Last year an article in Daily Maverick caught my eye and had me riveted: the Bredasdorp regional court convicted and fined a rogue fishing company for illegal fishing within a Marine Protected Area. What was fascinating about this case was that the State, for the first time, ruled that if large-scale businesses fished inside a Marine Protected Area, they were not just liable for fishing illegally, but also for having a detrimental impact on the environment. The company was the Gqeberha-based Unathi-Wena Fishing. The vessel had the misleadingly innocent name of White Rose. The fine – for both the illegal fishing, and for causing environmental damage – was R1 million.…