Marine Stewardship Council Full Assessment Report Western
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Western Australian Marine Stewardship Council Report Series No. 8, 2017 Marine Stewardship Council Full Assessment Report Western Australian Abalone Managed Fishery Hart, A., Strain, L., Hesp, A., Fisher, E., Webster, F., Brand-Gardner, S., and Walters, S. Western Australian Marine Stewardship Council Report Series No. 8, 2017 Marine Stewardship Council Full Assessment Report Western Australian Abalone Managed Fishery Hart, A., Strain, L., Hesp, A., Fisher, E., Webster, F., Brand-Gardner, S., and Walters, S. Western5284/16 Australian Marine Stewardship Council Report Series No.8, 2017 i Correct citation: Hart, A., Strain, L., Hesp, A., Fisher, E., Webster, F., Brand-Gardner, S. and Walters, S. (2017). Marine Stewardship Council Full Assessment Report Western Australian Abalone Managed Fishery. Department of Fisheries, Western Australia. 288pp. Department of Fisheries 3rd floor, The Atrium 168 – 170 St Georges Terrace PERTH WA 6000 Telephone: (08) 9482 7333 Facsimile: (08) 9482 7389 Website: www.fish.wa.gov.au ABN: 55 689 794 771 © Department of Fisheries, Western Australia. April 2017. ISSN: 2205-3670 (Print) ISBN: 978-1-877098-57-4 (Print) ISSN: 2205-3689 (Online) ISBN: 978-1-877098-58-1 (Online) ii Western Australian Marine Stewardship Council Report Series No.8, 2017 Overview This report provides a comprehensive description of the Abalone Managed Fishery (AMF) in Western Australia (WA) and contains information relevant to assist with the assessment of this fishery against the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) standard (v2.0) for sustainable fishing. Fishers in the AMF harvest three species; Roe’s abalone (Haliotis roei), Greenlip abalone (H. laevigata) and Brownlip abalone (H. conicopora), through hand collection by diving in shallow waters off the south-western and southern coasts of WA. The first part of this document (Sections 1 – 6) provides an overview of the fishery and the aquatic environment in which it operates, including information about the biology of the target species, development of the fishery, fishing methods and gear used, the management system in place, and external factors that may influence fishery operations and / or target species populations. The remainder of document provides more detailed information for assessing the fishery against the performance indicators under MSC Principles 1, 2 and 3. MSC Principle 1 (Sections 7 – 10) provides information to assess the status of the target species’ stocks. These sections provide information on the current stock status of the three abalone species, which includes a description of the stock assessment approach and harvest strategies employed for ensuring the sustainability of these stocks. A summary of the management measures in place to ensure that the genetic structure of the wild abalone populations is not impacted by fishing or aquaculture activities is also provided. MSC Principle 2 (Sections 11 – 15) relates to the impact of the AMF on the marine environment in which it operates. These sections include, or point to, all currently available information on bycatch species, interactions with endangered, threatened and protected (ETP) species, as well as a description of habitats and ecosystem within which the fishery operates, and a summary of fishery-related impacts on habitat and ecosystem structure and function. Where detailed quantitative data are not available, a risk assessment approach has been used to assess the level of risk associated with any identified fishery-specific issues. The issues identified and their associated risk ratings are provided throughout the Principle 2 sections, where relevant. MSC Principle 3 (Sections 16 – 20) provides information to assess the governance and management in place for the AMF. Governance information provided includes an overview of the local, national and international legal frameworks relevant to the management of the fishery, a description of the roles, responsibilities and consultation processes undertaken with fishery stakeholders, the long-term objectives and the incentives in place for sustainable fishing. These sections also include information on the fishery-specific management system, including fishery-specific objectives, the decision-making process, compliance and enforcement, ongoing research and an evaluation of the performance of this management system in recent years. Although this document has been divided into MSC Principle-specific sections, it should be considered in its entirety as many sections provide supporting and complementary information. While this document is intended to provide a comprehensive account of these fisheries, it is by no means meant to be the only source of information for assessing the Western Australian Marine Stewardship Council Report Series No.8, 2017 iii fisheries. If there is uncertainty regarding any parts of the descriptions and information herein, stakeholders should contact the WA Department of Fisheries (DoF) so that any such issues can be addressed in subsequent updates of this document. This document should also be read in conjunction with the Abalone Resource of Western Australia Harvest Strategy 2016 – 2021. iv Western Australian Marine Stewardship Council Report Series No.8, 2017 Table of Contents 1 Background to MSC Initiative ................................................................................................ 1 2 Aquatic Environment .............................................................................................................. 2 2.1 West Coast Bioregion .................................................................................................. 3 2.2 South Coast Bioregion ................................................................................................. 4 3 Fishery Information ................................................................................................................ 5 3.1 Abalone Managed Fishery ........................................................................................... 5 3.1.1 Fishery Development ............................................................................................ 5 3.1.2 Current Fishing Activities ..................................................................................... 5 3.1.3 Fishing Methods.................................................................................................... 6 3.1.4 Catch and Effort .................................................................................................... 8 4 Fishery Management ............................................................................................................. 12 4.1 Commercial Management System ............................................................................. 12 4.1.1 FRMA ................................................................................................................. 12 4.1.2 FRMR ................................................................................................................. 13 4.1.3 Management Plan................................................................................................ 13 4.1.4 Notices and Orders .............................................................................................. 15 4.2 Integrated Fisheries Management .............................................................................. 16 4.3 Harvest Strategy ......................................................................................................... 16 4.4 Risk Assessments ....................................................................................................... 17 4.4.1 2015 Ecological Risk Assessment of the AMF .................................................. 19 4.5 Other Assessments and Certifications ....................................................................... 22 5 Target Species / Stock Description ....................................................................................... 23 5.1 Roe’s Abalone ............................................................................................................ 23 5.1.1 Taxonomy and Distribution ................................................................................ 23 5.1.2 Stock Structure .................................................................................................... 23 5.1.3 Life History ......................................................................................................... 23 5.2 Greenlip and Brownlip Abalone ................................................................................ 28 5.2.1 Taxonomy and Distribution ................................................................................ 28 5.2.2 Stock Structure .................................................................................................... 29 5.2.3 Life History ......................................................................................................... 30 6 External Influences ............................................................................................................... 39 Western Australian Marine Stewardship Council Report Series No.8, 2017 v 6.1 Aquaculture ................................................................................................................ 39 6.1.1 Land-Based Facility ............................................................................................ 39 6.1.2 Ocean-Based Facility .......................................................................................... 39 6.2 Other Fishing Activities