Three-year ban on fishing for snapper as stock levels plummet
Professional and recreational anglers are facing a three-year moratorium on catching the prized tablefish to enable depleted stock levels to recover. VOTE IN OUR POLL.
Fishing for snapper would be banned statewide for the next three years under a radical plan to allow depleted stocks to be replenished.
The shock move is the most severe of just two options outlined in a consultation paper to be released on Thursday.
The second option is to ban snapper fishing in all SA waters except those in the South East – but that region would remain subject to lengthy seasonal closures and other measures to restrict professional and recreational catches.
Both scenarios will send shockwaves through the fishing community, coastal towns that rely on summer fishing tourism and fishing industry retailers.
The moves will also see the price of snapper skyrocket as seafood retailers either import Victorian or New Zealand caught snapper or compete for the limited quantity of fish from the southeast that will be available if the second option is chosen.
Fisheries Minister Tim Whetstone said the severity of the current situation meant “some tough decisions’’ for fishers, regional communities and consumers to ensure stock levels recovered.
“The science shows drastic action is required to protect snapper stocks and for the future of this fishery,’’ he said.
“As this species is long lived and slow growing, if we do not make the right decision now there will be ramifications for years to come, and there is a real possibility that our grandchildren won’t be able to catch a snapper in South Australian gulfs.
“For years the recreational, commercial and charter fishing sectors have wanted serious action to be taken to halt the decline of our stocks but the former Labor Government failed to act.’’
Submissions from stakeholders and the public on the two management options can be made until August 31 and the government will announce what option will be adopted in early September.
The chosen option will then be introduced from October 1.
The three-year closure will decimate many sectors and country towns that rely on the traditional summer fishing season for their livelihoods.
Last month the charter boat industry warned any extended closure “would destroy it’’ as fishers were unlikely to pay up to $200 each per trip to fish for other summer species such as garfish, squid and snook.
The move will also make the business of many professional fishermen unviable and increase pressure on other species such as king george whiting and calamari as they seek an alternative income.
The statewide closure option would see fishing for snapper banned from October 1, 2019 to February 28, 2023.
During that period research into stock levels would be conducted and reform of the professional sector to reduce the number of licences would take place.
The second option that would allow fishing for snapper only in the South East of the state would see a total closure for the same period, but with seasonal closures in that area from October 1 to February 28 the following year.
New measures to control the quantity of snapper caught would also be introduced. They would include a catch limit for professional and recreational anglers with closure thresholds for each.
The recreational catch would be controlled by trialling a tag system under which any caught snapper would be tagged with a recreational harvest tag – the numbers of which would be limited.
The imminent restrictions on catching snapper follow a SARDI report revealing there has been an 87 per cent decrease in snapper stocks in Gulf St Vincent and a 23 per cent decrease in Spencer Gulf over the past five years.
“The latest fisheries science tells us snapper stocks in Gulf St Vincent are rapidly decreasing and they are already ‘depleted’ in Spencer Gulf, meaning the snapper population is below selfreplenishment at current rates of fishing,” Mr Whetstone said.
“This science backs up anecdotal evidence from fishers who have reported snapper have been
harder and harder to find for years in traditional fishing grounds.
“The proposed fishing closures only target snapper and I encourage fishers to look at other species such as Tommy Ruff, Snook, Yellowfin Whiting, Yelloweye Mullet, Silver Trevally, Western Australian Salmon, Mulloway, Flathead, Golden Perch and Leather Jackets, which all offer great eating and enjoyable catching experiences.
He said if snapper stocks improved to a sustainable level before February 2023 the government will work with industry and fishery managers re-open the fishery.
The huge decrease in snapper in Gulf St Vincent has been attributed to severe overfishing by professional longliners who have caught thousands of tonnes of snapper over the past decade, with the vast majority sold in the Melbourne and Sydney fish markets.
In 2005 the recorded catch for snapper in Gulf St Vincent was 36 tonnes. In 2015 it was 376 tonnes and has declined since as the biomass depleted and belated restrictions – including daily trip quotas and reductions in the number of hooks allowed on a longline - took effect.
South Australian Fishing Alliance spokesman Graham Keegan said he was “shocked and surprised’’ at the length of the closure periods.
“I have been in workshops for a year on this and there was no mention of going this hard,’’ he said.
“I am in shock. The alliance has been warning of this for the past six years and Labor did nothing and here we are facing this.
“It will have a profound effect on many, many supporting industries and communities.’’
Mr Keegan said he was worried about the impact on other species by the ban and feared a “compounding effect.’’
“It will flow onto squid, whiting, garfish and crabs. I think it needs more thought,’’ he said.
He said the alliance had favoured measures including eliminating longline fishing, extending existing closed seasons and tighter bag and boat limits to reduce pressure on the snapper fishery.
Marine Fishers Association executive member Craig Fletcher said he was “shocked at the severity of the options that have been put forward.’’
“I am struggling to comprehend the severity of it and what this will mean to our fishers who target snapper,’’ he said.
“It will mean a drastic reduction in the incomes of fishers who target snapper. Three years is an extremely long period of time.’’
Mr Fletcher said the MFA would digest the options put to it and formulate a response to them.
