The National Recreational and Indigenous Fishing Survey
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The National Recreational and Indigenous Fishing survey Edited by Gary W. Henry New South Wales Fisheries PO Box 21 Cronulla, NSW 2230 and Jeremy M. Lyle Tasmanian Aquaculture & Fisheries Institute University of Tasmania Private Bag 49 Hobart, TAS 7001 A Fisheries Action Program Project (Natural Heritage Trust) FRDC Project No. 99/158 July 2003 NSW Fisheries Final Report Series No. 48 ISSN 1440-3544 The National Recreational and Indigenous Fishing Survey July 2003 Editors: G.W. Henry and J.M. Lyle Published By: NSW Fisheries Postal Address: PO Box 21, Cronulla NSW 2230 Internet: www.fisheries.nsw.gov.au This work is copyright. Except as permitted under the Copyright Act (Cth), no part of this reproduction may be reproduced by any process, electronic or otherwise, without the specific written permission of the copyright owners. Neither may information be stored electronically in any form whatsoever without such permission. DISCLAIMER The publishers do not warrant that the information in this report is free from errors or omissions. The publishers do not accept any form of liability, be it contractual, tortuous or otherwise, for the contents of this report for any consequences arising from its use or any reliance placed on it. The information, opinions and advice contained in this report may not relate to, or be relevant to, a reader’s particular circumstance. ISSN 1440-3544 Forward i FOREWORD I am pleased to introduce the National Recreational and Indigenous Fishing Survey, a work that has been several years and many millions of dollars in the making. It is a work commissioned by the Commonwealth Government that will be a central plank in the formulation of Government policy that relates to recreational, charter, indigenous, and commercial fishing now and in the future. This survey comes at a very important time in the management of Australia’s fisheries. I have recently enjoyed the privilege of developing and releasing on behalf of the Howard Government Looking to the Future: A Review of Commonwealth Fisheries Policy which, among other things, identifies as a priority issue resource sharing between various sectors that access publicly owned fisheries resources managed by the Commonwealth Government. I am pleased to record here that substantial progress has already been made on development of the resource-sharing framework. This survey will feed directly into that framework and we will see a fully transparent process to allocate rights and responsibilities to all users of Australia’s publicly owned fisheries resources. These rights will convey greater access security to users other than commercial operators who already operate under a statutory regime, and with those strengthened rights will come heightened responsibility. The 1994 A National Policy for Recreational Fishing in Australia stated that “Fisheries management decisions should be based on sound information, including fish biology, fishing activity, catches, and the economic and social values of recreational fishing.” This survey will now finally allow for this to occur for the good of Australia’s resources at both the State and Territories level as well as the Commonwealth level. I am exceptionally proud that the Howard Government has been the first Government of Australia in my memory that has tackled, and continues to tackle the difficult and often unpopular fisheries management issues that have for too long been thrown into the “too hard basket.” In my capacity as the Commonwealth Fisheries Minister, I am committed to pursuing this philosophy of making the right decisions early in the piece to minimise future angst and maximise conservation goals. I believe that a mature and cooperative approach will continue to develop between, and be adopted by, all fisheries stakeholders in fisheries management in this country, be they lovers of catching, eating or conserving fish. My vision is for future generations to enjoy the same opportunities as we of this generation currently enjoy. For many years it has only been the commercial sector of the fishing industry that has had to collect data used in the management of our nation’s fisheries. With this new data on recreational and indigenous fishing that this survey has provided I am confident we can further enhance Australia’s world leading fisheries management practices. The strong support that this survey received from the Australian community is an indicator of the importance of fishing of all types to our island continent, and this support will continue to be matched by the Howard Government in the pursuit of ecologically sustainable fisheries for all Australians now and in the future. Ian Macdonald Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation National Recreational and Indigenous Fishing Survey FAP Project FRDC Project No. 99/158 ii Acknowledgements ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Many people in Australia contributed to the development and implementation of the national recreational and indigenous fishing survey. Senior research and management staff from Commonwealth and State government agencies, recreational and commercial fishing associations, environmental and indigenous groups were responsible for developing the concept, securing the funding, determining the outputs and progressing the concept to the implementation stage. The foresight, hard work and support of these people is gratefully acknowledged. Following agreement on the methodology, a smaller team of people was formed to conduct the survey. This team recruited and trained staff, supervised the collection, collation and editing of data and managed the survey on a daily basis as an independent project within their own States/ Territories. Members of the implementation team (listed below) undertook the substantial body of work required to complete the survey. Their persistence and dedication is greatly appreciated by everyone associated with the project. A number of people deserve special mention. Laurie West, the survey design consultant, Jeremy Lyle and David McGlennon provided intellectual rigour and attention to detail that was fundamental to the success of the project. Jeff Murphy managed the complex tasks associated with data manipulation. Their efforts are greatly appreciated by team members. Finally, the assistance of the interviewer staff and the cooperation of many thousands of recreational and indigenous fishers is gratefully acknowledged. New South Wales Tasmania Gary Henry Jeremy Lyle Jeff Murphy Jane Forward Dennis Reid John Matthews Northern Territory Anne Coleman Victoria Chris Uttley Simon Conron Garry Eckermann Jo Dixon Masaaki Machida Commonwealth Murray MacDonald Murray Johns Stan Jarzynski Queensland Phil Sahlqvist Kirrily McInnes Steve Kerr Emma Brewis Grant Johnson Jim Higgs ACT South Australia Mark Lintermans Val Boxall Sonia Venema Kewagama Research P/L David McGlennon Laurie West Western Australia David Campbell & Associates Neil Sumner David Campbell Ben Malseed National Recreational and Indigenous Fishing Survey FAP Project FRDC Project No. 99/158 Contents iii TABLE OF CONTENTS FOREWORD ............................................................................................................................................... I ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ...........................................................................................................................II TABLE OF CONTENTS ............................................................................................................................. III LIST OF FIGURES...................................................................................................................................... VI LIST OF TABLES..................................................................................................................................... VIII LIST OF APPENDICES ................................................................................................................................X NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY.................................................................................................................12 1. BACKGROUND ................................................................................................................................15 1.1. Introduction ...............................................................................................................................15 1.2. Origins of the Survey .................................................................................................................15 1.3. Development and Implementation..............................................................................................16 1.4. Fishing Survey Literature ..........................................................................................................16 1.5. Literature on Australian Recreational Fishing Surveys.............................................................18 1.6. Literature on Australian Indigenous Fishing.............................................................................18 2. NEED FOR THE SURVEY ...............................................................................................................20 2.1. Fisheries Management...............................................................................................................20 2.2. Potential Impact of Recreational Fishing ..................................................................................20 2.3. Assessment of Indigenous Fishing .............................................................................................20