INVASIVE FISH REMOVAL IN WESTERN CAPE

[GTZA]

Judging by a fresh batch of letters in the flyfishing magazines the possible use of rotenone to remove alien and invasive species in the Cederberg area remains an issue of great concern. By now some of our readers will have attended the public review meetings in the Western Cape area for the draft scoping report. Alternatively you may visit Enviro-Fish Africa’s website at http://www.envirofishafrica.co.za to download a copy. Hopefully once we have been through this process the emotional response from some anglers will have cooled. At least let us hope so. If rotenone is used it will be on relatively short sections of river and in the case of the Kromme (Cederberg) it will be to target not only the trout but also bluegill and largemouth bass. Although the rock catlet is of concern to CapeNature it is fortunately a nocturnal fish and therefore less threatened than the redfin minnows which are on the endangered and critically endangered list and require refugia such as the Kromme if they are not to become extinct. From what I understand rotenone is one of the safest pesticides and it breaks down very rapidly in the environment. Moreover this project should not be seen as a sinister move, which if successful, will be extended further south to the recognised trout streams of the Boland.