South Africa: Ban May Push Abalone to Extinction

Miriam Mannak, Inter Press Service (Johannesburg) 24 Jan 08;

South Africa's decision to suspend commercial fishing of wild abalone, a large marine slug, from Feb. 1, could drive the species further towards extinction. Conservationists fear the ban will fuel poaching, currently the most criminalized wildlife trade in Africa.

Announcing the ban in November 2007, Martinis van Chalky, South Africa's minister of environmental affairs and tourism, said the steps were absolutely necessary.

"We are unfortunately at a point where the commercial harvesting of wild abalone can no longer be justified, as the stock has declined to such an extent that the resource is threatened with extinction," the minister said.

Abalone (also known as preemie), a prized sea delicacy and aphrodisiac in Southeast Asia, has been overexploited for decades.

In the 1960's, approximately 2,800 tonnes of abalone were harvested annually. With the introduction of seasonal quotas in 1970, a maximum of 700 tonnes per year was set. In 1995, the quota was bought down further, and for 2006 and 2007 the annual limit was decreased to 125 tonnes.

However, poaching has continued, as abalone harvesting is very lucrative. Over Chinese New Year for instance, the price of 1 kilogramme of dried abalone goes over 1,000 dollars.

To tackle the issue, South Africa in May 2007 listed the marine animal in Appendix III of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). It was the first country in the world to do so.

CITES is an international treaty -- drawn up in 1973 -- to ensure that international trade in wildlife and plants does not threaten their survival.

Shipments of South African abalone meant for the international market are required to be accompanied by a CITES license. Only legally harvested abalone and farmed abalone receive such documents. The idea behind this is to make it easier to track down and confiscate illegal shipments.

In addition to the CITES listing, South Africa started joint patrolling operations, with the South African Police Service (SAPS), the Department of Environmental Affairs and the South African National Defence Force, to curtail illegal abalone harvesting.

Some 70 staff members on a 24-hour-a-day, seven-day-per-week basis, are enlisted throughout the year, using high-speed patrol vessels, navy divers, "sniffer" dogs, unmanned aerial vehicles, helicopters and fixed-wing aircrafts. The cost of deploying these additional forces, which include personnel from law enforcement bodies and nature conservation agencies, has been in the region of 3.2 million dollars per annum.

South Africa's abalone stocks have fallen dramatically. Poaching is believed to be the main cause. According to figures by CITES, the confiscation records of illegally harvested abalone reveal a more than tenfold increase between 1996 and 2006. In 2007, over a million illegally harvested South African abalone -- worth almost 20 million dollars -- were seized, the highest figure to date.

Maria Hauck, a senior researcher at the University of Cape Town's Environmental Evaluation Unit, thinks that the suspension of wild abalone harvesting could further fuel poaching. She fears it could force permit- holders to work under the table. "The government has alienated legal rights holders when it should have partnered with them in managing the resource," Hauck said in an interview with the Cape Town based newspaper The Cape Times.

A total of 302 registered permit holders -- 262 individuals, and 40 closed corporations -- will lose business. Currently, the legitimate abalone industry takes in an estimated 21 million dollars and employs about 800 people.

Markus Bürgener of the international wildlife trade-monitoring network TRAFFIC shares Hauck's opinion. "If you do not provide these fishermen with another viable livelihood option, the danger is that some of them will resort to poaching. This is the industry that these guys know best."

One of the plans adopted by the South African government to assist the registered abalone harvesters is to integrate them into the tourism industry, where they could use their skills in the areas of whale watching and cage diving.

Additionally, the South African government has pledged to invest some 15 million dollars in six marine aquaculture interventions along the coast, such as the establishment of an abalone farm in Gansbaai, an abalone ranch in Port Nolloth and a state hatchery.

The problem with abalone farming however is that it takes five to seven years before the molluscs are ready for harvesting. "We harvest our cultivated abalone when it weighs between 700 and 800 grams," says Christo De Plessis, managing director of the CITES certified Abalone farm, Abagold. In 2006, Abagold, established 21 years ago, exported 180 tonnes of abalone. The company hopes to increase this amount by 230 tonnes this year.

"An abalone farm is very capital expensive. To start a farm that is economically sustainable, you need 3 million dollars," De Plessis says, stressing that, "You require skilled people and back up generators. Abalone start dying after half an hour in case of a power outage!"

Nevertheless, abalone farming is considered a crucial element in the strategy to save the marine slug from extinction while ensuring that fishermen do not resort to poaching. "Not only do you provide fishermen with an income, you also enable them to use their skills to the fullest," said Neville Sweijd, marine scientist at Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR). "In the long run it is the most sustainable way to tackle the abalone problem."