PIRSA Fisheries has recently announced some proposed management changes for a number of key recreational species here in South Australia. The management plan recognises the increased recreational effort and improvements in technology which has placed increasing pressure on popularly targeted species, in particular King George whiting, snapper, garfish and blue crabs.
The draft management plan looks to share key species equitably across the recreational and commercial sectors. The plan stems from data collected from creel boat ramp surveys and random recreational fishing phone surveys conducted across the state during 2013/14.
Proposed changes to popular recreational limits has included the following species (pp = per person per day / pb = per boat per day):
Snapper 38-60cm new bag limit of 5pp/15pb (down from 10pp/30pb) across the state
Blue crabs new bag limit of 20pp/60pb (down from 40pp/120pb)
Garfish new bag limit of 30pp/90pb (down from 60pp/180pb)
Herring (tommy ruffs) new bag limit 40pp/120pb (down from 60pp/180pb)
Black bream new size limit 30cm (up from 28cm)
Mulloway new size limit 82cm (up from 75cm)
Tuna combined bag limit of 2pp/6pb for all tuna species not just SBTs
Yellowtail kingfish new bag limit of 1pp/3pb (down from 2pp/6pb)
Samson fish new bag limit of 1pp/3pb (down from 2pp/6pb)
Blue Groper new bag limit of 1pp/3pb (down from 2pp/6pb) protection zone remains in place
Bluethroat wrasse new slot limit 20 – 30cm (no limit previously)
But of all the key recreational species in SA, it’s been the King George whiting which has been flagged as in decline and susceptible to overfishing. While the west coast stocks (west of 136 degrees) have been cited as sustainable, the stock population to the east of 136 degrees has been classified as in decline.
PIRSA have proposed a number of management strategies to combat this decline and to help preserve future stocks. These proposed changes have included:
- For all waters east of longitude 136°E, introduce a maximum size limit of 40 cm and maintain the existing minimum size limit of 31 cm to apply to all fishing sectors. This would effectively introduce a slot limit for King George Whiting in these waters.
- Introduce spawning spatial closures for King George whiting to apply to all sectors (recreational, charter and commercial) in two specific spawning grounds in lower Gulf waters. The proposed closed period put forward has been: a) March to May (majority of the spawning period) in the specified areas or, b) April (peak spawning period) in the specified areas.
- Introduce a seasonal closure to apply to all sectors (recreational, charter and commercial) in all waters east of longitude 136°E. The proposed closed period put forward has been: a) March to May (majority of the spawning period) in the specified areas or, b) April (peak spawning period) in the specified areas
- A reduction to the recreational bag limit in all waters east of longitude 136°E. Proposed bag limit changes could include: a) A daily bag limit of 10 per person (boat limit of 30), or, b) A daily bag limit of 8 per person (boat limit of 24) down from the current 12 per person / 36 per boat.
- Increase the minimum size of King George whiting from 31cm to 32cm in all waters east of longitude 136°E.
- Additional management arrangements to reduce the commercial fishing effort and/or catch.
PIRSA is holding a number of public meetings across the state to discuss the draft management plan, with the first public meeting held on the 16th February in Port Lincoln. There were some heated moments during the meeting as concerned recreational fishers expressed their views on the proposed changes.
The public consultation period extends through until the 29th April, with all fishers encouraged to express their opinion to PIRSA during the allocated time. We have the option to complete an online survey, or feedback forms for the (a) Draft Management Plan (b) Review of size, boat, and bag limits and (c) Management options for King George Whiting.
These forms and additional information can be found on the PIRSA website.
