Trawling industry examined after shocking fish kill
Mon 27 March 2006
Gail Loader, Communication
Sunshine Coast community outrage at a recent, massive fish kill has caused current fishing practices and the sustainability of the industry to be examined.
Serious questions were raised when four tonnes of dead fish washed u
p along 16 kilometres of coastline over several days, shocking local residents.
It was revealed that the fish were killed in the nets of prawn trawlers operating close to shore. Fish and other marine life caught this way are known as by-catch.
This incident led to a hasty meeting of government officials and local fisherman, which resulted in plans for an industry code of conduct and a re-examination of current fishing regulations.
Department of Primary Industries (DPI) & Fisheries, Fisheries Resource Manager, Mark Lightowler, stated that, “everyone at the meeting accepted that dead fish on the beach was not to be tolerated”.
Minister for Primary Industries and Fishing, Tim Mulherin, told ABC Coast FM that he was very disappointed with the fish kill.
He believes it is crucial for operators to address this issue and work with government bodies to ensure the levels of by-catch are decreased.
“It’s all about sustainability,”, Mr Mulherin said.
DPI’s Mark Lightowler agrees that the “primary objective is to obtain a sustainable fishing industry”.
However, he states that the by-catch issue must be approached realistically to try and find a workable balance, as prawn trawling is a $100 million industry for Queensland.
Trawler operators told The Courier Mail that the current laws are too restrictive and it is bureaucratic error that is causing massive wastage of natural resources.
Joe McLeod, of the Independent Trawlers Association, argues that the by-catch problem can never be solved, Sunshine Coast Daily reports.
The DPI’s Mark Lightowler said that changes to fishing practices and the introduction of compulsory by-catch reduction devices has seen a clear reduction in fish deaths in the last five years.
He suggests that allowing trawlers to retain a limited amount of by-catch may be the key to stopping it being dumped overboard. However, not everything caught should be retained as this would not encourage fishermen to implement by-catch reduction practices.
The Sunshine Coast Daily reports that scientists are concerned that changing the by-catch restrictions for local trawlers could devastate the ecosystem.
The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation’s research shows that a quarter of all marine life caught in fishing nets dies as by-catch. Tonnes of fish are dumped, dead or dying, because they are not the fishermen’s intended catch.
An unnamed industry insider told The Sunshine Coast Daily that the recent fish kill only sparked public outrage because it was so visible. He stated that it was just a small percentage of what is occurring each day.
He alleges that current fishing practices are destroying the breeding grounds of reef fish as trawlers are taking everything up to 50 metres down.
He said that the damage to the Sunshine Coast marine life is unsustainable and comparable to the destruction caused by Japanese whalers.
Geoff Tilton, of the Seafood Industry Association, says that negative media re
ports have portrayed trawler operators as plunderers of marine resources.
He told the Sunshine Coast Daily that operators are trying to reduce waste and work with the government to have an ecologically sustainable industry.
DPI research indicates that current prawn trawling practices are sustainable.
Environmental Science student and regular beachgoer, Ben Champion, said he was shocked by the number of fish washed up at Cotton Tree beach.
“It’s disturbing to think that by-catch like this is happening daily, all over the world. What kind on impact is this going to have on the oceans of the future?”, Mr Champion said.
Image(s) designed by csiro
Enter comments about this article
Submitted Comments
very well written. a good balance of opinions
j loader