Few major disease incidents have occurred in Australian aquaculture and fisheries, and as a result, State/Territory departments and industries have relatively little experience in incident management for emergency diseases.

The recent white spot virus incident and subsequent survey has highlighted the need to have strategies in place to enable a swift and effective response to a suspect emergency disease incursion to rapidly contain an infectious disease agent.

Effective responses to emergency disease outbreaks require emergency disease planning at national, state/territory, district and industry/farm level and the involvement of animal health and fisheries authorities, emergency management organisations and the private sector. For the terrestrial animal sector, the basis for this planning is contained in the Australian Veterinary Emergency Plan, AUSVETPLAN, which is a series of technical response plans that describe the proposed Australian approach to an emergency disease incursion. The documents provide guidance based on sound analysis, linking policy, strategies, implementation, coordination and emergency-management plans.

Based on AUSVETPLAN model, the AQUAVETPLAN is currently being developed as a series of manuals and operational instruments which outline methods and protocols to manage emergency disease outbreaks in aquatic animals in Australia. Some manuals have been published (AQUAVETPLAN Enterprise Manuals; AQUAVETPLAN Furunculosis Disease Strategy; Australian Aquatic Animal Disease Field Identification Guide), and others are at various stages of endorsement (AQUAVETPLAN Control Centre Manual; AQUAVETPLAN Disposal and Destruction Manuals). Following a detailed process of government and industry consultation, the development of a Disease Strategy Manual for White Spot Disease has recently been identified as a key need to improve Australia’s preparedness in the event of emergency disease incursions.

Even when using a 4-hexylresorcinol dip the protection provided is not uniform (Guandalini et al., 1998). The residue from a once off dip drops rapidly over a number of days storage. The authors found that towards the end of organoleptic acceptability 20-30% of prawns were unaffected by blackspot. This researcher noted similar uneven blackspot development during storage (Slattery et al., 1995). This outcome is obviously due to uneven exposure and retention of the limited amount of 4-hexylresorcinol that a quick dip in a solution of the chemical can supply.

There is limited information on the effect of longer term treatment with 4-hexylresorcinol but only at the same concentration as the short dip (Iyengar et al., 1991 and Slattery et al., 1995). Providing industry with this type of information will lead to more adoption of a safer chemical and less chemical treatment of prawns.

Unlike Australia, many importing countries have defined residue limits which the product has to comply with. It is unknown what residues are likely from any long term exposure. The only information available is from a one hour dip of live prawns in the standard concentration which resulted in very high residues.

A range of methods of using Everfresh that will provide good protection from blackspot, yet result in low residues, is needed by the prawn industry. This research will assist the APFA Tactical R&D Plan by increasing profitability through reduced usage and wastage of expensive chemicals. The QSMA have been trying to convince the wild capture prawn industry to adopt the use of Everfresh for some time. This work would meet ASIC concerns for quality and safety of seafood. This project also complies with the SSA Plans for Seafood Quality and Safety in Segment 3.

Domestic need

Within Australia, the regulatory frameworks for ecologically sustainable development (ESD) are at a critical point in their development. At the Commonwealth level, aquaculture will be directly affected by amendments to Schedule 4 of the Wildlife Protection (Regulation of Exports and Imports) Act 1982 (WPA); by the introduction of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC); and in Queensland, by the introduction of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park (Aquaculture) Regulations 1999. Environmental legislation regulating shrimp culture in Queensland is also currently under review.

The Standing Committee on Fisheries and Aquaculture (SCFA) has established a Working Group on ESD. The working group aims to develop ESD indicators for assessing fisheries and aquaculture in environmental, social and economic contexts. It is anticipated that the ESD assessment process developed through this work will form the basis for Environment Australia’s assessment of fisheries and aquaculture under WPA and EPBC. The first aquaculture case study was held on shrimp farming, 3-4 October 2000.

The Australian Prawn Farmers Association (APFA) convened a National Shrimp Farming Environmental Management Workshop 24-25 May 2000. One of the outcomes of the workshop was for Australian industry “…by 2010, to have technology and farming practices and strategies that achieve worlds best practice and nil tangible water quality impacts…APFA to establish a comprehensive strategy for ESD by fully supporting SCFA Case Study for developing ESD Indicators.”

Given these developments, the expert consultation is ideally placed to facilitate the development of appropriate ESD policy, legal frameworks and good management practices for shrimp culture in Australia. It is expected that the outcomes of the consultation will provide guidance and a common platform for the policy development currently being undertaken by SCFA, Environment Australia and the Australian Prawn Farmer’s Association. This will occur through the interaction of key Australian policy officers with international experts at the consultation, and through the guidelines arising from the workshop.

International need

In December 1997, FAO convened the Technical Consultation on Policies for Sustainable Shrimp Culture. This consultation brought together government delegates and observers from 12 countries of Asia and America accounting for about 90 % of the global production and major consuming countries.

The Consultation noted that the achievement of sustainable shrimp culture is dependent on effective government policy and regulatory actions, as well as the co-operation of industry in utilising sound technology in its planning, development and operations. In this regard, the Consultation recommended that: FAO convene expert meetings to elaborate best practices for shrimp culture and the legal and other regulatory instruments for coastal aquaculture.