It is timely that research and management agencies across Australia review the way aquatic resources are monitored. Recent changes to the way we use and manage our aquatic resources has changed the way we need to monitor fish stocks and the aquatic ecosystems. For example, while monitoring work undertaken in Australia has traditionally focused on the impacts of commercial fishing, there has been a widening deficit of monitoring work designed specifically to study the impacts of the increasingly influential recreational and indigenous fishing sectors. There also exists a pressing need to plan the best way forward to meet future ecological monitoring needs. For example, the Australian Government’s reporting requirements for ecological sustainable development has introduced a new emphasis on monitoring broader population and ecosystem changes, something that fishery agencies across Australia have hitherto rarely addressed.
Acknowledging the importance of: 1. Focusing the workshop on a topic of great importance and relevance across Australia, and 2. Ensuring the current topic builds on the previous year’s topic (ESD), the NT Fisheries Group proposes the adoption of the theme ‘Monitoring Fish Stocks and Aquatic Ecosystems’ for the 2005 ASFB workshop.
The 2005 ASFB workshop provides an excellent and timely opportunity to hold an international barramundi workshop. The Barramundi Fishery is considered the icon species of recreational fishing across northern Australia and also supports a valuable commercial fishery. The 2005 International Barramundi Workshop will revisit the outcomes from the 1986 International ACIAR Barramundi Workshop and will further explore current and future issues affecting the barramundi resource. This workshop will incorporate several of the ASFB Symposium's keynote speakers and will be open to all researchers and managers.
Final report
The 2005 ASFB Workshop was hosted by the Department of Primary Industry, Fisheries and Mines in Darwin on 11-12 July 2005. The workshop explored the theme ‘Monitoring Fish Stocks and Aquatic Ecosystems’. The event attracted 138 delegates from Australia, New Zealand, Africa and North America. In the days that followed the workshop, the Department also hosted the annual ASFB Conference. Combined, the ASFB Workshop and Conference attracted a total of 206 delegates. These ASFB events were held in conjunction with the Australian Marine Science Association Conference.
Hosting the 2005 ASFB Workshop and Conference in Darwin provided a timely opportunity to also host an international barramundi workshop. The 2005 International Barramundi Workshop revisited the outcomes from the 1986 International ACIAR Barramundi Workshop and further explored current and future issues affecting the barramundi resource. The workshop incorporated several of the ASFB Symposium's keynote speakers and was open to all researchers and managers.
There was a great response to the call for papers for the above three events. For the final program we had close to 200 session presenters.
Keywords: Darwin, ASFB Workshop, Barramundi, Monitoring, Fish Stocks, Aquatic Ecosystems