Custom training and technical support for the fishery stock assessment software ‘stock synthesis’

Project number: 2018-168
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure: $77,220.00
Principal Investigator: Michael F. O'Neill
Organisation: Department of Primary Industries (QLD)
Project start/end date: 31 Mar 2019 - 29 Jun 2020
Contact:
FRDC
TAGS
Wild Catch
Training
Sustainability
Stock Assessment
Software

Need

The Queensland Government Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (DAF) aims to manage fisheries utilising the best available science taking into account environmental, economic, social and cultural impacts.
Through the Government’s Sustainable Fisheries Strategy (SFS, 2018–2020), plans are actioned to establish regular stock assessments (ongoing annually or at least every two years) to provide the science for assessing key fishery stocks against reference points.
To conduct regular stock assessments of finfish, Fisheries Queensland and the SFS expert panel have directed DAF staff to investigate the use of off-the-shelf stock-assessment models. This recommendation is for delivery of recurring information to support fishery harvest strategies; and followed a review to support the use of common stock assessment methods and models (FRDC Research Code: 2014-039; http://www.frdc.com.au/media-and-publications/fish/fish-vol-26-3/skills-shortage-forecast-for-stock-assessments). This proposal is to progress Qld’s adoption of FRDC recommendations and research: project 2014-039.
DAF’s training needs are by 31st May 2019.
The aim for this training is to build stock assessment systems for DAF and help support similar national needs in Australia.

Objectives

1. DAF scientists to learn SS methodology and assumptions.
2. After 5-day course, DAF scientists to be proficient in the use of SS software with R
3. Produce 3–4 updated DAF finfish stock assessments through the 5-day course
4. Publish on success, outputs and findings of SS
5. Improve speed on future reassessments of fish stocks

Final report

ISBN: 978-0-7345-0464-7
Authors: M. F. O’Neill R. Lovett P. Bessell-Browne S. Streipert G. Leigh A. Campbell A. Northrop J. Wortmann F. Helidoniotis W.-H. Yang M. Holden and S. French.
Final Report • 2020-02-01 • 2.75 MB
2018-168-DLD.pdf

Summary

This is a report on ‘stock synthesis’ software training by CSIRO. Noted are training outputs and learnings, together with an assessment of what role stock synthesis (SS) may play in Department of Agriculture and
Fisheries (DAF) fish stock assessments. Findings suggest SS could potentially assess 50–60% of the fish species currently listed for Queensland stock assessment.
Reports on SS herein represent initial views after training. SS views may change in time with individuals, and with more use and learnings of the software.

Related research

All research
research
Communities
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Environment

Integrating recreational fishing information into harvest strategies for multi-sector fisheries

Project number: 2019-021
Project Status:
Current
Budget expenditure: $444,676.00
Principal Investigator: Ashley Fowler
Organisation: Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (NSW)
Project start/end date: 31 Oct 2019 - 31 Oct 2023
Contact:
FRDC
TAGS
Stock Assessment
Software
Resource Sharing
Resource Sharing
Recreational Fishing

Need

Integration of recreational fishing (RF) into harvest strategies (HS) is necessary for many fisheries in Australia, to account for catches that can equal or exceed commercial catch for some key species and to address biological and experiential objectives of the RF sector. Both the Productivity Commission’s report Marine Fisheries and Aquaculture (2016) and the ICES Report from the Working Group Recreational Fishing Surveys (2018) recommend formal integration of RF into stock assessments and harvest strategies. Failure to do so puts sustainable management goals and legislated state and Commonwealth fisheries requirements at risk.

Equitable and quantitative inclusion of RF in harvest strategies is rare. This stems from a traditional focus on the commercial sector and budgetary challenges involved with representatively sampling RF. It is therefore unclear: 1) what types of RF data and monitoring best service stock assessments, (2) which data also track indicators of recreational objectives (often related to the fishing experience), and (3) how to integrate harvest strategy components for multiple sectors. The need to address these knowledge gaps was highlighted by the FRDC priority research call in 2018 - “Integrating recreational fishery data into harvest strategies for multi-sector fisheries in New South Wales”. NSW provides an important test case for addressing issues around RF integration that are faced by most jurisdictions.

Harvest strategy development for multi-sector fisheries requires a transparent and defensible process due to complexities in addressing diverse objectives and apprehension among stakeholder groups. Structured workshops that use easily-understandable, interactive decision support tools and involve independent experts and stakeholder representatives are likely to provide best outcomes. ‘FishPath’ is a leading harvest strategy decision support tool and “bottom up” engagement philosophy that allows experts and stakeholders to interactively contribute to harvest strategy development in a transparent workshop setting. However, it requires additional development in recreational and multi-sector contexts.

Objectives

1. Obtain information on recreational fishing objectives and facilitate improved understanding among recreational fishers of the role of harvest strategies.
2. Identify types of recreational fishing data and monitoring that provide reliable measures of both the biological and experiential performance of fished populations.
3. Interrogate and extend the FishPath decision support software tool to better characterise and integrate recreational fishing information into harvest strategy development for multi-sector fisheries.
4. Develop guidelines and recommendations for the integration of recreational fishing information into harvest strategies for multi-sector fisheries.
5. Develop draft harvest strategies for key multi-sector fisheries using outcomes from Objectives 1-4.

Report

Authors: Fowler AM Chick RC Bolton P Folpp H Harnwell J Lowry M Lyle JM Lynch TP McIlgorm A Nichols R Ochwada-Doyle FA Pepperell J Dowling NA.
Report • 2021-12-15 • 990.17 KB
2019-021 NSW Recreational Fishing Workshops_FRDC interim report_final.pdf

Summary

This interim report provides an update on workshops with recreational fishers, scientists and managers to investigate recreational fishing objectives for three stocks of recreational importance in NSW – Mulloway, Yellowtail Kingfish, and Snapper. The study forms part of a broader research project investigating the integration of recreational fishing into harvest strategies for multi-sector fisheries.
Final Report • 2024-08-20 • 5.66 MB
2019-021-DLD.pdf