AUGUS T 20 08 PRIME FACT 825

Commercial fishing in New South Wales

The New South Wales wild harvest commercialfishing industry is a dynamic network of skilledbusinesses. Commercial fishers, wholesalers,processors and retailers work together with therestaurant and catering industry to supply freshseafood to communities across the state, as wellas to interstate and overseas markets.

Where do commercial fishers operate?

Commercial fishers operate throughout NSW statewaters including estuaries, beaches, bays andocean. Over three nautical miles (or 5.5km) to seais generally considered Commonwealth waters,however, under an Offshore ConstitutionalSettlement, some species of fish and methods offishing have been given to the state to manage

Commercial fishers are licensed and only operatein a particular fishery/ geographic area for whichthey have an authority.

What is the economic value of the seafoodindustry in NSW?

The seafood industry (including aquaculture suchas oyster farmers) and its fishers, wholesalers,processors and retailers generates over half abillion dollars of economic activity each year. Ofthis, wild harvest component is worth more than$90 million dollars at first point of sale.

How many people work in the seafoodindustry?

More than 4000 people work either directly orindirectly in the industry, including approximately1000 commercial fishers. The NSW fishing industryis primarily made up of small family businesses thatrely on high levels of local knowledge and skillslearnt over many generations.

Where are the key commercial fishing fleetslocated?

The clean and green reputation of the whole NSW

seafood industry depends on fisheries being viable,profitable and sustainable. The industry underpinsthe economy of many coastal towns providingbusiness and employment. Towns and areas suchas Maclean and the Clarence River, the CentralCoast, Newcastle, Port Stephens, Coffs Harbour,Wollongong, Nowra and Eden are some of the keyports for commercial fishing.

What are the key wild species harvested byNSW commercial fishers?

The NSW fishery is small, but diverse. We arefortunate to have a well-managed and healthyfishery. Snapper, yellow fin bream, flathead, kingand school prawns, sea mullet, mulloway, whiting,yellowtail kingfish, crabs, eastern rock lobsters anddeep water reef fish such as blue eye trevalla.Many of the species you see on the menu of fishand chip shops through to the best restaurants areall harvested by our commercial fishing fleet.

How can I get the best seafood?

Different species are caught at various times of theyear, so seeking fresh, seasonal produce from yourlocal fisherman’s co-op or fishmonger is the bestway to ensure premium local seasonal catch.

Increasingly, consumers are becoming more awareof the importance of eating food that has beenharvested or grown in a socially andenvironmentally responsible manner. BuyingAustralian seafood is a better choice – consumersknow it is fresh and healthy; the fisheriessustainable; and local communities and theirfishers are supported.

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What are the primary species?

WILD HARVEST FISHERIES PRODUCTION IN NSW (05/06)

Species Tonnes

Other fish 19 914

Prawns 1615

Rock lobster 100

Abalone 129

Other crustaceans &molluscs

1791

AQUACULTURE PRODUCTION IN NSW (05/06)

Species Tonnes

Edible oysters 4 267

Trout 196

Silver perch 301

Prawns 241

Other 207

The production in NSW of wild harvest commercialfisheries and aquaculture in 2005/06 totalled 28 861tonnes.

How much is this seafood worth?

VALUE OF FISH & AQUACULTURE PRODUCTS NSW (05/06)

Species Value

Other marine fish $70.8 million

Oysters $34.1 million

Prawns $20.7 million

Abalone $5.4 million

Other $23.2 million

TOTAL $154.2 million

How is wild harvest commercial fishingmanaged in NSW?

The NSW commercial fisheries are carefullymanaged by NSW Department of PrimaryIndustries (NSW DPI), in partnership withcommercial fishers. The resource is sharedamongst over 1000 commercial fishers who catchfish for the whole community to eat and enjoy. Theindustry has recognised the challenges in makingfisheries sustainable and has led many of thechanges introduced to improve environmentalperformance, such as the completion of detailedenvironmental assessments for the majorcommercial fisheries in NSW.

Today, the NSW industry uses world-leadingbycatch reduction devices and operates understringent controls regarding fishing times, seasonsand gear. The industry is constantly striving toimprove its environmental performance andcontributes millions of dollars each year to researchand compliance programs.

How are the NSW commercial fisheriescategorised?

Fisheries agencies throughout Australia havetraditionally categorised fishery resources intodistinct segments for ease of management. This isparticularly necessary in NSW because of the largevariety of commercial species taken for sale, andthe range of fishing gear used. Commercialfisheries have historically been defined by themethod of capture (e.g. prawn trawl and fish trap);however, some fisheries with one target speciesare defined by the species itself (e.g. the lobsterfishery).

Once each fishery is defined, policies andlegislation can be developed to establish specificrules. These rules may then be included in amanagement plan for each fishery. Developing afishery management plan involves extensiveconsultation with the commercial sector, therecreational sector and the community.

NSW fisheries:

• Abalone Fishery - Abalone is commerciallyharvested from rocky reefs by licenced divers.

• Estuary General Fishery - This fisheryoperates in 76 of the estuarine systems inNSW, and uses a variety of fishing gearincluding nets and traps. Over 80% of thecatch is made up of sea mullet, luderick,yellowfin bream, school prawn, blue swimmercrab, dusky flathead, sand whiting, pipi, mudcrab and silver biddy.

• Estuary Prawn Trawl Fishery - The EstuaryPrawn Trawl Fishery uses prawn trawl nets tocatch mostly school prawns in the Clarence,

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Hawkesbury and Hunter rivers. Squid is alsoan important species for some HawkesburyRiver fishers.

• Lobster Fishery - Eastern rock lobster is themain species harvested, but occasionally,southern rock lobster and tropical rock lobsterare also caught. Fishers use traps to catch thelobsters.

• Ocean Hauling Fishery - This fishery targetsaround 20 finfish species including sardines(also known as pilchards), sea mullet,Australian salmon, blue mackerel, yellowtailscad and yellowfin bream.

• Ocean Trawl Fishery - There are two sectors inthis fishery: prawn and fish trawl. Both usetrawl nets (although the nets are quitedifferent) and the major species caught includeschool whiting, eastern king, school and royalred prawns, tiger flathead, silver trevally,various species of sharks and rays, squid,octopus and bugs.

• Ocean Trap and Line Fishery - This fisheryuses a variety of traps or lines with hooks. Themethods used (and the key species taken byeach method) include: fish trap (snapper, silvertrevally, grey morwong and leatherjackets);setlines (snapper and sharks); driftlines(spotted and Spanish mackerel, yellowtailkingfish, and sharks); hand-held lines(mulloway, yellowtail kingfish and bonito);droplines (blue-eye trevalla and hapuku);leadlining (yellowtail kingfish, mackerel andtuna); and spanner crab traps, known as'dillies’.

• Inland Restricted Fishery - This is a smallcommercial fishery that operates primarily inthe waters of the Murray-Darling, targetingcarp and yabby only.

• Sea Urchin and Turban Shell RestrictedFishery - Sea urchins are the main targetspecies in this fishery with small quantities ofturban shell landed at times.

More information on these fisheries can be found athttp://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/fisheries/commercial/fisheries

What are the main controls used to regulatecommercial fishing?

There are two broad types of fishery managementtools - input controls and output controls.

Input controls limit the amount of effortcommercial fishers put into their fishing activities,indirectly controlling the amount of catch. Inputcontrols can include restrictions on the number oflicences, the size and engine capacity of boats, thelength and mesh size of nets, and the areas andtimes which can be worked. At some locations,

commercial fishers are not permitted to work duringweekends or public holidays.

A good example of how input controls work is thejuvenile king prawn closure near the mouth of theRichmond River at Ballina. King prawns live in theestuaries as juveniles and migrate to the oceanduring the young adult stage of their life cycle. Thismakes them vulnerable to capture at a small sizeby prawn trawlers. To protect the stocks of smallerprawns and to increase the value of the prawnssold, prawn boats are prohibited from trawlingwithin an area bounded by a 2.2 nautical mileradius from the mouth of the Richmond River. Thismanagement measure also helps to reduce thecapture of juvenile fish in prawn trawl nets.

Output controls, on the other hand, directly limitthe amount of fish which can be taken from thewater. The first step in implementing an outputcontrol management regime is setting a TotalAllowable Catch (TAC) for the species. Onceestablished, the TAC can be either fished on acompetitive basis or divided up between theparticipants in the fishery so that all fishers have anindividual quota. A TAC which is divided betweenthe participants means that in any one year acommercial fisher is not able to catch more thantheir allocated weight of that species.

Output controls are generally regarded as goodmechanisms to control the total catch in singlespecies, high value fisheries which are targetedusing a single gear type (such as abalone andlobster). However, thorough monitoring schemessuch as daily catch logbooks are often required toensure that individual quotas are not exceeded.

How do we ensure wild harvest fishing issustainable?

Fisheries resources must be managed to ensurethat stocks are harvested at sustainable levels forthe benefit of present and future generations. Thefisheries resources of New South Wales arediverse, and many different species are highlyregarded by recreational fishers for sport and food;by the commercial sector for their monetary value;and by consumers as fresh, quality seafood.

NSW Department of Primary Industries has theresponsibility to manage fish stocks on behalf ofthe community. The department undertakesongoing scientific research and monitoringprograms to ensure sustainable management ofthe resource.

In the past, many in the community thought that asthe commercial fishing sector catches a largequantity of fish, it needs to be heavily regulated.While this is certainly the case in somecircumstances, there is also an increasingrecognition that the estimated one million

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recreational fishers in NSW also have a significantimpact on our fisheries resources. Therefore, NSWDPI also manages the recreational sector.

Each of the commercial fisheries in NSW hasundergone a world-class environmentalassessment, which looks at the environmentalimpacts of the fishing activities. The environmentalimpact statement considers the impact of fishing onthe targeted and bycatch species, important fishhabitats, the broader ecosystem, and economicand social issues. It also considers the impact onthe resource from other fishing activities and othernon-fishing activities. Based on this assessment,fisheries management plans have been developedfor the commercial fisheries to ensure thatharvesting is sustainable.

Fisheries officers are employed by NSW DPI topatrol waterways to ensure commercial andrecreational fishers are licenced and are followingthe rules.

How do we know fishers are following therules?

Effective fisheries management needs industry andcommunity cooperation and compliance, education,and active enforcement of the rules. Anglers,commercial fishers and the community need tounderstand the reasons for, and adhere to,fisheries policies, legislation, regulations andmanagement plans to ensure the resource isharvested at sustainable rates.

NSW DPI has 94 fisheries officer positions acrossthe state, targeting both commercial andrecreational fishers to maximise voluntarycompliance by education and enforce fishing rules.High value fisheries like abalone and lobster are aparticular focus, with fisheries officers regularlyworking with NSW Police Force in complianceoperations.

What is bycatch?

The term bycatch commonly refers to the part of afisher’s catch that is not the target species. Bycatchincludes those fish captured by fishers (bothcommercial and recreational) that are undersized,prohibited, inedible or unsaleable. Different parts ofthe bycatch are sometimes called trash, discardand incidental catch.

Major issues in relation to bycatch are the directimpact on the mortality of bycatch species fromsome fishing techniques; the impact on ecologicalprocesses of discarding bycatch at sea; and thecost to industry when bycatch consists of juvenilesof commercially important species, in addition tothe cost of catching fish with no commercial value.

When does bycatch occur?

Most recreational and commercial fishingtechniques result in bycatch. For example, rod andline or handline methods, commonly used by bothcommercial and recreational fishers, capture arange of fish, some of which have no particularvalue to the fisher.

How can bycatch be reduced?

Bycatch reduction devices have been usedvoluntarily by commercial fishers for many yearsand are now compulsory in all ocean and estuaryprawn trawl nets. One of the most commonmodifications has been the use of square-meshpanels in codends. Put simply, they consist of apanel of square-shaped mesh positioned in theupper side of the codend and work by exploitingthe behavioural differences between prawns andfish. As the fish are herded together, they try toescape by heading towards the top and sides ofthe codend and can escape through the opensquare-shaped meshes. By contrast, prawns havea limited reaction to the trawl and tumble along thebottom of the net into the codend.

The size of square-mesh used in the panel directlydetermines the size of fish that are allowed toescape. Studies in the oceanic prawn trawl fisheryhave shown that codends with relatively smallpanels of square-mesh were effective in removingup to 40% of the total unwanted bycatch. Square-mesh panels have also been used in estuaries toexclude species such as mulloway and catfish. Inthe Hawkesbury River, square-mesh panels wereeffective in reducing the numbers of these fish byup to 40% and 50% respectively.

Fishers who seek to remove larger organisms fromtheir trawls may use a separator panel, such as asolid metal or plastic grid located in the codend. Inseveral experiments in the Clarence River, thisdevice removed up to 90% of the total bycatch, andup to 67% of juveniles of commercially importantspecies, with no significant reduction in prawns.

How are threatened and other specialmarine species protected?

In NSW, the responsibility for aquatic biodiversity isdivided between NSW Department of PrimaryIndustries and the NSW Department ofEnvironment and Climate Change (DECC).

NSW DPI is responsible for all species of fish andmarine vegetation. Fish include sharks and rays,aquatic invertebrate animals, such as worms,snails, mussels, corals, sponges, sea urchins,barnacles, crabs, crayfish, aquatic insects andprawns. Marine vegetation includes all seaweeds,seagrasses and marine algae.

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Other types of animals, including whales, dolphins,seals and waterbirds, and plants, includingfreshwater plants, are the responsibility of DECC.The responsibility for threatened species and theirmanagement is shared between NSW DPI andDECC.

In NSW, all seahorses, seadragons, pipefish,pipehorses, seamoths, Ballina angelfish, Bluefish,Eastern blue devil fish, Elegant wrasse, Estuarycod, Giant Queensland groper, Herbsts nurseshark and Weedy seadragon are protected.Commercial and recreational fishers play a vitalrole in ensuring the protection and management ofthese species by ensuring sightings are reportedand rules adhered to.

How are we protecting marine habitat inNSW?

Fisheries management will only be effective in thelong term if fish habitats are protected. Theincreasing coastal population of NSW has resultedin increased land and water pollution, and greaterpressure for coastal development. Much of theincreased pressure affects areas near the edges ofestuaries and bays, both of which are vital for thesurvival of juvenile fishes and crustaceans. Underthe Fisheries Management Act 1994, NSW DPI hasa role in advising whether various developmentsshould proceed.

NSW DPI is also at the forefront of aquatic habitatrestoration. NSW DPI plays a lead role inrehabilitating fish habitat and native fishpopulations in NSW through the aquatic habitatrehabilitation program and the formation ofstrategic partnerships. Key ways to improve fishhabitat are to restore instream woody habitat (“re-snagging”); restore riparian areas by removingweeds, replanting with native plants and fencing;and improve fish passage by installing fishways,making road crossings more fish friendly, removingweirs and actively managing floodgates. Inestuarine environments, programs to ensuring thehealth of mangrove wetlands and seagrass bedsare vital. NSW DPI works with landholders andlocal councils to restore and protect fish habitat forthe future of the resource.

How are research, habitat and managementprograms funded?

Fees and charges paid by commercial fishersprovide a substantial amount of the revenue tofinance fisheries research, habitat andmanagement programs. Fees paid by recreationalfishers also assist in these programs.

© State of New South Wales through NSW Department ofPrimary Industries 2008. You may copy, distribute andotherwise freely deal with this publication for any purpose,provided that you attribute NSW Department of PrimaryIndustries as the owner.

ISSN 1832-6668

Check for updates of this Primefact at:www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/primefacts

Disclaimer: The information contained in this publication isbased on knowledge and understanding at the time of writing(August 2008). However, because of advances inknowledge, users are reminded of the need to ensure thatinformation upon which they rely is up to date and to checkcurrency of the information with the appropriate officer ofNew South Wales Department of Primary Industries or theuser’s independent adviser.

Job number 8970