Selected from over 1200 entries, the national winners of the second annual Lilizela awards were revealed at a ceremony on Thursday night at the Lyric Theatre at Gold Reef City, Johannesburg. Addressing the finalists, Minister of Tourism, Derek Hanekom, said that while some of the people in attendance would be leaving with an award, everyone in the industry was a winner. Hanekom cited the tourism industry’s contribution to GDP, which is 9% and outweighs the contribution made by traditional … [Read more...] about Port Elizabeth’s Four Best Tourism Service Providers
raggy charters
Humpback whale release, Maitland’s River Mouth
Hi Alan, At 14h40 on the 28th of July 2104, I received a call from Irene Rule of Blue Horizon Bay telling me that I was about to go to sea! One of the residents of Maitland's Hill, Andre, had reported an entangled whale about 1km offshore from the river mouth. Armed with my binoculars I raced to the scene. Sure enough there it bobbed, ensnared in a length of 20mm nylon rope with two yellow buoys in tow. I first called the Bayworld head of marine mammals Greg Hofmeyer and discussed a plan of … [Read more...] about Humpback whale release, Maitland’s River Mouth
Killer Whales in Port Elizabeth
I saw my first group of killer whales near Bird Island in Algoa Bay, Port Elizabeth on 20 February 1999. It was a group of four (three adults and a calf) spotted near a Bryde's whale. They had captured a baby bottlenose dolphin and were "flicking" it to each other using their large flippers. The cries of the baby dolphin were quite unnerving but still necessary for this top predator's survival. In this case the killer whales were honing their skills just like when a cat plays with a mouse. Since … [Read more...] about Killer Whales in Port Elizabeth
Raggy Charters and Minister Molewa in Hot Water
From the pen of Shaheen Molla: On Thursday 14 April 2011, the Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, Mrs B.E.E. Molewa confirmed her department's support for illegal and reckless behavior by marine tour operators when she confirmed a boat based whale watching permit for the illegal Boat Based Whale Watching (BBWW) operator, Raggy Charters. The Minister allocated Raggy Charters a BBWW permit for the Port Elizabeth area despite a plethora of illegal conduct and violations of the BBWW … [Read more...] about Raggy Charters and Minister Molewa in Hot Water
Environmental Affairs Responds to Illegal Chumming Incident off of PE Beaches
Dr Alan Boyd of the Department of Environmantal affairs writes as follows: Please take note of the following: 1. SANParks issued a filming permit (FPP/1521) for filming on Bird Island over 5 days earlier this month to John Downer Productions. 2. Regarding the recorded incident close to the beach, the DEA was contacted by the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro staff regarding this incident. We have never condoned the chumming activities close to the beach and we have indicated that the Metro should … [Read more...] about Environmental Affairs Responds to Illegal Chumming Incident off of PE Beaches
PE Based Raggy Charters Under Fire
Shaheen Moolla from Feike - an independent natural resources advisory firm based in Cape Town - holds two degrees from the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg (BA International Relations & LL.B). Shaheen is currently a director of Feike and served as Special Legal Adviser to South Africa's Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, Valli Moosa. He also served as head of South Africa's fisheries management and compliance unit, Marine and Coastal Management. Shaheen is a member of … [Read more...] about PE Based Raggy Charters Under Fire
