8 results
Industry
Environment
PROJECT NUMBER • 2003-056
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

ESD Reporting and Assessment Subprogram: a social assessment handbook for use by Australian fisheries managers in ESD assessment and monitoring

In recent years, understanding the social side of fisheries and fishing industries has become increasingly important, particularly as part of processes reporting on ecologically sustainable development. This project was developed to provide a more structured approach to the way social assessments...
ORGANISATION:
Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) ABARES

National Fishery Status Reports

Project number: 2011-513.30
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure: $313,750.00
Principal Investigator: Matt J. Flood
Organisation: Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) ABARES
Project start/end date: 11 Dec 2011 - 31 Oct 2012
:

Need

There is a need for a consolidated national report on the status of key wild catch Australian fish stocks, focusing on commercial and recreational target species. One pitfall of guides like the Australia’s Sustainable Seafood Guide is their focus on entire species, without considering differences among stocks within each species. Consequently, a poor status determination for one stock can result in a poor status determination for all stocks of that species regardless of whether or not the other stocks are healthy. Government can avoid this pitfall by clearly articulating the status of individual fish stocks. Australia’s different jurisdictions have demonstrated their capacity to work constructively together to achieve common goals (e.g. joint stock assessments for shared stocks). However, the current differences in scope, depth, terminology and benchmarking in jurisdictionally based Fishery Status Reports make it difficult to readily compare the status of stocks across jurisdictions and build a coherent national status of key species.

The National Fishery Status Reports would not be promoted as an eco-labelling guide but rather as a government produced instrument designed to simplify comparison of the status of key wild capture fish stocks around Australia both within and among jurisdictions. This information would be available for the general public, policy makers and industry to make informed decisions in relation to the actual health of various stocks. The reports would also provide an important and accurate information source for international organisations (e.g. FAO). The process of producing these reports will improve communication between the jurisdictions, leading to a better understanding of the status determinations made by each jurisdiction and how these compare. One of the main outcomes already achieved from the recent jurisdictional planning workshops is the convergence on a common system of benchmarking and terminology for use across jurisdictions.

Objectives

1. To produce the first National Fishery Status Reports.

Status of Key Australian Fish Stocks Reports 2012

Project number: 2011-513
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure: $278,435.00
Principal Investigator: Matt J. Flood
Organisation: Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) ABARES
Project start/end date: 11 Dec 2011 - 31 Oct 2012
:

Need

There is a need for a consolidated national report on the status of key wild catch Australian fish stocks, focusing on commercial and recreational target species. One pitfall of guides like the Australia’s Sustainable Seafood Guide is their focus on entire species, without considering differences among stocks within each species. Consequently, a poor status determination for one stock can result in a poor status determination for all stocks of that species regardless of whether or not the other stocks are healthy. Government can avoid this pitfall by clearly articulating the status of individual fish stocks. Australia’s different jurisdictions have demonstrated their capacity to work constructively together to achieve common goals (e.g. joint stock assessments for shared stocks). However, the current differences in scope, depth, terminology and benchmarking in jurisdictionally based Fishery Status Reports make it difficult to readily compare the status of stocks across jurisdictions and build a coherent national status of key species.

The National Fishery Status Reports would not be promoted as an eco-labelling guide but rather as a government produced instrument designed to simplify comparison of the status of key wild capture fish stocks around Australia both within and among jurisdictions. This information would be available for the general public, policy makers and industry to make informed decisions in relation to the actual health of various stocks. The reports would also provide an important and accurate information source for international organisations (e.g. FAO). The process of producing these reports will improve communication between the jurisdictions, leading to a better understanding of the status determinations made by each jurisdiction and how these compare. One of the main outcomes already achieved from the recent jurisdictional planning workshops is the convergence on a common system of benchmarking and terminology for use across jurisdictions.

Objectives

1. To produce the first National Fishery Status Reports.
Industry

Tactical Research Fund: Information to support management options for upper slope gulper sharks (including Harrison's dogfish and southern dogfish).

Project number: 2008-065
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure: $67,273.00
Principal Investigator: David Wilson
Organisation: Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) ABARES
Project start/end date: 31 Oct 2008 - 18 Feb 2009
:

Need

The ecological risk assessment process recently undertaken jointly by AFMA and CSIRO has identified that sharks generally, are high priority species which require focussed management attention. In the Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery (SESSF) this is particularly the case for upper slope Southern and Eastern gulper sharks (including Harrison’s dogfish and Southern dogfish) which have been found to be severely depleted and have been nominated as threatened species under the EPBC Act. AFMA is now developing management responses to address these identified ecological risks, and there are a number of complimentary processes currently underway. These include the bycatch working group in the SESSF, which is currently preparing a bycatch work plan to be developed and implemented during 2008. AFMA is also establishing an expert shark and ray (Chondrichthyan) working group to develop appropriate management responses for these species across all fisheries. There is also a small working group in the South East Trawl Fishery (SETF) which is looking closely at the deepwater shark species of the lower slope and additional work is being undertaken to provide immediate management recommendations in relation to Harrison’s dogfish in particular. However, despite these various initiatives, there is a need to review available information on the upper slope gulper sharks (including species other than just Harrison’s dogfish) to improve understanding of levels of interaction and to provide advice on future management options.

Objectives

1. Review the success of management arrangements used elsewhere around the world to address the sustainability of fisheries catches involving similar upper slope low productivity shark species
2. Consider the historical identification of Harrison's dogfish including catch statistics and scientific surveys.
3. Investigate and improve estimates on the extent and nature of actual interactions with Harrison’s dogfish and other similar upper slope gulper sharks in all sectors of Australia’s SESSF
4. Provide an analysis, with supporting rationale, for alternative management options for reducing the ecological risk to Harrison’s dogfish and other similar upper slope gulper sharks in Australia’s SESSF

Final report

ISBN: 978-1-921192-35-7
Author: David Wilson

Community perceptions of fishing: implications for industry image, marketing and sustainability

Project number: 2001-309
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure: $104,065.00
Principal Investigator: Heather Aslin
Organisation: Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) ABARES
Project start/end date: 29 Aug 2001 - 30 Apr 2003
:

Objectives

1. To conduct focus groups with selected sub-groups of the Australian public to serve as a basis for developing a structured survey instrument.
2. To develop the survey instrument in discussion with the advisory group, conduct a pilot test of the instrument, and administer it to a statistically representative sample of the Australian adult population (18+).
3. To identify implications of survey findings for industry communication, education and marketing activities (from answers to knowledge, perceptions, attitudes and behavioral questions).
4. To identify implications of survey findings for ESD monitoring and reporting frameworks (behavioral questions in particular).
5. In discussions with the advisory group, to develop options and strategies for addressing any negative perceptions of the industry, identifying appropriate actions, agencies to implement actions, and methods for evaluating success of implementing options.
6. To communicate overall survey results to stakeholders in a meaningful and useful form.

Final report

ISBN: 0-642-47539
Author: Heather Aslin
Final Report • 2004-09-09 • 660.85 KB
2001-309-DLD.pdf

Summary

A pioneering national study of Australian public perceptions, knowledge and attitudes towards the fishing industry, has been completed. It covers the commercial, recreational and traditional  fishing sectors, and also examines seafood consumption and factors likely to affect future consumption. ‘Perception’ is used to refer to held beliefs or cognitions that may or may not be correct as judged by those with specialised knowledge of the industry. The traditional fishing sector, as used here, refers to subsistence fishing activities by Indigenous people. Indigenous Australians of course also participate in the commercial fishing sector.) The study involved a literature review; seven focus group discussions with a total of 63 members of the Australian public from a range of locations, ages and occupational groups; and a telephone survey of 1,004 Australian adults, 18 years and over, randomly sampled from the electronic white pages. While the final sample was reasonably representative of the general public in age distribution, it was somewhat skewed towards people with higher incomes. It is also acknowledged that voluntary telephone surveys like this one tend to have an over-representation of people who are interested in the subject matter of the survey. In this case, both recreational and commercial fishers and their views may be over-represented. These issues and their possibly influence need to be borne in mind in interpreting survey findings.
 
Survey findings indicate considerable community knowledge about recreational fishing and high participation, with twice as many men as women participating
(survey percentages were 58% of males and 29% of females participating over the year prior to the survey). Very few members of either the focus groups or telephone sample (collectively referred to as ‘respondents’) had direct experience with the commercial wild-catch sector or traditional fishing, but many focus group members knew about or had visited local aquaculture ventures. Respondents generally viewed recreational and traditional fishing and aquaculture positively, but not commercial wild-catch fishing. The telephone sample rated the sustainability of the different sectors in the order wild-catch (25% said it was sustainable); recreational (56%); traditional (64%), and aquaculture (77%). Respondents’ most important source of information about the industry was the mass media, particularly television. Recreational fishers relied more on books, magazines and fishing clubs than non-recreational fishers. Government and industry were very minor sources of information for most respondents and were not viewed as highly credible sources. Poor perceptions of the wild-catch sector suggest that much mass media information about this sector is negative, and there could be advantages in industry taking a more proactive media stance and trying to achieve better coverage of ‘good news’ stories. 
 
Members of most of the focus groups and the majority of survey respondents rated their knowledge of the industry as relatively low but interest levels higher (only 25% of the survey respondents thought they were ‘knowledgeable’ but 53% were
‘interested’), providing encouragement to those working to improve public understanding and knowledge of the industry. However, like similar surveys, the study concludes that unless they have a special interest, members of the public are unlikely to actively seek information about the industry nor to make much use of the sources they regard as most credible. Specific options for addressing poor public perceptions of the wild-catch sector include developing media campaigns in consultation with professional communicators; enlisting the support of media personalities to deliver messages; developing and disseminating popular material giving basic facts and figures about the sector and making it available in locations the public regularly uses; supporting production of television documentaries that provide a balanced perspective on wild-catch fishing and its contributions; and developing more integrated fisheries websites, preferably managed and maintained by community-based organisations that the public regards as credible. The industry could also develop more ‘on the wharf’ links to the public, for example by establishing fishing industry information sources within commercial precincts. 
 
To address low levels of public knowledge about the traditional sector, government and industry need to work with Indigenous organisations to develop communication strategies to raise public awareness of this sector and its economic and cultural contribution to Indigenous community well-being.
 
Study findings about community judgements of the sustainability of the different sectors, and the reasons for these judgements, could potentially be used in ESD reporting frameworks. In order to do this, ESD frameworks need to be made more meaningful to the community and less dominated by expert judgements and specialised knowledge. There may be particular problems with the meaningfulness of current fisheries’ jurisdictional and management boundaries. Better understanding of public perceptions, knowledge and behaviour obtained through social surveys could be a basis for re-working boundaries and reporting frameworks so that they relate better to community and local knowledge. In particular, high levels of participation and interest in recreational fishing justify attention to ways of making fisheries management more meaningful to the public and giving local communities a greater role in near shore fisheries management than they may have had in the past. Many community members appear to be engaged and interested but lack ways of being directly involved in management or monitoring. 
 
In terms of seafood consumption, a high percentage of respondents ate seafood (95% of the telephone sample). For those who did not eat it, their main reason for not doing so was taste, with other factors less important. The amount of seafood respondents purchased was likely to be influenced by price reductions (70% indicated this would influence them); labelling and certification about contamination and health risks (65%); labelling about freshness (59%); and labelling about environmentally friendly production (57%). These findings suggest potential to further influence seafood consumption patterns by expanding labelling and certification schemes.
 
Ongoing monitoring of social aspects of the industry, based partly on surveys like the one reported here, could provide the industry with important feedback about the success of its communication and information activities, complementing existing economic information about trends in production and consumption. 
Industry
PROJECT NUMBER • 1995-118
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

Evaluation of factors influencing prices of domestic seafoods

Australian fisheries are managed by governments to ensure that commercial fishing is undertaken in a sustainable and economically efficient manner. Fisheries management decisions influence the level of catch from a fishery, either directly through setting the total allowable catches that the...
ORGANISATION:
Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) ABARES
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