17 results

Trans Tasman Rock Lobster Industry Congress - Locking in the Future: 2023-2031

Project number: 2022-109
Project Status:
Current
Budget expenditure: $150,000.00
Principal Investigator: Tom T. Cosentino
Organisation: Southern Rocklobster Ltd (SRL)
Project start/end date: 7 Feb 2023 - 30 Dec 2033
Contact:
FRDC

Need

Australian and New Zealand Rock Lobster is a high value product that has strong recognition in their local and export markets. There is significant capital investment across the combined jurisdictions of the Trans-Tasman lobster fisheries. As with most other wild caught fisheries and seafood sectors Trans-Tasman lobster fisheries face similar challenges in regards to, sustainability, threats to / competition for the resource and resource access, product quality and food safety, implications from aquaculture production and applying and taking advantage of new and emerging technologies. In addition to these common industry issues, lobster fisheries produce a product that is predominantly for live export which adds further challenges such as barriers to trade and trade agreements, complex supply chains and understanding the ‘what and where’ of new market opportunities.

Well organised and educational forums such as Trans-Tasman Rock Lobster Congresses enable a sharing of information and a collaborative approach to addressing challenges and sharing successes. Since first being held in 1999 the biennial Rock Lobster conferences have become the pre-eminent forum for the respective Trans-Tasman lobster industries to consider and address the many challenges across the supply chain. There is never a shortage of key issues and topics to address and bring together in a common theme to deliver a successful Trans-Tasman Industry Congress that has the support of all the key industry bodies and wider stakeholders.

The history of successful Trans-Tasman Industry Congresses, speaks for itself.
Trans-Tasman Congresses have well established support of all the key industry bodies and wider stakeholder interests with all lobster producing jurisdictions having now hosted an event. This history combined with the experience, existing contacts, establishing themes, producing engaging programmes, having informative exhibitions, attracting quality keynote speakers - both local and international, continuing sponsorship from service providers and the ability to attract the general support of industry ensure there is a pool of support and knowledge to deliver successful congresses

Initial Contributions (2023):
• Total combined initial contributions will be to a maximum of $30,000.00.
• Request a cash contribution from the NZRLIC.
• Request a contribution from the Eastern Rock Lobster Industry.
• Contribution from the SRL IPA.
• Contribution from the WRL IPA.

Proposed Governance Arrangements:
• The Managing Entity (ME) i.e. the industry body responsible for administering the congress in a particular year, will be responsible for holding and managing the ‘kitty’ of funds.
• ‘Surplus’ funds will be used to fund the administration, hosting and attendance of any planning meetings conducted in the ‘interim year’, this process will be managed by the ME responsible for hosting the most recent (past) Trans Tasman Congress.
• PI & Co-Investigators will discuss and confirm the amount required for future initial contributions.

People
Industry

Establishing a national end of life fishing/aquaculture gear recovery system for Australia

Project number: 2023-124
Project Status:
Current
Budget expenditure: $273,080.00
Principal Investigator: Anissa Lawrence
Organisation: TierraMar Ltd trading as Ocean Earth Foundation
Project start/end date: 29 Sep 2024 - 29 Jun 2026
Contact:
FRDC

Need

Building on the circularity discussions and work being undertaken by FRDC and the industry, this project seeks to undertake the legwork required to establish a nationwide on-demand End of life (EOL) fishing gear recovery system for Australia and pilot it in key locations. The materials that many nets and ropes are made of are highly valuable and recyclable and in fact in many other countries, is already being recycled or remanufactured. Until now, having a national system has been cost prohibitive due to the large distances and need for economies of scale and limited local buyer interest. As a part of the national targets set by the Australian Government relating to plastics use and recycling, commercial fishing and aquaculture sectors have been exploring how to move to a circular economy model and reduce plastic inputs through a variety of projects run by FRDC and others. However, with fishing gear the biggest plastic polymer input, and contamination challenges, there has yet to be a suitable system established.

This project seeks to enable the opportunities that addressing EOL gear provides in Australia to the commercial fishing and aquaculture sector through the establishment of an effective EOL fishing gear recovery system for the country to reduce the landfill costs to industry. It seeks to build on the learnings from previous projects as well as the ten years of experience of our partner Bureo has in in operating an EOL fishing gear recovery program. Bureo currently have an EOL gear recovery system active in 9 countries.

The key objectives are:
● By the end of 2026 there is an effective end-of-life fishing/aquaculture gear recovery system implemented across key fishing ports, and key aquaculture centres benefiting regional communities and fisheries conservation and assisting the Australian Government to address plastic recovery/recycling targets.
● By the end of 2024, the enabling environment for an effective and fit for purpose EOL fishing/aquaculture gear recovery system is in place within Australia, with commencement of recycling underway in key pilot locations.

Objectives

1. By March 2025 the feasibility of and logistical requirements are understood to establish a national end of life recovery system for commercial fishing and aquaculture gear in Australia and an enabling pathway for roll out created.
2. By the end of 2026 there is an effective end-of-life fishing/aquaculture gear recovery system for Australia implemented across at least 5 key fishing ports, with measurable benefits being delivered to regional communities, industry, conservation, while contributing towards the Australian Government’s recycling targets.

Whale entanglement mitigation program – understanding whale population dynamics, entanglement dynamics and gear modifications to reduce entanglements in WRL gear

Project number: 2021-091
Project Status:
Current
Budget expenditure: $750,000.00
Principal Investigator: Jason How
Organisation: Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) Hillarys
Project start/end date: 31 Mar 2022 - 31 Mar 2025
Contact:
FRDC

Need

Whale entanglement in fishing gear has posed a major threat to the Western Rock Lobster (WRL) industry over the last decade. Adverse media attention has to date been avoided, but 2020 saw the first entangled whale appear dead on a WA beach entangled with gear from the state's fisheries. Similarly, several "public" rescues were undertaken of entangled whales which is extremely dangerous. Attempts to disentangle whales has led to the death of responders previously in both Canada and New Zealand. Such events have the capacity to provide a significant threat to the activities of the WRL industry through erosion of their social license.
A program to direct entanglement mitigation research over the next four years will increase the strategic focus of research and increase the efficiency of the application and granting process, thus leading to a more rapid implementation of outcomes into the management of the fishery. Critically, broad dissemination of the outcomes of these project will assist in creating a more resilient social license. This will be important when adverse media attention is focused on the industry as the result of either the death of a whale or responder attempting to disentangle the whale.

Objectives

1. Understand the inter-annual shifts in the humpback whale migration along the WA coast
2. Determine the dynamics and WRL gear involved in humpback whale entanglements
3. Determine the population size of the Western Australian (Stock D) humpback whale population.
4. Investigate novel mitigation measures to minimise entanglements in WRL gear.
5. Support WRL gear disentanglement operators through provision of equipment and new technologies.

Pathways to social license for the emerging Tasmanian seaweed industry

Project number: 2023-101
Project Status:
Current
Budget expenditure: $103,598.00
Principal Investigator: Scott A. Condie
Organisation: CSIRO
Project start/end date: 10 Jan 2025 - 14 Jun 2026
Contact:
FRDC

Need

Sectors in the blue economy need to understand and manage social expectations in order to maintain their social license and ensure a satisfactory triple bottom line. This is a particular challenge for emerging industries, where data relating to community attitudes and expectations is limited. In the case of Tasmanian seaweed aquaculture, securing social license may be further complicated by existing perceptions and conflict surrounding salmon aquaculture.
The key elements needed to address the challenge of establishing and maintaining a social license for seaweed aquaculture in Tasmania are:
1. A survey of current community attitudes to industry expansion.
2. A tool to understand the evolution of attitudes and test communication strategies, policy options and industry practices in relation to managing social risk.
3. A coherent set of strategies for navigating pathways towards a social licence for seaweed aquaculture.

Objectives

1. Characterise current community attitudes towards seaweed aquaculture in Tasmania.
2. Capture past and current media associated the development of seaweed aquaculture utilising AI approaches.
3. Model changes in community attitudes including social and media influences.
4. Explore strategy options for managing the social risks of an expanding seaweed industry.
5. Communicate findings to key stakeholders and support managers in developing social risk mitigation strategies.
Environment