STOP Commercial netting in the Great Sandy Marine Park !

IT’S TIME to end damaging commercial netting in the Great Sandy Marine Park!

The Great Sandy Marine Park is THE ONLY Marine Park that allows commercial netting in what “should be” TRUE YELLOW CONSERVATION ZONE AREAS!

Ending damaging commercial netting in the Great Sandy Marine Park – which has already been tentatively listed as a World Heritage Area, will bring a much needed boost to an environment deserving of proper marine protection.

Using commercial nets to:

• Target spawning aggregations MUST BE STOPPED
• Target bream, whiting and flathead in conservation park yellow zones MUST BE STOPPED
• Target top level predators like mackerel , trevally, barramundi , threadfin salmon and shark MUST BE STOPPED
• Target low food value but high recreational fishing value fish like Golden Trevally, Snub nosed dart ( Permit ) , Queenfish, Giant Herring etc. MUST BE STOPPED
• Incidentally catch dugongs and marine turtles is definitely MUST BE STOPPED

Sign this PETITION to request Dr Steven Miles - Minister for Environment and Heritage Protection and Minister for National Parks and the Great Barrier Reef and the Palaszczuk State Government to commit to ending destructive commercial netting operations in the Great Sandy Marine Park and adjacent waterways under the current full term 10 year review to restore fish stocks and help protect the Queensland urban coast’s largest dugong population.

Sign NOW @ https://www.change.org/p/dr-steven-m...dy-marine-park


And share with ALL your friends & Contacts ....

Thanks Scott Mitchell

Chairman
Fraser Coast Fishing Alliance Inc.

Get into people sign this petition it's extremely serious what damage the netting is doing to our straits not just fishing but killing of by catch species

Done, come on boys!

Yep. All done

All done. Imagine the fishing here in another 3 to 5 years without netts.

Done as well.

Yep, all done

Thanks for every ones support - the petition has cracked 1500 this morning - but we will NEED all the support we can get it we are going to see our GSMP "corrected" in-line with the current full term review ...

Regards Scotto

Yep,done..

Done, looks like its getting a fair bit of interest.

Already signed

The petition has just cracked 1600 - BUT I will suggest we will NEED a lot more support if we are going to see any significant changes under this current full term - 10 year review ....

Regards Scotto

I've signed

1700 + BUT still a long way to go if we are going to see any significant changes ...

https://www.change.org/p/dr-steven-m...dy-marine-park

Scotto

Signed up today

1800 + Keep them coming https://www.change.org/p/dr-steven-m...dy-marine-park

Thanks Scotto

Done for me too.

NOTE ! With the Zoning Plan for the Great Sandy Marine Park set to expire on 1 September 2017 the Minister has today approved a two phase process for the Zoning Plan review.


The first phase involves the renewal of the "current Zoning Plan" prior to September to ensure the continuation of the existing rules. The second phase triggers the review and consultative process in helping to shape the future directions for the marine park.


Phase 1 of the renewal process has commenced as at the 5th of May 2017 !


WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT NOW - Please sign and share this petition far & wide - if you want to see unrestricted numbers of commercial fishers STOPPED from Netting the GSMP !


NOTE - The Great Sandy Designated Area incorporates areas of conservation park zones in :-


* Baffle Creek & tributaries


* The Elliott River & tributaries


* The Burrum River & tributaries


* The Mary River & tributaries


* The Great Sandy Strait and Tin Can Bay Inlet


This anomaly overturns EVERYTHING a TRUE Yellow Conservation Zones is there to protect !


Sign this PETITION NOW @ https://www.change.org/p/dr-steven-m...dy-marine-park


To request Dr Steven Miles - Minister for Environment and Heritage Protection and Minister for National Parks and the Great Barrier Reef and the Palaszczuk State Government to commit to ending destructive commercial netting operations in the Great Sandy Marine Park and adjacent waterways under the current full term 10 year review to restore fish stocks and help protect the Queensland urban coast’s largest dugong population.....


Scotto

TO CLARIFY what WILL BE EFFECTED by "Correcting" our Great Sandy Marine Park & debunk some of the propaganda from the commercial sector :-

REMOVING the "anomaly" that is the Great Sandy Designated Area ( Red Cross Hatching on our Yellow Zones ) WILL NOT EFFECT :-

* Trawler fishing - Which mostly ALL occurs outside of the Great Sandy Designated Area ( with exception a couple of beam trawl operators )

* Prawns – Otter Trawling ALL occurs outside of the Great Sandy Designated Area ( with exception a couple of beam trawl operators & some stripe nets in the Mary River )

* Scallops & bugs - Which ALL occurs outside of the Great Sandy Designated Area

* Spanner crabs – which are harvested outside of the Great Sandy Area

* Fish and prawns farmed commercially in Queensland

* Commercial Line Fishing IE: Mackerel , trout etc.

* The FCFA would support commercial line fishing in the Great Sandy Area by “long term local operators” on a Permit & quota basis.

* The FCFA supports ‘ Continued commercial crabbing in the Great Sandy Area by “long term local operators” on a Permit & quota basis .

IT WILL EFFECT & REMOVE Commercial Gill Netting !

The commercial sector will boast the current Great Sandy Designated Area also allows Recreational fishers to use three lines or rods per person with a combined total of six hooks when fishing in this area.

Recreational fishers in TRUE conservation park (Yellow) zones in the Moreton Bay Marine Park are able to use up to two hand-held rods or handlines per fisher, with no more than two hooks in total for each fisher. There are also six rivers and creeks in the State Great Barrier Reef Coast Marine Park Zoning Plan allow the use of two lines and hooks.

The Fraser Coast Fishing Alliance will be insisting that recreational anglers will be allowed up to two hand-held rods or handlines per fisher, with no more than two hooks in total for each fisher once the Great Sandy Marine Park is "corrected" and the Great Sandy Designated Area is REMOVED in-line with the current full term – 10 year review !

Please sign the petition & share @ https://www.change.org/p/dr-steven-m...dy-marine-park


Thanks Scotto

WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT NOW !

We will NEED more than 2500 signatures - Apathy across our sector is one of our major challenges !

Please sign THIS Petition and share with your friends & Contacts if you want to see Commercial NETTING removed from the following areas :-

* Baffle Creek & tributaries
* The Elliott River & tributaries
* The Burrum River & tributaries
* The Mary River & tributaries
* The Great Sandy Strait and Tin Can Bay Inlet

The Full Term Review of our Great Sandy Marine Park is currently in Phase One & we NEED a show of support to STOP Commercial Netting in the above areas by removing the "anomaly" that is the "Great Sandy Designated Area" - which DOES NOT EXIST in ANY other marine park by the 5th of June 2017 !

SIGN HERE - It takes less than a minute - https://www.change.org/p/dr-steven-m...dy-marine-park

Regards Scotto

Bit of info for everybody.

Sandy Straits is a designated Conservation Zone within the Great Sandy National Park.

Does anybody know what the total commercial net catch is for the 4 commercial logbook grids that include Sandy Straits for the last 5 years (2012 - 2016 inclusive)?

3 million kgs......... 3,000,000 kilograms............Not a mistake.....3,000 tonnes.

Hate to imagine what the catch might be if it wasn't a Conservation Zone!!

Sandy Straits is a bit like the "Horn of Plenty" in respect of commercial netting.

It'll never run out.

Will it???

Here ya go Douglas :-

Attachment 34963

Attachment 34961

Attachment 34962

Recreational fishing value


Referencing the State Wide 2010 Recreational fishing survey - Over a third of all recreational fishers (in excess of 700,000 state wide) lived in the Brisbane region but the participation rate among local residents was highest in the Mackay and Wide Bay-Burnett (Fraser Coast) regions, where 28% and 26% of the population were recreational fishers, respectively.


Localised depletion is being experienced across a number of key important recreational fish species both locally across the Fraser Coast region and across the state. Catch rates for anglers on the Fraser Coast region alone, have dropped from 7.8 fish landed per person per trip in 1986 to 0.81 fish per person per trip in 2003. This is the most current research but concerns are that this decline continues much further today and is in need of further review. Reference: Moore N. 1986 Recreational fishing in Hervey Bay and Great Sandy Strait. QDPI Information series Murphy I. 2003. 2003 Creel Survey. A ‘Snapshot’ of Recreational Fishers and Their Catches in the Hervey Bay Region, Queensland, between January and May, 2003.


Visitor Expenditure generated through Recreational Fishing across the Fraser Coast equates to approximately $39 million per annum. It is important to note that this figure is based on visitors only, and it does not take into account the value generated by recreational fishing by keen fisherman who reside within the Fraser Coast - this figure would be significant.


The figure of $39 million is compiled by the International Visitor Survey (IVS) and the National Visitor Survey (NVS) which is collated by Tourism Research Australia. This data is then distributed to the State Tourism Organisations and then distributed to the regional tourism organisations such as Fraser Coast Tourism and Events. Through the Fraser Coast Destination Tourism Plan, it is estimated that if the Fraser Coast is to increase its share of the Queensland Recreational Fishing Market by 8% by the year 2020, the value of visitor expenditure generated purely through recreational fishing would equate to approximately $107 million per annum by the year 2020. Again this does not include local expenditure – purely visiting anglers.


The Fraser Coast contains more fish diversity than the entire Great Barrier Reef being a crossover zone between tropical and temperate waters. It is recognised as the most southern limit for Wild Barramundi on the East Coast of Australia. Reference:  Burnett Mary Regional Group for Natural Resource Management 2014. The Great Sandy Biosphere.


In 2009 the Great Sandy Region was awarded Biosphere Reserve status by UNESCO, the global organisation that also awards World Heritage Listings. This decision gives worldwide recognition to both the Fraser Coast and Cooloola Regions, and the Wide Bay Burnett Coastline, putting the Great Sandy Region in the same class as the Galapagos Islands, the Central Amazon, the Everglades and Uluru. The Great Sandy Region is also recognised as an important RAMSAR Site, a dugong protection area and major turtle ecosystem.

You can sign the petition here - https://www.change.org/p/dr-steven-m...dy-marine-park

Regards Scotto

Commercial fishing Value in the Great Sandy Straits

While the value of the key species (including Tailor) is approx : $1.67m the value of the total catch is closer to $3.3m based on an average $5/kg. Based on $4/kg it is $2.6m and based on $6/kg it is $4.0m. For the key species we have used the State Average Gate Price. These figures are only an approximation and more detail would be required to produce more accurate figures. Mullet is the largest component of the fishery by value at approximately $0.77m.

Attachment 34966

Scottie

What's happened to the tailor?

These grids take in the lower outside beaches of Fraser Island and Rainbow Beach.

These areas (particularly Fraser Island) were THE place to go for tailor.

Now I see that the tailor catches for both of those areas are down to 5 tonnes per year.

Are there none there anymore?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Douglas

Scottie

What's happened to the tailor?

These grids take in the lower outside beaches of Fraser Island and Rainbow Beach.

These areas (particularly Fraser Island) were THE place to go for tailor.

Now I see that the tailor catches for both of those areas are down to 5 tonnes per year.

Are there none there anymore?

---

Yep - serious issues with Tailor Douglas !

And we still have less than 3000 signatures on-line .....

We NEED every rec fishers support who fishes with-in our GSMP to sign this petition and share with your contacts @ https://www.change.org/p/dr-steven-m...dy-marine-park

Thanks Scotto

I can't work out the maths.

If these guys are only getting $4 - $6 per kilo and the retailer is getting anything from $20 - $30 per kilo why are these guys doing it?

It'd have to be habit or way of life 'cos it makes no economic sense to be catching these things while somebody else makes the profits.

I recall the trawler fleets in Hervey Bay and Tin Can Bay going through a similar rationalisation process a few years ago.

Those who operated trawlers as a family way of life or habit simply didn't survive. Those who operated as a business did ok. Sure was some thinning of the numbers.

It looks like the same thing is starting to happen in the net fishery.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Douglas

I can't work out the maths.

If these guys are only getting $4 - $6 per kilo and the retailer is getting anything from $20 - $30 per kilo why are these guys doing it?

It'd have to be habit or way of life 'cos it makes no economic sense to be catching these things while somebody else makes the profits.

I recall the trawler fleets in Hervey Bay and Tin Can Bay going through a similar rationalisation process a few years ago.

Those who operated trawlers as a family way of life or habit simply didn't survive. Those who operated as a business did ok. Sure was some thinning of the numbers.

It looks like the same thing is starting to happen in the net fishery.

---

One price would be whole fish and the other would be filleted, processed fish. Take into account processing costs, yield rates, overhead costs, markup percentage, etc, the numbers work out about right.

Just SIGN the petition and share with all your friends & contacts we can STOP commercial fishing in our Great Sandy Marine Park under this current Full Term Review - SIGN HERE https://www.change.org/p/dr-steven-m...dy-marine-park

Thanks Scotto

Take into account processing costs, yield rates, overhead costs, markup percentage, etc, the numbers work out about right.

Thanks Apollo

The point I was trying to make (not very clearly) is that a return for a commercial fisherman of $4 - $6 kg for product isn't much at all.

The retailers are a different (but significant) part of the seafood industry problem. I guess its the same with suppliers and wholesaler markup on everything from fishing tackle to cars to furniture to electronics.

On line purchasing has helped sort some of that out. Not many opportunities to buy seafood online except from some of these same retailers I guess, so the price is still way over the top.

But I still can't work out how a Nile Perch can be caught in Egypt, transported 13,000km to Australia and sold as fillets for $18.50 kg (last time I looked). The processing costs etc would have to be the same and the transport and import costs would most certainly be more.

So why the difference? Would retailer markup be the reason?

In the bottom end of the Straits where Scotty's figures come from there are apparently 65 commercial fishermen operating ( 65 is from the QFish database)

If each one only gets 1/65th or .015 of the total annual catch, they can't possibly make money and stay in business unless the resource stocks are being depleted (and rapidly).

Maybe that's what's happened to tailor in the area?

I've been following up on the tailor issue in the Sandy Straits/Fraser Island area.

Up until 2000, commercial catches of tailor were averaging 33 tonnes per year.

What the recreational catch was I have no idea but Fraser beaches were considered Aus wide as THE place to go for tailor. But it would have to have been considerable.

After 2000, the bottom fell out of the tailor catches in the area. The commercials dropped to an average of 18 tonnes per year AND HAVE NEVER RECOVERED.

From enquiries, it seems that word on the street is that Fraser beaches are no longer THE place to go to catch tailor. No tailor is the apparent reason.

A 45% drop in the only measuring tool available (commercial logbooks) must surely have rung alarm bells within Qld Fisheries.

One would have thought that the logical Dept Fisheries response would have been a closure of the tailor fishery in the area until stocks recovered.

I'm coming from a long way back historically with this subject so I don't know if Qld Dept Fisheries actually reacted.

Anybody got info?

Whatever the reaction was (if any) then it didn't work.

This isn't a rec fishing vs commercial fishing issue.

The issue is management of fisheries resources in the area.

Loss of stock takes a while to show up and is a good reason to ensure that effective stock monitoring is in place. 2000 to 2016 is 17 years (inclusive) and a long, long time for alarm bells to be ringing in the Fisheries office unless somebody turned the bell off. Like taking a battery out of a smoke detector. That's what happened in the scallop crisis last year. Fisheries Qld took their eye off the ball.

The danger is that the depleted tailor stock has become the norm after 17 years and any monitoring simply becomes one depleted stock number against another depleted stock number each year. Not much change in stock numbers so everything is ok.

Aren't we at Dept of Fisheries doing a marvellous management job! The fisheries stock assessment gets the "sustainable" tick and maybe that's what happened with tailor following the latest stock assessment data available.

Tailor stocks weren't measured and when the measuring started (sometime around 2012 I think), the "measurer" wasn't aware that the stocks had been in trouble for a long time.

Am happy to hear from anybody who knows more about it.

Have found some Dept Fisheries info about their dealings with Fraser I tailor.

Will digest it.

Still happy to hear more from people who've been involved though.

I received a photo the other day of some mullet (headed and gutted) purchased straight from the pros at a ridiculous price. From Stradbroke Island. Story was, what the fishermen couldn't handle straight away or was bycatch were buried on the beach.
My memories from 45 years ago were netters netting directly in front of Rainbow Beach and what they couldn't fit in the truck tray in bulk and uncovered, they left under the upturned netboat until they returned from the Fishboard at Tin Can.
Those days if whole mullet prices went over 10c/lb, we thought it was too expensive to buy.

Thanks 3Macks

It looks like Fisheries have attempted some remedial action with quota restrictions etc in the past. Geez its hard trying to get any info from their website though. A significant amount of what's available is old stuff mingled in with the new stuff and you have to read right through an article to find out it's 2009 or 2008 dated. Next one will be dated 2015.

To find out what the real current state of play is, you have to actually find and extract it from the Act and Regs. They are absolutely dreadful documents to navigate through and Fisheries doesn't want to change them.

I can understand why people have to resort to ringing Fisheries where they're told anything at all over the phone.

I'll look further.







At first glance the reme