Recreational rock lobster season ends today- and another hit to recs
Recreational rock lobster season ends today
The 2009/10 recreational rock lobster season closes at 6 o’clock tonight and fishers are reminded
there will be a change to escape gap sizes, when the new season opens in mid-November.
Department of Fisheries’ Principal Management Officer Graeme Baudains said following a
sustainability initiative, announced by the Minister for Fisheries Norman Moore in October last
year, the minimum legal size for recreational rock lobster pot escape gaps would be increased
from 54 to 55 millimetres from 15 November 2010.
“This will bring the escape gaps in recreational lobster pots in line with those used by the
commercial sector,” Mr Baudains said.
“As with the past season, recreational fishers would have an overall catch target of 290 tonnes of
western rock lobster in 2010/11,” he said.
“The target is established through resource sharing allocations that are assessed under Integrated
Fisheries Management (IFM) principles, which assign 5 per cent of the total allowable catch to
the recreational sector and the balance to the commercial fishers.
“All the scientific evidence indicates the western rock lobster fishery remains under extreme
pressure and in danger of collapse, unless it is properly managed and the overall catch target has
been set to ensure a similar quantity of lobsters to this year can be fished in the coming seasons.
Mr Baudains said anecdotal reports suggested most recreational rock lobster fishers had fared
well with individual catches in the past season and Fisheries and Marine Officers observations
indicated compliance levels were reasonably high.
“The ‘fish for the future’ message has been embraced by the vast majority of the more than
37,000 fishers licensed to participate in the recreational rock lobster fishery during the 2009/10
season,” he said.
“As far as the completion of the season today is concerned, recreational fishers must remove
their pots from the ocean by no later than 6pm.
“If extenuating circumstances arise for individual fishers, such as sickness or bad weather
preventing the collection, they should contact the nearest Department of Fisheries office and
notify a Fisheries and Marine Officer of the time they will be able to remove the pots.
“Lobsters found in pots after 6pm today must be returned to the water.”
More information about fishing for rock lobster in Western Australia are available on the
Department of Fisheries website at
Why do recs have to take another hit when we take less than 5% of the TAC
This announcement is very disappointing and one that rec cray fishers should make a lot of noise about. We had a bag reduction of 8 down to 6 which was 25% reduction!!!
Why are recs being penalised because of poor prevous management of the commercials by Fisheries.
Will they reduce the licence because we are going to take less animals????
Just wait till we get the rec catch stats, because recs should send a invoice to DoF for the balance of the crays we didnt take. The commercials got all theirs....and most of it in the first 6 weeks of the season so they had to shut it down!!!!
So much for IFM
another example of DoF keeping the commercials happy at the expensive of others
The web crawlers will read this......have some courage and explain yourselves DoF
West Coast
Posts: 332
Date Joined: 10/12/07
WOW big hit!!
Escape gaps from 54 to 55mm. Gee lets make a big fuss!!
I think the pro's fished a total of less than 80 days this year, and had their catch allocation halved. In addition to only fishing 40% of their pots (of which they have to pay 100% of the purchase or lease).
I never noticed too much inconvenience for us ammatuers....7 days a week for 7 1/2 months!!!
Salmo
Posts: 913
Date Joined: 15/08/05
are you a rec
Most of the recs will have to replace pots as it will be too hard to change over escape gaps.
Yep some will be able to modify their old pots but looking at mine I will have to use a angle grinder to cut off the old ones then weld in the new ones.....I have the tools but does old Harry the retiree
Its about a fair go WestCoast.....
West Coast
Posts: 332
Date Joined: 10/12/07
Salmo you just sound like a whinger.
Recs have pretty much been left alone over the past couple of years as the industry has/is going through massive change. Sure we have had our catch limit reduced but that is about it.
Complaining about a 1mm escape gap change is a waste of time and sounds pathetic in light of what the industry is going through.
Having said that, in light of the fact that we only catch 5% of the total catch I wouldn't want any more restrictions going forward as it would have no effect on the health of the fishery. If they were to further reduce bag limits or ban scuba etc then you would see me voice a very strong opinion.
train
Posts: 102
Date Joined: 09/03/09
.
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till
Posts: 9358
Date Joined: 21/02/08
The Pro industry and pro
The Pro industry and pro jobs are not a sacred cow. I know a lot of people that have lost their jobs and changed industries over the years, thats just life.
Recs pay significantly more for their share of the TAC than the pros. Fisheries bandied around numbers of $1mill (on the old fee structure), for 3% of the take, v's the pros paying $5mil for 97% of the take. Actually fisheries has said that they don;t think that recs even hit their TAC too.
I don't pot myself, but I feel that having to replace the escape hatches for just one lousy milimetre is a waste of time.
West Coast
Posts: 332
Date Joined: 10/12/07
1 lousy milimetre...
I tried to explain that to a fisheries officer a few years ago!!
No in all seriousness, I suppose it stands to reason that if you increase the legal size you in-turn increase the escape gap size.
till
Posts: 9358
Date Joined: 21/02/08
... but the legal minimum
... but the legal minimum HASN'T changed.
The only difference is that its now 77mm all season instead of 76 and 77mm, now if the gap was perfectly ok to use with 77mm pots before then why isn't it now?
West Coast
Posts: 332
Date Joined: 10/12/07
millimetres...
Because you will probably find that a 76mm cray can get through a 55mm gap, but not a 54mm gap and a 77mm cray through neither.
So now that we are no longer keeping 76mm crays (at any part of the season) the gap needs to be bigger!!
It all gets down to millimetres!! I would think it is marginal, but not a big issue.
saltatrix
Posts: 1081
Date Joined: 30/03/08
I havent a big issue with
I havent a big issue with the recs adjusting their gaps in line with the commercial sector.
The commercial sector hit their TAC pretty quick in many places. Maybe thats why they had to put a hault to the extraction for a period on the commercial sector.
Personally I would have preffered a complete crash in the Lobster population to see the impact. Maybe not really but either way there was going to be job losses. This still maybe on the cards if the future population doesnt turn around.
As much as anyone tries the data demonstrate above 4% extraction for the recreational extraction amount. No blaming them please.
What did they want, the recreationals 3% as well?
There was a crash in demand from overseas in the financial economic downturn.
Giving free reign to the stocks would have only meant the same money for a whole lot more effort as the oversupply sees the price plummet.
Reducing the effort actually kept Lobster prices bouyant which meant the Perth people who paid money for Lobster were still paying a higher price.
It was price protection because no one wanted the Lobster overseas.
Angling tourism is worth $10 billion to the Australian economy - 90000 jobs; more than any sport; spread the word
saltatrix
Posts: 1081
Date Joined: 30/03/08
Why do recs have to take
Why do recs have to take another hit when we take less than 5% of the TAC
This announcement is very disappointing and one that rec cray fishers should make a lot of noise about. We had a bag reduction of 8 down to 6 which was 25% reduction!!!
Its made more of an impact on fishers than it is the fishery. Its less than 1% of the total TAC. It does 2 fifths of nothing for the fishery.
Chip away chip away I guess Salmo. Slowly degradate the recreationals to nothing?
Everyone ready for the 2 month demersal closure?
Hang onto your pants, incoming Greens party and Labour implemented large broad scale no take zones just to kill off anyone chasing a feed for themselves.
Angling tourism is worth $10 billion to the Australian economy - 90000 jobs; more than any sport; spread the word