623 results
Industry
PROJECT NUMBER • 2018-154
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

A market research-driven and co-management approach to developing an industry strategy for the SA Charter Boat Fishery

This project investigated the South Australian Charter Boat Fishery by conducting analyses to identify potential actions for growth to counter the declining level of activity and profitability in the industry. The SA Charter industry has shown declining in trends in economic returns and...
ORGANISATION:
BDO EconSearch
TAGS
Stock Assessment
Recreational Fishing
Rac Sa
Policy
Market Opportunities

Enhancing the understanding of the value provided to fisheries by man-made aquatic structures

Project number: 2018-053
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure: $376,840.06
Principal Investigator: Euan S. Harvey
Organisation: Curtin University
Project start/end date: 29 Apr 2019 - 19 Mar 2020
Contact:
FRDC
TAGS
Social Science
Social Science
Recreational Fishing
Rac Wa
Policy

Need

The north west of Western Australia has productive commercial and recreational fisheries and extensive offshore oil and gas (O&G) infrastructure. These man-made structures support a range of demersal and pelagic fishes which are targeted by recreational and commercial fishers. As this O&G infrastructure reaches the end of its productive life, decisions on the best practice option for decommissioning must be made. The current policy for decommissioning requires complete removal. Regulators may support alternative strategies, such as leaving infrastructure in place, if risks and impacts are minimised and there are clear environmental, social and economic benefits to do so. It is thought that removal of infrastructure will decrease catch rates and have negative ecological, economic (direct and downstream) and social consequences.

At the same time as the discussion is occurring about removing O&G infrastructure, there have been large investments in constructing and installing purpose built man-made aquatic structures on the seafloor for the express purpose of enhancing the experience of recreational fishers and SCUBA divers.

There is a need to deliver critical information on: 1) the ecological, economic and social value of these man-made structures to recreational and commercial fishers and other stakeholders; 2) the attitudes of stakeholders to man-made structures; and 3) the opportunities and risks of decommissioning strategies to fishers and other groups (e.g. tourism).

Policy regarding the removal of decommissioned structures will benefit from the increased clarity that this project will provide in regards to data requirements for socio-economic models and stakeholder consultation methods. Comparative assessments of decommissioning options rely on the existence of appropriate socio-economic data, a knowledge gap this project aims to fill. An understanding of the impact of man-made aquatic structures on recreational and commercial fisheries is a global priority, and as such this project has strong international importance and relevance.

Objectives

1. To develop conceptual qualitative, semi-quantitative and quantitative models for describing the socio-economic values and decide what information is needed to give stakeholders an understanding of the value of manmade aquatic structures in the marine environment.
2. To collate a list and description of the manmade aquatic structures in the marine environment in Western Australian and the associated social, economic and biodiversity data.
3. To collect and collate data on four manmade aquatic structures in the marine environment and develop and compare the costs and benefits of qualitative, semi-quantitative and quantitative models.
4. To develop a decision support system or framework for undertaking socio-economic evaluations of manmade aquatic structures which can be used throughout Australia and guide end users on how to develop qualitative, semi-quantitative and quantitative models depending on their information requirements.

Final report

ISBN: 978-0-646-84171-7
Author: Euan Harvey
Final Report • 20.59 MB
2018-053-DLD.pdf

Summary

In 2018, the state’s recreational and commercial fishers (represented by the peak bodies Recfishwest and WAFIC) commissioned a program of research as part of a Fisheries Research Development Corporation project aimed at documenting the social and economic values and benefits that stakeholders obtain from MMS in Western Australia. These structures include shipwrecks, artificial reefs, break walls, structures associated with harbours, jetties, marine navigation markers, and O&G infrastructure such as platforms, wells, and pipelines.
During 2019 and 2020 the researchers undertook seven online surveys which focussed on understanding the social and economic benefits and values that recreational and commercial fishers, divers and other users gained from using MMS in Western Australia. This was complemented by eleven focus groups which included representatives from the commercial and recreational fishers, but also the Oil and Gas (O&G) sector, regulators (state and federal), conservation, non-government organisations (NGOs), scientific sectors, and the general community. The researchers used data to develop five case studies representing a range of different structures and end users. These case studies focussed on inshore Thevenard Island subsea O&G infrastructure (incorporating recreational fishing), Woodside’s Echo Yodel offshore subsea O&G infrastructure (incorporating commercial fishing), the Exmouth Integrated Artificial Reef (recreational fishing), the Exmouth Navy Pier (diving tourism), and the iconic Busselton Jetty in Southwestern Australia, which is used for tourism, by recreational fishers, divers, swimmers and many other stakeholders. A guidebook was produced outlining the different methods of identifying social and economic values, along with the types of data required, and the approaches to collecting this data. The guidebook also outlines the advantages, disadvantages and resource needs for each method. A database of the MMS in Western Australia was also compiled and made accessible online.
Environment
Environment
PROJECT NUMBER • 2016-139
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

Decadal scale projection of changes in Australian fisheries stocks under climate change

Australia's oceans are undergoing rapid change and changes in fish distribution, abundance and phenology have been widely reported. A first step in ensuring that the fisheries of Australia adapt effectively to climate change is an understanding of the historical and projected changes in the species...
ORGANISATION:
CSIRO
TAGS
Stock Assessment
Stakeholder
Rac Cmwth
Physiology
Modelling
Environment
PROJECT NUMBER • 2014-004
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

Mitigation measures to reduce entanglements of migrating whales with commercial fishing gear

This project provided a robust assessment that gear modifications introduced into the WCRLMF and octopus fisheries have reduced the number of reported entanglements. The management arrangements around the implementation of these modifications are appropriate in light on the new spatial and temporal...
ORGANISATION:
Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) WA
TAGS
Remote Sensing
Rac Wa
Migration
Health And Safety
Fishing Gear
SPECIES
Western Rock Lobster
Octopuses
Industry
PROJECT NUMBER • 2012-223
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

Tactical Research Fund: Assessment of heavy metals in tropical rock oysters (blacklip and milky) and implications for placement into the Australian seafood market and for Indigenous enterprise development in the NT.

This small, but extensive, sampling survey was conducted on South Goulburn Island, located off West Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory (NT) to assess the occurrence of heavy metals (both spatially and temporally) in tropical blacklip (Saccostrea mytiloides) and milky (Saccostrea mordax) oysters....
ORGANISATION:
Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (NT)
TAGS
Traceability
Rac Nt
Indigenous
Food Safety
Contamination
Industry
PROJECT NUMBER • 2011-201
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

Implementing a spatial assessment and decision process to improve fishery management outcomes using geo-referenced diver data

Fishing activity was captured across 53,852 one Hectare hex grid cells across Tasmania. A total of 113,164 diving hours were recorded across 125,536 individual fishing events (Table 1). Between 2012 and 2016, the Tasmanian Geo-Fishery Dependent Data (GFDD) program captured between 85 % and 90 % of...
ORGANISATION:
University of Tasmania (UTAS)
TAGS
Survey
Rac Tas
Harvest Strategy
Fishing Effort
Behaviour
SPECIES
Blacklip Abalone
Greenlip Abalone
Industry
Environment
PROJECT NUMBER • 2012-036
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

Revitalising estuaries and wetlands for carbon sequestration, biodiversity, fisheries and the community

This project puts forward the proposal that stakeholders and government should concentrate on repair of the more developed coastal catchments around Australia where major investment and Australian Government leadership is required to re‐establish estuary productivity. It seeks to deliver multiple...
ORGANISATION:
Colin Creighton
TAGS
Wild Catch
Resource Access And Allocation
Habitat
Fisheries Management
Estuarine
SPECIES
Black Bream
Prawns
Mullets
Garfishes
Oysters
Blank
PROJECT NUMBER • 2016-104
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

Socio-ecological assessment of the ecosystems, industries and communities of Spencer Gulf

Traditionally, management of marine activities has occurred on a sector-by-sector basis, with limited consideration of the interactions between different activities and users, or their cumulative impacts. There is increasing global recognition of the need for Integrated Management (IM) of the...
ORGANISATION:
SARDI Food Safety and Innovation
TAGS
Stakeholder
Rac Sa
Ecosystem
Data
Aquaculture
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