Working group for yellows - Cape chapter

[Rendier]

Only heard of the event via Francois at Outdoor Arena in Bonnievale. Not going to make it, but a bit of publicity would have been good.

[MCC]

Good morning guys

I attended the YWG conference this weekend and must say that it was an extremely productive event and a lot of my personal concerns, relating to CNC's attitude to our Trout streams and the potential conflict with indigenous species, were addressed.

I will post more details during the course of today.

Cheers
MC

[Jasper]

Good morning guys

I attended the YWG conference this weekend and must say that it was an extremely productive event and a lot of my personal concerns, relating to CNC's attitude to our Trout streams and the potential conflict with indigenous species, were addressed.

I will post more details during the course of today.

Cheers
MC

looking forward to reading those details MC - I think we are ALL having those personal concerns regarding the future of our trout streams

[Ryan Weaver]

I agree with MC. I also attended and was VERY impressed with the work that is being done to monitor and conserve our precious yellowfish species. A press release was drafted yesterday and I'll ask Dean to post it online if possible.

[MCC]

[LEFT]Good afternoon guys

I said on Monday that I would post a further response by the end of the day. Well, this was one very long day but here goes:

At this past weekend's YWG I had the opportunity to better familiarise myself with the situation as far as our WC Yellowfish species are concerned, to learn more about CNC’s attitude towards Trout in general and to discuss the CPS’ fishing waters with Dean Impson, Kas Hamman and others.

These are my personal and general opinions as a fisherman but they are also what I consider to be in the best interest of the CPS. Many factors play a role here and the primary ones are proposals to clear certain rivers of alien fish species, NEMBA, the threatened status of our indigenous fish species and our Trout fishing.

What is very clear is that the WC Yellowfish species are truly threatened and that action needs to be taken as a matter of urgency. This does however not mean that CNC will (or can) simply move forward by eradicating all aliens wherever they are found. Each such step, at least where the use of Rotenone or other chemicals are concerned, will be preceded by an EIA. CNC also seems very aware of past mistakes where species were introduced into systems where they did not previously occur and any such introductions will be closely monitored from within CNC and from the outside by affected groups.

CNC is aware of the fact that they need the support of the WC fly fishing community if they are to succeed in their attempts to protect our local Yellowfish species. At the moment, from a flyfisher’s perspective, Yellowfish in the WC is unavailable as a target species and as such there is no protectable asset. Only by making Yellowfish and specifically also waters where we can fish for them available to the fly fishing community, will CNC make any progress in this regard. We will never reach a situation that guys on the Vaal has but at least we can make it more accessible and in the process help to ensure the continued existance of our WC Yellowfish species.

At the moment there is a lot of talk and speculation about the use of Rotenone and the long term future of Trout in the Western Cape. The absence communication with the broader fly fishing community has led to a situation where there is a degree of mistrust between CNC and flyfishers in general. CNC is now aware of this and will attempt to remedy this situation by communicating constructively with interested groups and from our side the CPS will assist as far as possible.

So, what does the future hold for Trout in SA and specifically in the WC?

If you are not yet aware of it, there is an act called the National Environmental Management Biodiversity Act (NEMBA). Regulations to this act are currently being formulated and here FOSAF have done a huge amount of work on our behalf. The act basically deals with how alien species of plants, birds, fish etc should be dealt with in SA. FOSAF's submissions deal primarily with the specific classification of Trout and also the creation of zones in SA where certain alien species are protected on the basis of their economic value.

This is a very interesting topic and one which Wolf may be better equipped to comment on?

The final form of these regulations seem to still be some way off and we should all support FOSAF for the extensive work being done. The final outcome will most certainly impact on every Trout fisher in SA.

At the YWG I spoke to both Dean and Kas about the CPS’ waters and both of them agreed that a WC Trout zone, inclusive of the Elandspad, Smallblaar, Holsloot and Witte Rivers, should be established. The formal details will be discussed and agreed upon between CPS and CNC at a meeting scheduled for April. From our side the CPS will support CNC in their efforts to protect our indigenous WC Yellowfishes and together we will attempt to create an awareness of WC Yellowfish species and make it accessible to the fly fishing community.

This post is now getting too long and the weekend is upon us.
Enjoy the fishing
MC

[Scythe]

Thanks for the post MC.

This might probably be premature as we're still waiting to see the Press Release Ryan has mentioned (and I do hope it does get published here) but I'm fairly sure there are other guys like myself who would like to know more about the current activities or projects in the pipeline specifically dealing with either the stocking/relocation/protection of the Witvis & Clanwilliam.

Have there been other activities/events other than the ones mentioned on Flytalk so far ?

[MCC]

I am not sure about everything that's happening but a few things were discussed at the YWG. These include the stocking of numerous dams with Witvis and cleaning of river catchments.

The EIA is going ahead at full speed and we will wait for the outcome to see whether those specific projects will go ahead.

Cheers
MC

[chris williams]

Thanks MC interesting stuff, and it's good to see complex issues are being dealt with in an objective fashion.

[Chris Shelton]

Thanks for the feedback MC. I am pleased to hear that the CPS was represented by you personally. Thanks a lot for your interest in these matters and for all your hard work. I am sure I speak for all when I say that we truly appreciate it.

Regards
Chris

[Garage]

Did anyone see Mark Krige's comments in relation to what appears to be all of this, in the letters section of the new TCFF?