Shark-fishing vessels that violate their permit conditions could face a crackdown from the department of forestry, fisheries and the environment, minister Dion George indicated on Thursday.
The government is committed “to protecting South Africa’s shark populations and restoring integrity in our fisheries”, he said.
Smooth-hound and soupfin sharks ― endangered and critically endangered respectively ― are the target species of demersal shark longline fishing which is legal in South Africa.
Marine biologist Dr Enrico Gennari warned on Thursday: “Fishery scientists are gambling on the extinction of these species by allowing it.”
A single vessel with a 2024/25 permit was convicted of violating its permit conditions in June yet it continues to operate.
George said in his statement that the skipper of the vessel was given an administrative fine and the department may take further measures, including suspending or revoking the vessel’s permits.
I would support any action by the minister, not just putting words on paper but acting on them, including suspending or revoking the vessel’s permits
— Enrico Gennari, marine biologist
“I would support any action by the minister, not just putting words on paper but acting on them, including suspending or revoking the vessel’s permits. It has been found to be doing wrong,” said Gennari, who reported the vessel.
“The vessel was fined R2,500 but allowed to keep and sell the catch, and fishers make much more from catches. This is like condoning their behaviour,” he said.
Conservationists have tracked the boat on the Global Fishing Watch. Allegedly, it has been 24 times inside Marine Protected Areas in the last year.
South Africans do not benefit from this fishery, whose catch is exported to Australia and sold as ‘flake and chips’, said Pavitray Pillay, a marine biologist and manager at the World Wide Fund South Africa. “This is not a service to South Africa. This is a legal fishery, but it should not be.”
“Top predators like sharks should not be fished … this destabilises the marine ecosystem terribly,” she said, and the bycatch of protected species is another risk to the oceanic wildlife.
On June 25, the department acted against the permitted shark longline vessel when it failed an inspection, said George. The fishery control officers confirmed it had failed to comply with the condition requiring “all sharks, including skates and St Joseph, be landed with heads and fins naturally attached to allow for proper species monitoring”.
“This is not allowed so that we can do proper monitoring of species. I would have difficulty identifying species without their heads and tails,” said Gennari, challenging data that the endangered species are doing better.
The department presented this data last month at a Southern African shark and ray symposium in Makhanda. “When I asked how a terribly endangered species was doing better, the fishery scientists said they could include length data. But how do you assess this when the heads and tails are cut off?”
The minister said: “The ocean’s health depends on the rule of law being upheld at sea … DFFE is strengthening compliance patrols, investing in enforcement capacity and working with law-enforcement agencies to curb illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.”
“When we enforce the law, we protect not only sharks and marine ecosystems, but also the livelihoods of honest fishers and the future of our coastal communities. There can be no sustainable economy without accountability.”
WWF South Africa has raised the alarm that shark species globally are in rapid decline, and a third of them are “being pushed towards extinction”.
South Africa’s white shark numbers are falling. Both the overfishing of prey and killing white sharks are driving this, said Gennari. In a recent documentary, he and fellow researchers showed that the white sharks in Mossel Bay prey on smaller sharks such as smooth-hound sharks and spotted gully sharks, not only seals.
“[Sharks] now face their most severe threat from fishing, including overfishing, poorly managed by-catch, illegal fishing and ghost fishing,” the WWF South Africa warned ― urging the public to symbolically adopt a shark.
- Members of the public can report any suspected illegal fishing to the Environmental Crimes and Incidents Hotline at 0800-205-005
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.