<
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/mar/18/hope-for-endangered-penguins-as-no-fishing-zones-agreed-off-south-africa>
"Efforts to stop the critically endangered African penguin from going extinct
took a step forward on Tuesday after South African conservationists and fishing
industry groups reached a legal settlement on no-fishing zones around six of
the penguins’ major breeding colonies.
Sardine and anchovy fishing will not be allowed for 12 miles (20km) around the
penguin colony off Cape Town on Robben Island, where Nelson Mandela was
imprisoned, and Bird Island, across the bay from Gqeberha, also known as Port
Elizabeth. There will be more limited closures around four other colonies,
according to a court order formalising the agreement.
Conservationists and the fishing industry had been at loggerheads for years
over how much commercial fishing contributed to the African penguin
population’s precipitous decline and to what extent fishing restrictions would
arrest the fall.
African penguins are threatened with extinction by 2035 if their population
continues falling at the current rate of 7.9% a year. There are now fewer than
10,000 breeding pairs. A century ago there were 1 million.
Nicky Stander, head of conservation at the Southern African Foundation for the
Conservation of Coastal Birds (SANCCOB) said: “Today’s order is a significant
step forward in our fight to save the African Penguin from extinction …
However, while we celebrate today’s success, we remain acutely aware that our
journey is far from over. The threats facing the African Penguin are complex
and ongoing.”
Two fishing industry groups, the South African Pelagic Fishing Industry
Association and the Eastern and Southern Cape Pelagic Association, welcomed the
“middle of the road compromise”, which will apply for 10 years, subject to
review after six years.
They said: “The perception that the fishing industry (or that fishing near to
breeding sites) is the primary cause of the decline in the penguin population
is a false one … We are especially pleased that this settlement will now allow
scarce resources to be used constructively to scientifically determine the
principal factors causing the decline in the penguin population and to
ameliorate those where possible.”"
Via
Positive.News
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
