Multiple - Before After Control Impact analysis of the effect of a 3D marine seismic survey on Danish Seine catch rates
Implementation of dynamic reference points and harvest strategies to account for environmentally-driven changes in productivity in Australian fisheries
Developing and testing a multi-species, automated fish in-feed system for a production line to add-value and supply large local markets, replacing imports
Life history specific habitat utilisation of tropical fisheries species
The health and longevity of fisheries depend on access critical habitats appropriate to each particular life-history stage. While many key fisheries habitats are under threat from rapidly increasing coastal development, management of those habitats is severely hampered by very poor understanding of these life history-stage habitat requirements. This not only prevents effective management of critical fisheries resources but hampers the ability to direct development to enhance, rather than degrade fisheries value. At the moment many management and offsets actions are unsatisfactory to all users because they are based on incomplete understanding of fish-habitat relationships. This means actions and offsets rarely product tangible gains in ecosystem health or biodiversity, frustrating fishers, environmentalists, developers and governments alike. Not only can carefully designed developments provide new areas of critical habitat to replace habitats damaged in the past, but the opportunity exists for directing mandatory offsets from new coastal developments towards beneficial fisheries outcomes. This would provide the basis for greatly improved management of coastal fisheries habitats and would help to direct effective offset strategies, assist in directing fisheries friendly infrastructure design, and allow the development of metrics appropriate to the definitive measurement of specific fisheries outcomes from particular offset actions. Consequently, improved understanding of stage-specific habitat requirements of fisheries species is central to both the long-term health of fish stocks and fisheries productivity, and the effective management of coastal development to enhance fisheries values.
Final report
Impact of management changes on the viability of Indigenous commercial fishers and the flow on effects to their communities: case study in NSW
Indigenous commercial fishers* (ICF) make up a small percentage of commercial fishers in NSW. They are usually small operators that;
(i) derive a personal income, and
(ii) many cases, supply some catch for local indigenous community consumption.
The NSW Indigenous Fisheries Strategy 2002 emphasized the importance of indigenous participation in the commercial fishing sector. A workshop conducted with ICF in 2003 identified obstacles to ongoing and future participation in the sector. Several issues were identified see 'A Draft Discussion Document and Action Plan. Developing the participation of Indigenous people in commercial fishing. A Report commissioned by NSW Fisheries '. One of the main issues identified was;
'The gradual and continuing decline of Aboriginal commercial fishers in the industry means loss of an accessible and appealing employment base for Aboriginal communities'.
To date little has been done to address the decline and recent communication with some ICF, particularly in far northern NSW, indicate that it is continuing. ICF indicate that ongoing changes to management approaches in NSW are making it even more difficult for them to stay now then previously.
There is an urgent need to analyse the possible impacts of new management changes (structural readjustment in NSW - see the Pyrmont Pact) on indigenous participation in commercial fisheries and to develop revised strategies that seek to maintain the existing levels and where possible increase indigenous involvement in commercial fisheries so as to address (i) and (ii) above.
*Here we are talking about indigenous participation in commercial fisheries, not cultural fisheries.