Traditional fishers’ rights and gaspowership development in Langebaan Lagoon (South Africa)
Langebaan, Saldanha Bay Municipality, Western Cape, South Africa
The community and local perspectives on conservation and stewardship
The Langebaan Lagoon traditional fishing community of South Africa comprises 60 men and women fishers as well as youth who are descendants of the first net fishers who settled long the edges of our lagoon. This community includes indigenous fishers as well as descendants of freed slaves who settled along the shores and turned to fishing as a means of survival. We are a very close-knit community that is considered a previously disadvantaged community in South Africa due to the fact that we were discriminated against by the apartheid regime on racial grounds. Langebaan Lagoon is a unique marine ecosystem located on the West Coast, on the Atlantic seaboard. It is situated within the furthest reaches of Saldanha Bay. The Lagoon is 17 km long and 4km wide in places. At the entrance to the lagoon there are several islands. The lagoon has extensive salt marshes and a huge variety of birds and many fish species. Our forefathers and foremothers depended on the lagoon for their livelihoods. They fished using beach-seine and hand lines, developing a local system of customary rules that regulated their fishery. They passed down their knowledge of the lagoon to us.
Environmental conservation and stewardship, to us as traditional fishers, means taking ownership of our lagoon to ensure that our traditional livelihoods based on marine resources can continue sustainably for the next generations.
Stewardship experience: Protecting our lagoon ecosystem and fisheries from Gaspowerships
The issue or problem being addressed
As part of the Blue Economy, promoting oil and gas developments in our ocean, our government gave permission to a Turkish company to anchor a Gaspowership (also referred to as a Karpowership) near the entrance to our Lagoon. Gaspowerships are fossil-fuel powered and turn gas into electricity. The company had to apply for environmental authorisation to park here. They did not inform or consult our traditional fisher community as part of the public participation process. We worked with several NGO partners to find out more about the Karpowerships, how they operate and what the impact on our environment might be. The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) did not include investigations about the impact on the habitat and species of the Lagoon. Instead it promised to create jobs and provide benefits to the local community. However, it did say that it would increase the temperature of the water around the ship by 4 to 15%. The fishers could not believe that this report could be written without their local knowledge of the currents and species in the lagoon. We mobilised and raised our voices against this project that will increase climate change through fossil fuel emissions, compromise the lagoon’s ecological integrity and impact our livelihoods.
“Karpowership(s) … are massive ships that come with a suite of direct environmental impacts … These ships, as well as many other oil and gas explorations, will have a devastating impact on marine ecosystems, and therefore on small-scale fisher livelihoods and cultural practices.” (McGarry & Pereira, 2021)
The conservation/stewardship activities
In early June 2021 we worked with several NGOs to submit comments on the EIA. We highlighted our concerns for the lagoon and for our livelihoods. We complained that they did not take our tenure rights into consideration. We held a protest action on World Oceans Day on the 8th of June and used this to mobilise public support. We held radio and Television interviews. Together with an NGO, Green Connections, we got an environmental lawyer to assist us and analyse the EIA. She then submitted a complaint to the Environmental Authority stating that the EIA process failed to take our knowledge into consideration as it failed to conduct proper studies of the impact of the noise and increased temperature on the fish that we depend on for our livelihoods. The Authority suspended the EIA on the grounds that they did not take this impact on the ecosystem and on our livelihoods into consideration. On the 24th of June 2021 we heard the great news that their EIA has been withdrawn. This is a victory for us, for our children and for the lagoon. They may appeal but this process of mobilisation has helped us gather the support of the youth and many others. We will stand together and protect our lagoon, and claim ownership of the right to co-manage our lagoon and ensure that it is sustainably managed for the future.
The benefits/impacts including sustainability/environmental effects
This example has shown the importance of fisher knowledge of local marine ecosystems and community mobilisation in protecting biodiversity. It has not improved the local biodiversity specifically, however it has protected local ecosystems and the action has definitely increased support from the local community who now take pride in the idea of protecting the lagoon from destructive developments such as oil and gas production.
The action has highlighted the link between SSF fisher livelihoods and biodiversity protection, the link between the right to participate in decision-making and protecting biodiversity. It has also highlighted the need to assess projects for their impact on carbon emissions. Although SA (South Africa) needs electricity we do not want it to come from gas (fossil fuel). This action strengthened our fisher’ community’s identity and cohesion and ownership over the lagoon.
The success and significance of the activities
This has been very significant because following these efforts, the Government decision actually mentions the fact that the EIA did not follow a proper public participation process and did not consider the impacts on the SSF fisher livelihoods. This is significant also because we have been marginalised and invisible for so long in SA. We managed to get our voices heard and say that our livelihoods are linked to the health of the lagoon and are also important. It is significant because this action helped us mobilise many youth in our area who are now eager to take on other actions to protect the lagoon for our traditional fishing community.
Some lessons learned or words of wisdom
We realise that our lagoon is one of the most beautiful lagoons in the world that has such natural biodiversity. We realise that we must fight for the lagoon and for our right to be part of co-management. This is a fight for our children’s futures. If fishers are included in co-management of the lagoon and their knowledge can be included, it will help solve a great deal of problems.
Click here to view ‘Notification of Suspension of Saldanha Bay Karpowership (EIA)‘ in a new tab.
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Fishery Facts
(Below are the applicable categories of fisheries, environment, species, gear type and livelihood role.)
Fishery characteristics:
- Marine capture fishery
- Commercial fishery
- Subsistence fishery
- Multi-species
The environment where fishing takes place:
- Coastal – Lagoon / Nearshore
Main species targeted:
- Marine – Small pelagics (finfish) – e.g. reef fishes/herring/mackerel/sardines
Gear types/ methods used:
- Line
- Drift net
Role of the fishery in local livelihoods:
- Main source of employment
- Full time