The illegal sale of East Coast rock lobster (Panulirus homarus) along the N2
highway at Mfazazana on the south coast of KwaZulu-Natal, continues to create
tension between the local community and conservation and other authority
structures in the region. Panulirus homarus (P. homarus) is a valuable commodity in
an area distant from industry and other economic prospects and is within easy reach
of both the harvester, in terms of its intertidal living space and the market, in terms of
the N2 and the economy in seafood prevalent in the region. P. homarus is therefore
at risk by virtue of its biology and habitat, and the illegal nature of its capture tests
the parameters of sustainable resource management still further. This research
addresses the issue of sustainable resource use through an examination of the
perceptions of the various stakeholders who are involved in the use and protection
of P. homarus at Mfazazana.
This study was commissioned by the Communications Section of the KwaZulu
Department of Nature Conservation (KONC) in response to continued illegal
harvesting and trade of P. homarus at Mfazazana. One of the mandates of the
Communications Section is to initiate and maintain environmental education
programmes and thus comply with the KONC mission statement (See Appendix 1a).
Specific objectives of the study include:
• how respondents perceive their relationship with, responsibility to and role in
terms of P. homarus
• how respondents perceive their relationship with, responsibility to and role in
terms of the others involved with P. homarus
• how present legislation is perceived by stakeholders
• what options exist regarding the regulation and/or management of P. homarus
• whether changes over time have occurred in the respondents' relationship
with P. homarus
Fishing and trading activities were inv~stigated using informal, loosely structured
questionnaires which elicited qualitative information. Two main groups were selected.
and respondents were interviewed either individually or in small groups. The
crayfishers made up the first group and the resource managers made up the second
group which included the Natal Parks Board (NPB), the KONG, the Hibberdene
Tourism and Publicity Association, the Community Policing Forum, the Community
Development Forum at Mfazazana and the South Coast Fishing Forum.
The study provided an understanding and explanatiol] of how the elements of the
locality interact with underlying structures and human agency in time to produce the
conflict over the marine resource P. homarus at Mfazazana. It was found that the
conflict between stakeholders, as a result of differing perceptions regarding the
illegal harvesting of the resource, was obstructing the sustainable management of P.
homarus at Mfazazana. / Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 1997
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:ukzn/oai:http://researchspace.ukzn.ac.za:10413/10547 |
| Date | January 1997 |
| Creators | Rich, Jessica. |
| Contributors | Scott, Dianne., Oelofse, Cathy. |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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