SOME MORE HOT AIR FROM MINISTER DION GEORGE

SOME MORE HOT AIR FROM MINISTER DION GEORGE: Minister Dion George recently announced a massive increase in the West Coast Rock Lobster TAC
of 58,4%. Keep in mind that lobster stocks are estimated to be below 4% of pristine, with some
estimates as low as 1 to 1,5%. You can see the announcement on the website at Minister George
announces Lobster TAC
I was virtually present at the various meetings where the increase was discussed/”validated.” It was
a farce to say the least.
Scientists were giddy with excitement when announcing the “GOOD NEWS” while ignoring the
obvious. Everyone was congratulating DFFE with the “excellent work” they have done that led to the
“recovery” of the resource.
Representatives from large fishing co-ops repeatedly patted themselves on the back, mentioning the
“sacrifices” they made that led to the “recovery.” From an outsider perspective you would have sworn
that these companies decided to catch only a small part of their quotas in an attempt to restore our
resource, while in reality they caught as much as they could/were allowed and complained about the
cut in their quotas.
Back on planet earth, it should be noted that DFFE inspectors work only weekdays from 8am till 4pm
due to a Departmental attempt to “cut costs.” In fact, I have found the doors in Hermanus firmly
closed and locked at 11am on a regular weekday. When pressed on the subject of enforcement over
weekends, the standard response is mentioning “special operations” that apparently sometimes take
place over weekends. If, and I feel it is a very big “IF”, our resource has actually recovered, it had
nothing to do with improved enforcement.
Returning to the press release. There is a passage in Minister George’s statements that deserves
special mention. I quote:
”However, the Minister stressed the Department’s willingness to keep engaging, ‘We value
the industry’s input and remain committed to working together on solutions that protect our
marine ecosystems while addressing community needs.’”
As an Industry member I have personally submitted various simple and workable solutions to the
Minister as well as to the department of fisheries at every level. Most emails remain
unacknowledged. At one stage Mr. Belemane, acting DDG, made a vague undertaking to “circulate”
a letter I wrote, and that was about the best response I have had so far. None of my suggestions
have been implemented, no matter how simple, cheap or beneficial.
Minister George, I fear a more accurate statement might be:
“The Department do NOT value your input nor care about the needs of our fishers, but if you
wish to waste your time and money you can continue sending us your suggestions. As for
our marine ecosystems, we simply do not give a fig.”
A management working group meeting about abalone is scheduled for Tuesday and I have
requested that we move forward on an Abalone Recovery Plan (See
). Commercial Abalone Sector submits Abalone Recovery Plan.pdf
After the meeting, I will let you know how true the minister’s statement turns out to be.
You can see this letter on Facebook atgeorge on facebook
Anton Kruger

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