Lecap
December 15th, 2007, 01:10 AM
This concerns you if you are into cold water diving, sharks, wrecks, if you care abouth the ocean and the environment or if you just dislike politicians not doing their job properly.
While the poaching of abalone is a serious problem in South Africa, the new legislation will do nothing to stop the poachers. There is little point to imposing new laws when the current laws are not enforced. The proposed legislation will only penalize law abiding citizens, legitimate businesses and coastal communities; and South Africa's wider tourism industry. It will also remove the watchful eyes of the diving community from the specified areas, one of the most valuable deterrents to poaching that we currently have.
Newspaper article about diving ban (http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=3045&art_id=vn20071205040431694C174750)
We have until 15 January to act: make your voice heard! Please add your name to the petition.
The Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism has proposed new legislation to ban diving (scuba, spear fishing, skin diving and rock lobster diving) in specific areas in the Western and Eastern Cape. This legislation owes to the department's inability to prevent poaching of abalone along our coast: a situation that has worsened with the recent closure of marine protection projects.
Recreational divers are law abiding citizens and have nothing to do with poaching.
The WWF predicts that the proposed ban will alienate marine conservation's most avid supporters - scuba divers and snorkellers.
It does not help to make new laws which attempt to curb abalone poaching of exsisting laws are not enforced!
The petition (http://www.thepetitionsite.com/petition/420829084)
You may as well decide to do nothing. This means that some of South Africas and the worlds most interesting historic wreck sites like the wreck of the HMS Birkenhead will be inaaccessible from the 1st of February 2008.
The vast majority of the Cape's amazing Kelp forests with its abundance of colourful life will be beyond reach of recreational divers.
The Shark Cage diving industy will get wiped out. The Gansbaai region heavily relies on two economic factors: Fishing (permitted abalone fishing) and Shark cage diving. Go figure.
The poachers will carry on poaching, the illegal trade will continue.
Please forward the link to the petition or a link to this thread to your friends.
Thank you for your support!
While the poaching of abalone is a serious problem in South Africa, the new legislation will do nothing to stop the poachers. There is little point to imposing new laws when the current laws are not enforced. The proposed legislation will only penalize law abiding citizens, legitimate businesses and coastal communities; and South Africa's wider tourism industry. It will also remove the watchful eyes of the diving community from the specified areas, one of the most valuable deterrents to poaching that we currently have.
Newspaper article about diving ban (http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=3045&art_id=vn20071205040431694C174750)
We have until 15 January to act: make your voice heard! Please add your name to the petition.
The Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism has proposed new legislation to ban diving (scuba, spear fishing, skin diving and rock lobster diving) in specific areas in the Western and Eastern Cape. This legislation owes to the department's inability to prevent poaching of abalone along our coast: a situation that has worsened with the recent closure of marine protection projects.
Recreational divers are law abiding citizens and have nothing to do with poaching.
The WWF predicts that the proposed ban will alienate marine conservation's most avid supporters - scuba divers and snorkellers.
It does not help to make new laws which attempt to curb abalone poaching of exsisting laws are not enforced!
The petition (http://www.thepetitionsite.com/petition/420829084)
You may as well decide to do nothing. This means that some of South Africas and the worlds most interesting historic wreck sites like the wreck of the HMS Birkenhead will be inaaccessible from the 1st of February 2008.
The vast majority of the Cape's amazing Kelp forests with its abundance of colourful life will be beyond reach of recreational divers.
The Shark Cage diving industy will get wiped out. The Gansbaai region heavily relies on two economic factors: Fishing (permitted abalone fishing) and Shark cage diving. Go figure.
The poachers will carry on poaching, the illegal trade will continue.
Please forward the link to the petition or a link to this thread to your friends.
Thank you for your support!