9 results
Industry

Tropical fish traps – addressing ghost fishing impacts and refinements to catch reporting/sampling

Project number: 2022-164
Project Status:
Current
Budget expenditure: $150,000.00
Principal Investigator: John Wakeford
Organisation: Austral Fisheries Pty Ltd
Project start/end date: 31 May 2023 - 31 May 2025
Contact:
FRDC

Need

The negative impacts of lost fish traps ghost fishing are well documented and of concern to all parties involved with the sustainable harvest of seafood from the aquatic environment (Macfadyen et al 2009; Newman et al 2011; Vadziutsina & Rodrigo 2020). Essentially, lost fishing gears that continue to kill/harm fish represent an inefficiency in the fish production process, and in essence are a form of waste associated with the harvesting process, that ultimately reduces the yield and casts a bad light on the fishery itself. This project does not meet any specific FRDC priority in the current round, hence the lodgment under (Other), although because of what it attempts to address and minimise, it is likely to gain strong support from those concerned with appropriate management of fisheries i.e., minimising the wasteful use of renewable food resources at a time when there is a food crisis in the world, with parties including the FRDC, AFMA, ENGO's and the fishing industry.

Objectives

1. Quantification of fish trap (various designs) loss rates, both in the distant past and more recently, together with the main factors influencing the loss rate.
2. Quantification of how well “dumped” or unattended traps catch fish, together with the main factors affecting the performance (including the presence of trap disabling mechanisms).
3. Apply refinements* to fishing practices/gear to address loss rates and ghost fishing and assess performance (*utilising observations made in the first year of project).
4. Apply refinements to fishing activity reporting to assist with the management of effort creep, trap loss, and ascertaining appropriate harvest levels for the target species.
Environment
Industry
Industry
PROJECT NUMBER • 2022-137
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

Ensuring market-focused value adding capabilities are available to SA Seafood companies today and through to 2030

Context Fresh premium seafood has long been the best pathway to a viable consumer. That remains true for premium SA wildcatch species (e.g., rock lobster, prawn, abalone) that are, and will continue to be, prosperous. But processing and value adding have never been more critical to attract retail...
ORGANISATION:
Ridge Partners
Industry
PROJECT NUMBER • 2022-096
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

NPF Tiger Prawn Fishery Adaptation Strategy workshop

The Northern Prawn Fishery operates over a considerable expanse off Australia's northern coast. The fishery has been managed with a combination of voluntary buybacks, internal industry restructuring, and compulsory acquisition programs, resulting in a significant reduction in the number of...
ORGANISATION:
NPF Industry Pty Ltd
Environment