Fishing: Scientific Evidence is Not About Trial and Error

Namibia’s fishing industry is at a crossroads.

We are about to embark on a government-sanctioned course of action that holds profound implications for our already ravaged fishing industry, for our people, and for our nation.

A recent article in the Windhoek Observer reported that “a process to allow fishing vessels to catch horse mackerel within the 200 metre isobar restricted areas as an experiment has commenced after the Namibian Cabinet issued a directive in this regard”.

The idea is purportedly to allow fishing in restricted areas – breeding grounds which are of the utmost importance to the future of Namibia’s already beleaguered fishing industry.

Is Cabinet aware of why there is a restriction on fishing in water shallower than 200m in this important ecosystem?
Is Cabinet aware of the potential impact of their decision and what it means for the future of the fishing industry?
In short, we are on the verge of gutting Namibia’s fishing resources.

SUSTAINABILITY

The Constitution (article 95) sets out that “The state shall actively promote and maintain the welfare of the people by adopting, inter alia, policies aimed at the … maintenance of ecosystems, essential ecological processes and biological diversity of Namibia and utilisation of living natural resources on a sustainable basis for the benefit of all Namibians, both present and future; in particular, the government shall provide measures against the dumping or recycling of foreign nuclear and toxic waste on Namibian territory”.

This is underlined by the Marine Resources Act which “provides for the conservation of the marine ecosystem and the responsible utilisation, conservation, protection and promotion of marine resources on a sustainable basis; for that purpose to provide for the exercise of control over marine resources; and to provide for matters connected therewith”.

Our Cabinet is essentially going against this act which is detrimental to management of our resources in their entirety.

OVEREXPLOITED

Horse mackerel is a pelagic fish which tends to adapt to a demersal lifestyle (living close to the floor of the sea) and migrate to deeper waters when they grow bigger.

The hunt for horse mackerel in the restricted zone is a clear sign that the industry appears to have depleted the stock outside of that zone.

This is a result of irresponsible fishing being allowed for decades,
Namibia’s horse mackerel resources are overexploited and all but beyond replenishing capacity.
We need to face the reality that this sector is in a state of collapse and, unfortunately, those in denial still argue we can ‘save it’ with an unscientific experiment.

What the situation demands is decisive leadership and action.

‘EATING HOLE’

The prudent management of fisheries calls for a scientifically based management approach in which decisions are made considering advice from scientists.

This was last done when the late Abraham Iyambo was the minister of fisheries and marine resources.

During his tenure, our fisheries resource were managed in the spirit of the Constitution.

Since then, our fishing sector has been turned into a ‘fish eating hole’, where friends meet and decide how to enrich themselves.
Now our leaders appear to want to destroy what we built up over many years.

In case our Cabinet is not aware of it, the 200m area is also an ecosystem management tool and the basis on which Namibia gets certified by the Marine Stewardship Council.

If we play fast and loose with this, we lose certification and can forget about our fishing industry as the certificate will be revoked.

In addition, as a country we have a responsibility to steward and safeguard our resources.

Allowing fishing within the 200m isobar will be a short-lived fishery honeymoon which will ultimately cause destruction that will be difficult to reverse.

It is important to highlight that the 200m isobar is a nursery for hake, pilchard, horse mackerel and other pelagic and demersal fish.

It is the area where they spawn and spend most of their juvenile life.

WHY?

Equally important, if the Cabinet allows an experiment inside the 200m restricted zone, we can kiss goodbye to our efforts to rebuild our pilchard stock, which was placed under a moratorium in 2018.

The 200m isobar ‘action’ is not only counterproductive but will undermine the successes the moratorium aims to achieve.
It is also disheartening that the minister sanctioned private vessels to run this experiment.

Why? We have our own research vessel charged with research functions.

Who trusts business people rather than scientists who are trained and qualified to run biomass surveys?
What sampling protocol are they going to follow? Will there not be a temptation to cook up data to justify business interests and money-mongering?

At this juncture, I would like to thank those fishing companies that are putting the national interest first and showing concern about the ecosystem and the future of fishing.

I have it on good authority that the fishing fraternity, except for a handful of (selfish) parties, opposes this unsustainable approach.

RECOURSE

The Ombudsman Act states that “the Ombudsman shall enquire into and investigate in accordance with the provisions of this Act, and take such action or steps as may be prescribed by this act on, any request or complaint in any instance or matter laid before the Ombudsman in accordance with the provisions of subsection (3) (a) or (b), and concerning – the overutilisation of living natural resources, the irrational exploitation of non-renewable resources, the degradation and destruction of ecosystems and failure to protect the beauty and character of Namibia”.

In the interest of the greater good of all Namibians and future generations, I urge the ombudsman to look into this matter.

My patriotic recommendation is that zero experiments and fishing in the 200m isobar will be in the best interests of Namibians.
Our political leadership needs to heed scientific advice and ensure that our resources are protected.

We cannot allow a trial and error experiment. That aside, we already have well established systems and a rich database.
Those who prefer to ignore such data are endangering the future of the fishing sector.

The Cabinet needs to withdraw this regrettable decision.

• Sioni Iikela is a dean for the faculty of environment and sustainable tourism at the International University of Management; this article is written entirely in his personal capacity

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