The Research Subcommittee of the Standing Committee for Fisheries and Aquaculture (SCFA) has been developing a national approach to the implementation of Ecologically Sustainable Development (ESD) in fisheries. Recently, Environment Australia (EA) has proposed changes to Schedule 4 of the Wildlife Protection Act in which the general exemption of commercial fish species from Schedule 4 be removed. It will be a requirement that "species are taken in a manner that is demonstrably ecologically sustainable" before being given an exemption from the Act. EA has developed a draft set of criteria for assessing sustainability of commercial fisheries. SCFA has formed a Sustainability Indicators Working Group to coordinate a national response. The Research Subcommittee presented a workplan for developing sustainability indicators to this Group on October 15. This was endorsed by SCFA on 26 October 1999.
These national initiatives should also been seen within the context of international developments such as FAO's 'Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries'and 'Guidelines for Developing Indicators for Sustainable Development for Wild Capture Fisheries', the Marine Stewardship Council's (MSC) 'Principles and Criteria for Sustainable Fishing' and ISO 14000. A number of Australian fisheries have expressed interest in obtaining MSC accreditation.
The interaction of fisheries and the environment including increased scrutiny of the industry by environment groups, MSC and Schedule 4, was one of the main themes at the recent Seafood Directions Conference.
Its against this background of major developments by a range of agencies, both national and international, that this workshop is proposed. To effectively implement ESD in fisheries will require a partnership between all stakeholders. The proposed workshop is endorsed by SCFA. It is consistent with the workplan developed by the Research Subcommittee. It is the first step to ensuring all participants are aware of all the issues, speak the same language and take ownership of the process. The workshop will identify stakeholder priorities and proved the basis for an action plan addressing these priorities.
The workshop will replace an FRDC-sponsored workshop which was scheduled to be held during 1999. It will be held in conjunction with the International Seafood Fair to be held at Geelong in March 2000.
Final report
ESD has become a major objective of the fisheries legislation of most jurisdictions. A key component is the need to measure and report performance against ESD objectives. Setting sustainable levels of fishing has, of course, been central to fisheries management and science for a long time. The concept of ESD, however, is far broader than the traditional focus on yields derived from target species. ESD attempts to balance the environmental, economic and social aspects of fisheries.
In 1998, Standing Committee on Fisheries and Aquaculture (SCFA) charged its Research Subcommittee with the task of developing guidelines for assessing fisheries against ESD objectives. In 1999, Environment Australia (EA) proposed changes to Schedule 4 of the Wildlife Protection Act. It was proposed that the general exemption of commercial fish species from Schedule 4 be removed. It will be a requirement that "species are taken in a manner that is demonstrably ecologically sustainable" before being given an exemption from the Act. EA has developed a set of criteria for assessing the sustainability of commercial fisheries. SCP A formed a Sustainability Indicators Working Group to coordinate a national response.
These national initiatives should also been seen within the context of international developments such as the FAO's 'Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries' and 'Guidelines for Developing Indicators of Sustainable Development for Wild Capture Fisheries', the Marine Stewardship Council's (MSC) 'Principles and Criteria for Sustainable Fishing' and ISO 14000.
It was against this background of major developments by a range of agencies, both national and international, that this workshop was held. The initial idea was for a small workshop to be held in conjunction with Geelong's Seafood Fair. However, the concept developed rapidly following SCP A support and substantial funding from FRDC.
The workshop program involved leading representatives from the commercial and recreational sector, conservation groups, science and government. It was attended by almost 200 delegates. The workshop presented a timely opportunity to ensure that all participants were aware of the issues, spoke the same language and took ownership of the process.
Many people contributed to the organisation of the workshop including Lyn Warn, Richard McLoughlin, Kelly Roffey, Diane Mahon and Peter Dundas-Smith. In addition, Diane Mahon was the text editor for these proceedings.
