It is the aftermath of a bruising battle for the legitimacy of using drone technology in angling and recreational fishing in South Africa and in this battle, the government won, while the drone fishing proponents have gone to lick their wounds.

And counting the costs of their losses too; because all the investments they had in anticipation of a revolution in angling – ushered in by the introduction of drones into the fishing hobby – have suddenly turned into liabilities that will cost them a lot of money.

It could be employment and livelihoods lost for companies like Gannet Works, IARC, Unmanned SA, CDS Angling Supplies and CEG Projects, who fought tooth and nail a February 2022 public notice by the Department of Forestry,

“We have had to close down the South African Gannet website and this affects about R500 000 loss in sales per month,” said Gannet SA chief marketing officer Brett Eagle

“Currently we have hundreds of drones in stock that cannot be sold or marketed locally due to this judgment. This is a big hit and tragedy for the drone fishing industry. Multiple businesses have had to close down due to this and it has killed an entire industry and will have multiple knock-on effects.

“It’s sad as it affected about 5 000 drone fishermen in South Africa.”

Not that the immediate winners seem to care though; the new minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, Dr Dion George welcomed this week’s Supreme Court of Appeal of South Africa’s ruling upholding the ban on the use of drones, bait carrying remote-controlled boats and other remotely operated devices in fishing operations.

“This ruling is a significant victory for the protection of our marine ecosystems and the enforcement of regulations designed to safeguard our natural resources,” said Dr George, in a statement released by the DFFE.

“The use of these devices for fishing has been illegal since 2005 and recreational anglers and members of the public have previously been warned that they could face enforcement action should they be caught using such.”

The statement reiterated the Supreme Court of Appeal’s judgement that “lawful fishing can only be authorised by means of a valid permit and that, once an angler has this permit, they must adhere to the daily bag limits and the fishing methods specified in the regulations. Any deviation from these authorized limits and methods is unlawful.”

The drone fishing proponents had their appeal against the public notice turned down twice; first by the Gauteng Division of the High Court in April 2022; then this week by the SCA’s final ruling.

It has left the community reeling.

“We will be swimming out sharks for fun now,” one of the anglers said. “And sending the pictures.”

Others were more circumspect and philosophical, with one contributor to our story yesterday, saying drone fishers might have brought this upon themselves by not regarding the other anglers.

“Unfortunately, there are all sorts of anglers amongst us, those that care and those that think they do but actually don’t,” the contributor said.

“I think some of the drone anglers became a nuisance to the non-drone anglers and this led to complaints.

“The argument of drone anglers fishing in unfished waters is irrelevant in context of the other forms of off shore angling which has been practiced for decades. The braided lines are being used by all forms of angling from bass to offshore fishing. No matter what you use, whether it’s braid or monofilament, it does get tangled in reeds, rocks, reefs and any other types of structure.”

In celebrating this latest development, the DFFE proclaimed its commitment to the conservation and sustainable management of South Africa’s marine resources.

“We believe that the ban on drones and remote-controlled devices in marine environments is crucial in preserving the delicate balance of our oceans and protecting vulnerable species.”