Expressions of Interest (EOI) for East Coast Otter Trawl Hopper Program

Published: 26 August 2025 Updated: 4 September 2025

The Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC) in conjunction with the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) is seeking expressions of interest (EOIs) for fishers operating in Queensland's East Coast Otter Trawl Fishery (ECOTF) to participate in a program to assess the effectiveness of hoppers on prawn trawl vessels to increase bycatch survivability. The project, funded by the Australian Government's Reef Trust, includes funding up to 50% of the purchase and installation of a prawn trawl hopper system.

Australian Government and Reef Trust Combined Logo

What's the program about?

The objectives of the program are to:

facilitate the uptake and assessment of hoppers in order to increase the survivability of bycatch, particularly listed species under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999
support the development and uptake of improved sustainable fishing practices, and
observe, monitor and gather data on catch and bycatch within the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area.

What does the program aim to achieve?

The intended outcomes of the program are an increased number of ECOTF vessels with installed hoppers, improved onboard catch processing practices and reduced environmental impacts from trawl operations through improved survivability of bycatch.

The program will include financial assistance (up to 50%) towards the purchase and installation of hoppers on vessels, for eligible operators. Hoppers will then be tested to demonstrate their effectiveness at improving survivability.

Am I eligible for the program?

To be eligible for the program, you must satisfy and provide evidence of the following requirements in your application:

You must be a commercial fishing licence-holder and vessel owner in the ECOTF. If you are not the vessel owner, the vessel owner must provide their approval to install a hopper on the vessel.
The vessel must be nominated against a ECOTF fishing licence at the time of application.
You must be able to show a catch history in the ECOTF in the last 18 months from the vessel.
You agree to arrange the purchase and installation of an appropriate hopper for the vessel.
You must provide a statement from an appropriately qualified accredited marine surveyor outlining the steps required and feasibility, following consultation with the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, of achieving a valid vessel survey certificate after the installation of the hopper.
You agree to manage the installation process to be completed by the required timeframes.
You agree to facilitate data collection post-hopper installation to analyse the hopper's effectiveness at meeting the objectives of the program.
You agree to review your safety management system after hopper installation.