South Africa’s new forestry, fisheries, and environment minister, Dion George, has decided to dive straight into the deep end of the penguin pool by seeking a settlement in a contentious battle over fishing restrictions near African penguin colonies. 

Rather than continuing a drawn-out legal battle, George wants to make peace in the fight about fishing restrictions near African penguin colonies, a sharp pivot from the confrontational stance of his predecessor, Barbara Creecy.

Taking office just last month, George has inherited a lawsuit filed by two major environmental groups—BirdLife South Africa and the Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds (SANCCOB)—against his predecessor, Creecy. 

The conservation groups argue for extended no-fishing zones around six key penguin breeding areas, saying the current restrictions are “biologically meaningless.” Creecy’s earlier compromises did not satisfy the penguins or the penguin protectors.

Here’s the cold, hard truth: African penguins are not just in decline but on the fast track to extinction. At the current rate of decline—7.9% annually—no penguins will be left by 2035. From a million breeding pairs a century ago to fewer than 10,000 today, these birds are in trouble.

Conservationists want to expand no-fishing zones around the six main colonies where the penguins breed. Why? Because penguins, as adorable as they are, are picky eaters. They mostly dine on sardines and anchovies—the same fish heavily targeted by the commercial fishing industry. And with fewer fish in the sea, the penguins are losing out.

Alistair McInnes heads up BirdLife South Africa’s seabird conservation work and noted, “When these populations are at this sort of vulnerable level, and they are starting to dwindle, they actually become more sensitive to other random impacts.” Disease outbreaks, oil spills, and even predators become more deadly when a population is already on the brink.

The current legal scuffle arose after Creecy announced that fishing bans around penguin breeding colonies would only proceed if both conservationists and the fishing industry agreed. Not surprisingly, they didn’t. 

In his bid to settle the case out of court, George is positioning himself as the penguin’s new champion. He has called for meetings with both the environmental groups and the fishing industry, hoping to find a solution that would prevent a protracted court battle. “I cannot see the benefit for the penguins of lawyers fighting in court, possibly for a long time,” he said. He’s got a point—penguins don’t have lawyers, and they certainly don’t have time.

​​The fishing industry isn’t keen on additional restrictions. The South African Pelagic Fishing Industry Association insists that the impact of its fishing activities on penguin numbers is minimal, saying in a previous statement, “As an industry, we have a responsibility to take all reasonable measures to protect penguin populations.” However, it also argues that the NGOs have delayed “a process that is tasked with establishing what are the main drivers causing the decline in penguin numbers.”

Environmentalists like McInnes disagree. He argues that while fishing isn’t the only problem facing penguins—there’s also climate change, shipping noise, and even hungry predators—the small impact of fishing closures is still significant. As he puts it, “I haven’t met a penguin scientist who doesn’t believe that carefully demarcated closures are part of the solution.”

The court case is set to be heard in October, but George’s call for a settlement has conservationists cautiously optimistic.

Whether George will succeed in brokering peace between the fishers and the conservationists remains to be seen. We can only hope that somewhere in the murky waters of bureaucracy, a solution will surface before it’s too late.

Because at the end of the day, the only thing penguins should be fighting for is their next meal—not their right to exist.