Four men apprehended for alleged illegal fishing at popular beach, none had a recreational fishing licence

The group were found to be in possession of 87 gastropod molluscs plus crabs, starfish and a shark.

The public are encouraged to report illegal fishing activity to the NSW Fishers Hotline on 1800 043 536.

Four men were allegedly found fishing without a licence at Skennars Head.

DPI Fisheries Officers responded to a Fishers Watch report at Sharpes Beach, Skennars Head, last week, where they apprehended four alleged offenders.

The group were found to be in possession of 87 gastropod molluscs (seven over the possession limit for four people) plus crabs, starfish and a shark.

“None of the alleged offenders had a recreational fishing licence and compliance action was taken in respect to this,” a Fisheries spokeswoman said.

“All the molluscs were seized and returned live to the water.”

Fishing regulation apply to help ensure healthy and sustainable fisheries for future generations.

Size limits aim to allow fish to reach maturity and complete their breeding cycle, while bag limits help make sure everyone gets a fair share of the resource and species are not overfished.

In saltwater, a maximum daily bag limit of 20 applies to any fish or invertebrate, except for some species with their specific bag limit.

Click here for details on how to measure fish.

The public are encouraged to report illegal fishing activity to the NSW Fishers Hotline on 1800 043 536.

From 5pm Friday 9 July 2021, tighter restrictions apply to the Greater Sydney region to prevent the further spread of COVID-19 (coronavirus).

Recreational fishing is allowed to occur outside the Greater Sydney area as per normal, subject to following the NSW Health advice. Regional residents must not travel into the lockdown area.

Commercial fishing operations, including charter fishing, continue to be exempted from the gathering requirements in the Public Health Order.