Pretoria – The west coast rock lobster (WCRL) recreational fishing season will open on 26 November 2016 and will close on 17 April 2017.
The Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) has announced the 2016/17 recreational fishing season and the total allowable catch (TAC) for west coast rock lobster.
The global WCRL TAC 2016/17 fishing season has been determined at 1 924.08 tons, which is the same as the global TAC for the 2015/16 fishing season.
The global TAC for the west coast rock lobster fishing season has been apportioned as follows:
- Commercial Fishing (offshore): 1 204.48 tons (previously 1 243.48 tons);
- Commercial Fishing (nearshore): 376.10 tons (previously 376.10 tons);
- Small-scale Fishing (interim relief measure fishing): 235.30 tons (previously 235.30 tons);
- Small-Scale Fishing Northern Cape: 39 tons;
- Recreational Fishing: 69.20 tons (previously 69.20 tons); and
- Foreign fishing: 0 tons (previously 0 tons).
The fishing season for the commercial offshore and nearshore sectors and small-scale (interim relief measure) will open on 16 November 2016 for all zones and will close on 30 September 2017.
The WCRL recreational fishing effort will be restricted to 21 days and will be split as follows:
- Fishing allowed from 26 November 2016 to 27 November 2016
- No fishing allowed from 28 November 2016 until 9 December 2016
- Fishing allowed from 10 December 2016 to 11 December 2016
- No fishing allowed from 12 December 2016 until 15 December 2016
- Fishing allowed from 16 December 2016 to 18 December 2016
- No fishing allowed from 19 December 2016 until 23 December 2016
- Fishing allowed from 24 December 2016 to 27 December 2016
- No fishing allowed from 28 December 2016 until 30 December 2016
- Fishing allowed from 31 December 2016 to 2 January 2017
- No fishing allowed from 3 January 2017 until 6 January 2017
- Fishing allowed from 7 April 2017 to 8 January 2017
- No fishing allowed from 9 January 2017 until 13 January 2017
- Fishing allowed from 14 January 2017 to 15 January 2017
- No fishing allowed from 16 January 2017 until 14 April 2017
- Fishing allowed from 15 April 2017 to 17 April 2017
Only persons over the age of 12 years may obtain from any authorised office a recreational fishing permit to engage in fishing, collecting, keeping, controlling, landing or transporting of, or to be in possession of not more than four WCRL per day.
Payment per permit is R94 (R7 application fee and R87 permit fee), as determined by the Minister under section 25 of the MLRA and published under Government Notice No. 795 in Government Gazette No. 33518 of 10 September 2010.
Permits are valid for the entire west coast rock lobster recreational fishing season.
Fishing times for WCRL will be from 8am until 4pm. The bag limit is four per person per day and the size restriction is 80 millimetres carapace length.
No person catching WCRL with a recreational fishing permit may sell his/her catch and any WCRL caught, collected or transported must be kept in a whole state.
A maximum of 20 WCRL’s may be transported per day on condition that all the persons who caught WCRL’s are present in the vehicle, vessel or aircraft during transportation, and that such persons are in possession of WCRL recreational fishing permits. – SAnews.gov.za
