberg Interim Fishing Desk members also wrote to Zuma this week urging him not to sign the proclamation. Zuma has visited the poor fishing community twice to hear their requests for fishing to fall under one minister and one department.

Presidential spokesman Zizi Kodwa said Zuma was "aware of the concerns raised by different interest groups". 

 It is surprising these fools get anything done!

Coatesman

Angry Over Fishing License Hike

 There has been a lot of angry people out there over the proposed fishing licenses / permit price's.
See my previous post New Spearfishing License Fees
The Mercury and now the Cape Times have run this article ... its good to see this getting some main stream publicity and attention. See the article below ......

Fishermen are furious about massive hikes of 200 percent to 400 percent for recreational angling fees and there are fears that the cost of supermarket and restaurant fish will also rise because of heftier levies on commercial fishing.

The cost of an annual recreational angling permit is set to rise from R69 to R200 from the beginning of May, along with crayfish permits (from R75 to R500) and spearfishing (from R75 to R300). Added to this, skippers of recreational fishing boats will have to pay an extra R500 a year.

Plans to charge an extra R30 "application fee" for recreational angling have also caused confusion.

Water and Environmental Affairs Minister Buyelwa Sonjica has given the public a month to comment on the proposals, but her failure to publish any rationale for the hefty hikes has added fuel to the fire.

Poorer fishermen, he said, could not afford the increases
Media officers from Sonjica's department and her Marine and Coastal Management division (MCM) did not respond to queries yesterday.

However, anglers have already started venting their anger on fishing websites and to angling magazines about the latest "thievery".

Cape Town angler Gary Thompson suggested the new fees would be counter-productive because several anglers would now risk fines rather than buying licences. Poorer fishermen, he said, could not afford the increases.

SA Deep Sea Fishing Angling Association spokesman Hymie Steyn has also drafted several questions to put to Sonjica about the amount of money raised from angling permits during 2009, and how this was spent.

Rudy van der Elst, director of the Durban-based Oceanographic Research Institute, was also surprised about the scale of the hikes.

He noted there had been a massive reduction in funding for research and conservation bodies like the Oceanographic Research Institute this year. Continues...

Another fear was that if fishermen refused to pay the new fees, years of data gathered on fishing trends and effective management tools could be in jeopardy.

Commenting on separate hikes in commercial fishing levies, Van der Elst said it was inevitable that the consumer price of fish would also rise, particularly for sardines and anchovies.

But from a conservation perspective, there could be positive impacts for over-exploited fish species, as some commercial fishermen would switch their attention to less-exploited fish, or simply look for new business opportunities outside of fishing.

Dave Rorke, managing editor of Ski-Boat magazine, noted in a recent editorial that Marine and Coastal Management ran out of money in 2008 and could not afford to pay its phone and electricity bills, raising questions about its ability to administer the Marine Living Resources Fund, which is supported by angling fees and permits.

The department's fisheries and environmental protection boat Sarah Baartman had also been hired out to PetroSA as a standby safety vessel and guard ship - yet now there were plans to invest in a new R1.3 billion polar research ship at a time when Sonjica and her deputy, Rejoice Mabudafhasi, had splashed out on a new Mercedes S350 (R796 000) and a BMW X5 (R900 000).

Law enforcement against illegal commercial fishing remained weak, with provincial conservation agency Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife complaining it had no money to patrol or buy equipment.

tony.carnie@inl.co.za

When are these fat cat useless politicians going to be accountable?

Coatesman

How To Comment on The New Fees Proposal

Hi Guys,

I have received the following from Richard Bruno head honcho at SAUFF.

PLEASE TAKE NOTE.





+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

This was sent to me by Glenton Kendrick (Club Captain NSBC; UWA Rep East Cape) 0824491096







It is imperative we all reply to the Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs.

Please reply in clear calm words and provide sensible reasoning why the increases are far too high and unfair.

Refrain from bad language, accusations and irrelevant ranting (we would all like to say what we really feel but DONT!)

We need to reply by the end of this month, FEBRUARY 2010.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++



You do not have to write a lecture if you do not want to. Even just one sentence will do.



Please also copy me in richard.bruno@beckerdev.co.za so that I have evidence of your comment as well as knowledge of

what your sentiments really are.





HERE ARE THE CONTACT DETAILS.



Revenue Management at the Department of Environmental Affairs

Branch: Marine and Coastal Management

Private Bag X2,

Roggebaai,

8012.



Written comments may be posted by registered mail to above address;

or faxed to 086 613 6256 ;

or e-mailed to revenue@deat.gov.za.

Everyone please respond to this, it will take 5min of your time. Even if it is as simple as:

Dear Mr Minister,


I simply cannot afford to pay these proposed fees for recreational fishing / spearfishing.

Please reconsider,


Mr Joe Soap
(obviously dont copy and paste this exact line)

We can make a difference!

Coatesman

New Spearfishing License Fees

Do you have your Vaseline ready? Well you better because you are about to be screwed!!

I have just received notice from the SAUFF guys on the new fees structure, and it is not a pretty sight.
This what I got from Richard:

These are PROPOSED new fees

A subsistence fishermen goes from R5 to R6 per year.

And a Spearo goes from R75 to R300…..a Fishermen goes to R200 (Pricing discrimination that SAUFF have to put a stop to!!!!)

We have one month to write to them with our “public comment”.!

JUST LIKE THAT FOLKS !!!!!

Folks please send this out to all your contact lists even if they are listed above.

Comments should please include myself so that I have as many views as possible before submitting SAUFF’s comments.

Best regards

Richard Bruno

Here is a copy of the Gazette go to page 24 and check out the new price's: Gazzete Increase Doc

I think I am going to become a subsistence fisherman, I pay R6 and have no limits or restrictions. Where is the conservation and justice in this?

Coatesman