Cray licences to go to $140 per year
Media Release
Recreational rock lobster licences to rise to $140 per year.
Recfishwest has today warned recreational fishers of the grave consequences of the adoption of the Integrated Fisheries Management report on Western rock lobsters.
The Executive Director of Recfishwest, Mr Frank Prokop said that if the recommendations of the Integrated Fisheries Management Committee were adopted then recreational rock lobster licences would have to increase to at least $140 per year from the year 2010 onwards.
“The committee recommends that the recreational fishing sector should have to buy back a share of the resource from the year 2010. There would be no additional benefits to the recreational sector – this is merely to accommodate natural growth in the population.” Mr Prokop said.
“The committee seems to have forgotten that this is a community resource. It is totally illogical to expect the community to pay commercial fishers to access a part of the resource that is theirs by definition. Just when the rest of the world is introducing resource rents for the commercial industry, Western Australia is looking to introduce a community funded rent back to the commercial sector.”
Mr Prokop said that many recreational fishers had not realised the impact of the recommendations and so the level of concern was not as great as it should be.
“The committee has prepared the report and has extended the time for submissions until the end of February. Copies of the paper can be obtained from the Department of Fisheries.”
“I would like to stress that the recreational fishing sector already pays the government a greater pro-rata amount for its current small share of the resource. To penalise only the recreational fishing sector because more people want to live in Western Australia is unacceptable.”
Mr Prokop said that the report proposed making an allocation to the recreational sector equivalent to the anticipated catch in 2009/2010. However, after that time the recreational sector will have to buy catch from the commercial sector or take management cuts to keep their catches from growing. This will cause competition among recreational fishers and greater competition at already crowded boat ramps.”
“Of course many people will refuse to pay at least $140 a year each and every year for a recreational rock lobster licence. This may be exactly what the commercial sector wants. Unfortunately there are no planned mechanisms for the commercial sector to pay the recreational sector if they take part of the recreational catch.”
Mr Prokop said that Recfishwest had urged the committee to make an allocation that allowed for community growth so that the wider community could have access to the common property rock lobster resource. The Recfishwest submission is available on request.
“If people do not take the trouble to comment on this proposal, then the traditional and highly valued pastime of pulling a few pots or diving with your mates will be under tremendous threat. Recfishwest needs most of the 40,000 recreational rock lobster licence holders to tell the government that they need a few rock lobsters for themselves.”
“Recreational fishers have until the end of February to make their views known and get a more realistic solution to this problem.” Mr Prokop warned.
ENDS
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Big Frank
Posts: 115
Date Joined: 07/02/06
$140 cray licences
Seems a bit harsh on the blokes who might go crayfishing a few times on their annual holiday to pay the same as those fortunate enough to get out a couple of times per week.
Perhaps a fairer way would be that you purchase a licence for a set period of time for a set fee eg $25 per month. This means if you are only able to go crayfishing in December, it costs you $25 for a one month licence. If you want a licence for 4 months it costs $100 and so on. User pays.
Frank
Fly
Posts: 485
Date Joined: 04/02/06
Good Idea Frank!
Yep - pay for what you use!
Course Fisheries will never kill off the rec cray license cash cow!
They Way I worked out the new IFM principles - you'll end up allowed one cray each second day!:Rollseyes:
Its all a Stuffup!
When pros pay royalties and can't fish inside 3 Nmiles - I'll play the Fisheries Dets games - till then they can get stuffed - they have lost my confidence as managers of the resource!!
IMHO - it should be a federal Fisheries Dept responsibility, because State Govt have clearly shown they can't be trusted to manage such a valuable resource on behalf of the community and we should be petitioning our federal members to start drafting the necessary legislation to disenfrachise Fisheries Dept WA & the State Govt of their management (and revenue collecting role) in the Lobster Resourse!
It's a resource of national economic and ecological significance / importance and needs to be managed at a national level to ennsure an equitable result for ALL AUSTRALIAN's nit jus a priveleged few hundred cray fishers and their paid minions at Fisheries WA dept!!
If ALL Rec Anglers were to sign a petition to Federal Parliamentarians like the Federal Fisheries Minister, we COULD change the current stanglehold A select few people in this state are excercising over a larger community owned resource!
Do we care enough to change the rules?
If we can't win under the existing rules system because its corrupted - lets change it so we can!
Cheers! ;o)