Fishermen's friends: state’s busiest boat ramp gets major boost
Victoria’s busiest boat ramp is undergoing a fishermen-friendly facelift in readiness for the October ‘snapper season’.
South East
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The busiest boat ramp in Victoria is getting a state government funded upgrade to be more user friendly for the fishing community in Melbourne’s southeast.
In a frosty, early morning announcement, Fishing and Boating Minister, Sonya Kilkenny, alongside representatives from the Victorian Fisheries Authority, announced the $60,000 upgrade to boating ramp four at the Patterson River boat ramp in Carrum.
The boat ramp location boasts four large ramps and newly installed washing tables, which enable up to 16 people to wash and gut their fish before heading home.
Ms Kilkenny said the upgrade would provide new opportunities for the fishing community.
“We are giving $60,000 for priority maintenance – we are upgrading one of the launches, putting in some pontoons and installing two mobile hoists to help boaters who need additional support getting into the water,” she said.
“It’s all about greater accessibility for boaters and fishers to get out onto the water and enjoy the wonder of recreational fishing.”
Ms Kilkenny said recreational fishing added roughly $33 million to the state economy every year, and the grant would help reinvest back into the community.
“It’s all about reinvesting the $33 million from licences and registration fees and putting it all back into these facilities to be as good and as safe as they can be, to get more people out there on the water,” she said.
Ms Kilkenny was joined by Travis Dowling from the Victorian Fisheries Authority, who said the local fishing community was keen to see this upgrade completed.
“People are really excited about this upgrade, especially the two hoists that are being installed,” Mr Dowling said.
“For people that might be elderly, or those who have difficulty getting in and out of boats, the hoists will improve the ability of those people to go fishing.”
Mr Dowling said this grant couldn’t come at a better time, as the number of people going fishing is increasing.
“A booming number of Victorians are now fishing because the boat ramps are all free,” he said.
“As well as that, this year we are going to have an incredible snapper breeding season going on, so we are probably going to have the best snapper fishing season that we have seen in the last 20 or 30 years.”
gemma.scerri@news.com.au
