Determination Of The Impacts Of Direct Harvest Of Coral Species In Northern Australia
Funder
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
Funding Amount
$360,000.00
Summary
Australia’s aquarium fisheries are high value (GVP >$20 million), small scale fisheries that rely on exporting CITES listed corals for profitability and viability. The Australian government requires fisheries collecting and exporting these species to demonstrate that their harvest is sustainable under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) in order to meet Australia's obligations under CITES. In the absence of empirical evidence, precautionary harvest l ....Australia’s aquarium fisheries are high value (GVP >$20 million), small scale fisheries that rely on exporting CITES listed corals for profitability and viability. The Australian government requires fisheries collecting and exporting these species to demonstrate that their harvest is sustainable under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) in order to meet Australia's obligations under CITES. In the absence of empirical evidence, precautionary harvest limits are set on all coral species, and monitored and reported by NT Fisheries to the Commonwealth Department of Environment and Energy (DoEE), to fulfil EPBC requirements. Increased global demand for valuable coral species presents an opportunity for licenced fishers to develop new and existing international markets. However, in order to increase harvest limits, evidence is required to reinforce that the harvest and subsequent export will not have a detrimental effect on the population status of the species (CITES non-detriment finding). Any supporting non-detriment finding must be corroborated with new empirical evidence on the impacts of harvesting corals. The FRDC project ‘Establishing baselines and assessing vulnerability of commercially harvested corals across northern Australia’ (FRDC 2014-029) (currently underway) attempts to address some of these issues including taxonomy, abundance and distribution of key coral species but fails to address the long-standing concern of the impacts of coral harvesting. Understanding and quantifying the impacts of harvesting coral has the potential for providing the greatest benefit to industry. The specific need is to investigate the extent of recovery (or not) of key species of Scleractinian (hard) corals harvested at the level of individual colonies over an appropriate temporal scale. Members of the A12 Aquarium display fishery are supportive of this project and will be actively involved in assisting with data collection. This project directly addresses the NT Research Advisory Committee priority ‘Impact of harvesting key species of Scleractinian (hard) corals in the Northern Territory’.
Objectives: 1. Establish a monitoring program involving commercial fishers to determine the impacts of harvest on key coral species. 2. Improve the accuracy of coral species identification through the development of an NT identification guide. 3. Assess reproductive modes, and establish rates of recruitment for commercially important Northern Territory corals. Read moreRead less
Mitigating Threatened Species Bycatch In Gillnet Fisheries
Funder
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
Funding Amount
$300,000.00
Summary
Mitigating the bycatch of threatened species in Australian gillnet fisheries is a major management challenge. Australian prawn trawl gear is a well-documented example of how the testing and implementation of bycatch reduction devices has resulted in the significant reduction in the bycatch of non-target species including threatened species. However, devices or modifications to reduce bycatch in gillnets are far less well studied. Where the deployment of gillnets overlaps with the habitat of thre ....Mitigating the bycatch of threatened species in Australian gillnet fisheries is a major management challenge. Australian prawn trawl gear is a well-documented example of how the testing and implementation of bycatch reduction devices has resulted in the significant reduction in the bycatch of non-target species including threatened species. However, devices or modifications to reduce bycatch in gillnets are far less well studied. Where the deployment of gillnets overlaps with the habitat of threatened species, bycatch of these species can occur, creating a significant management issue. Within northern Australian gillnet fisheries, bycatch of threatened/migratory sawfishes, river sharks, and devil rays listed under the EPBC Act is an on-going issue requiring evidence-based interventions. Northern Australia holds the most significant remaining populations of sawfishes and river sharks globally, but these important species form the most numerous threatened species bycatch in local gillnet fisheries. Within these fisheries, the target bony fish are harvested at sustainable levels with high-quality seafood product providing important economic contributions locally and nationally. Mitigating the on-going bycatch of non-target threatened species is arguably the most significant challenge facing these fisheries.
This project will test novel mitigation devices (static green LED lights and an electric deterrent (SharkGuard)) and assess alternative gears to gillnets to reduce bycatch of EPBC Act listed sharks and rays. In partnership with industry, trials will assess the effectiveness of devices to elicit a response in bycatch species, their ability to reduce bycatch levels, and their impact on target species. An assessment of alternative gear types will consider the feasibility of transitioning the commercial sector of the NT Barramundi Fishery to fishing gear with lower bycatch levels in the future. Trial outcomes will provide industry and managers with proven options to assist implementation of threatened species mitigation strategies in northern gillnet fisheries.
This project will give industry and managers confidence in tested bycatch mitigation technologies. Only by comprehensively testing static green LED lights and the SharkGuard electric deterrent through aquarium and field trials under varied local conditions can a scientifically robust evaluation of bycatch reduction be undertaken. Successful demonstration overseas of the devices to be trialled provides the starting knowledge that they can deter sharks and rays and reduce their bycatch levels by up to 95%. To our knowledge, these bycatch mitigation devices have not been tested in Australian gillnet fisheries. If demonstrated and applied in northern Australian gillnet fisheries, these devices may have the ability to significantly reduce the bycatch of eight EPBC Act listed threatened and/or migratory sharks and rays, as well as other sharks of conservation concern (notably, hammerhead sharks). Furthermore, there may be flow-on benefits to other EPBC Act listed species groups, particularly marine turtles. LED lights were initially applied as a bycatch reduction measure for turtles, and they have been demonstrated to reduce turtle bycatch (turtle bycatch is at a low level in NT and WA gillnet fisheries making direct experimental/field evaluation of bycatch reduction difficult in the NT/WA). Objectives: 1. Comprehensively test two novel mitigation devices (deterrents) to provide industry and managers with scientifically robust tested measures with the potential to be implemented throughout a wide variety of gillnet fisheries. 2. Assess alternative gears to gillnet within the NT Barramundi Fishery. Investigating alternative gear is aimed at assessing if there are ways to achieve sustainable catches of target species while reducing or even eliminating bycatch of focal threatened species. Read moreRead less
Biosecurity Threats And Vulnerabilities Of The Southern Rock Lobster Fishery
Funder
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
Funding Amount
$61,330.00
Summary
SRL industry has been buffeted by various issues in recent years, associated with COVID-19, trading partner non-tariff trade barriers (ostensibly biosecurity or food safety based) and repeated harmful algal blooms (HAB). In particular, HAB remain an ongoing threat, for example with range expansion of Alexandrium tamarense/warming climate, resulting in repeated closures of the east-coat Tasmanian SRL fishery. Other regions of Australia may also face an increased risk of HAB. In addition, access ....SRL industry has been buffeted by various issues in recent years, associated with COVID-19, trading partner non-tariff trade barriers (ostensibly biosecurity or food safety based) and repeated harmful algal blooms (HAB). In particular, HAB remain an ongoing threat, for example with range expansion of Alexandrium tamarense/warming climate, resulting in repeated closures of the east-coat Tasmanian SRL fishery. Other regions of Australia may also face an increased risk of HAB. In addition, access to alternative markets with new sanitary and food safety requirements adds biosecurity and sanitary complexity.
Nearly every animal sector that is involved in harvest (e.g. fisheries) or production has seen rapid change associated with external factors such as spread of invasive species and pests, diseases (both emerging and introduced/exotic) and global issues such as climate change. For example, the Australian Prawn industry has been damaged by emergence and repeated outbreaks of White Spot Syndrome Virus in Australia. Ausvet has recently modelled surveillance data for WSSV on behalf of FRDC and the Australian Prawn Farmers Association and it is clear that WSSV has the potential to spread further south. WSSV affects most crustaceans, although SRL may only be vectors and not show clinical disease. Regardless, such issues can become trade barriers.
Thus, the SRL industry has a need to understand biosecurity risks and how these relate to the ability to harvest, sustain a productive fishery or trade globally. Understanding biosecurity risks are the key building blocks for biosecurity planning which has become an essential part of protecting animal production in Australia and globally, across terrestrial and aquaculture systems. This project will inform biosecurity planning for SRL fisheries. This project concentrates on assisting the broader SRL industry to identify and prioritise emerging, future or existing risks. In addition, it will identify industry capacity and barriers to managing risks. This information can then be used during future industry-wide biosecurity planning. Objectives: 1. Enable improved biosecurity planning within the Southern Rock Lobster industry Read moreRead less
Reducing Impacts On Threatened, Endangered, And Protected Species In The Queensland East Coast Otter Trawl Fishery
Funder
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
Funding Amount
$688,074.00
Summary
This research aims to reduce the ecological impacts of the Queensland East Coast Otter Trawl Fishery (QECOTF) on non-target species including sea snakes and small elasmobranchs, improve animal welfare outcomes of Threatened, Endangered and Protected Species (TEPS), promote safer handling practices among fishers that interact with these species, and collect data that is needed and currently unavailable to assess ecological risk. This approach addresses the priority listed in the most recent FRDC ....This research aims to reduce the ecological impacts of the Queensland East Coast Otter Trawl Fishery (QECOTF) on non-target species including sea snakes and small elasmobranchs, improve animal welfare outcomes of Threatened, Endangered and Protected Species (TEPS), promote safer handling practices among fishers that interact with these species, and collect data that is needed and currently unavailable to assess ecological risk. This approach addresses the priority listed in the most recent FRDC call for proposals “Reduce threatened, endangered, and protected species bycatch in the Queensland East Coast Otter Trawl Fishery”. This research aligns with Outcome 2 (Best practices and production systems) of the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC) 2020-2025 Strategic Plan. The proposed research also aligns with the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals including number 14: Life below water; and 12: Responsible consumption and production. Conditions of the QECOTF’s WTO accreditation, which allows for the export of product generated by the fishery, require the mitigation of ecological risk posed to those species at intermediate or high risk, as determined in previous risk assessments. Specifically, sea snakes and small elasmobranchs (skates, rays and small demersal sharks) have been identified as two components of trawl discards that are prone to elevated levels of risk due to interaction with the QECOTF. The federal government, through the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW), have stipulated that continued export accreditation is contingent upon reducing the risk posed to these catch components. More importantly, the removal of WTO accreditation will likely lead to greater scrutiny of fishing practices within the World Heritage-listed Great Barrier Reef Marine Park (GBRMP). Lack of further action to reduce risks to TEPS may result in restrictions in access to trawl grounds within the GBRMP, which will lead to significant economic hardship for trawl fishers.
The key outcome of this research will be a reduction in the ecological risk posed to TEPS (sea snakes, skates, rays, and small demersal sharks) by the QECOTF. This research aims to reduce catch rates of TEPS through the introduction of efficient bycatch reduction devices and strategies. The project will also lead to improvements in the accuracy of risk assessments through the collection of data that are necessary to assess risk. Estimates of escape and post-trawl survival, along with basic life history information, are lacking for all but a few TEPS, and this research will go some way to rectifying this issue. These data will be collected by fishers as part of a pilot crew member observer program (CMOP), where interested fishers will be trained in species identification and data collection. This will provide fishers with direct involvement in the collection of data used to assess risk, which is likely to increase the confidence in the outputs of risk assessments on which the data are based. To further reduce ecological risk, project staff will develop protocols that aim to improve the handling, welfare and post-release survival of TEPS; whilst improving the safety of fishers interacting with potentially dangerous TEPS (e.g. sea snakes and rays).This is particularly important for sea snakes, which are usually grasped by the tail and flung overboard, which is a practice that is harmful to the sea snakes and is likely to lead to low post-trawl survival.
Objectives: 1. Quantify the effect of bycatch reduction devices on sea snakes in Queensland’s trawl fishery and facilitate the uptake of these devices by industry. 2. Develop strategies to reduce the number of threatened skates, rays and demersal sharks caught by prawn trawls in southern Queensland. 3. Implement a pilot crew-member observer program to train interested fishers in collecting valuable information on threatened species including sea snakes, skates, rays, and sharks. 4. Develop protocols for the safe handling of sea snakes, skates, rays and sharks that improves post-trawl survival. Read moreRead less
Improving Bycatch Reduction Strategies And Escape Vents In Queensland Mud Crab Fisheries
Funder
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
Funding Amount
$129,915.00
Summary
The proposed work directly targets the opportunity • to benchmark bycatch reduction devices (including escape vents) and strategies currently in use in the Queensland Crab Fishery, • to trial refined escape vents for better (i) retention of legal crabs and exclusion of non-legal crabs and fish bycatch.
Recommended refinements to the regulation of escape vents in commercial mud crab pots will be provided to Fisheries Queensland by October/November 2022 for potential inclusion i ....The proposed work directly targets the opportunity • to benchmark bycatch reduction devices (including escape vents) and strategies currently in use in the Queensland Crab Fishery, • to trial refined escape vents for better (i) retention of legal crabs and exclusion of non-legal crabs and fish bycatch.
Recommended refinements to the regulation of escape vents in commercial mud crab pots will be provided to Fisheries Queensland by October/November 2022 for potential inclusion in the next round of regulatory amendments to the Crab Fishery.
More appropriately specified escape vents will produce better commercial outcomes (i.e., retention of legal crabs) and better ecological outcomes (e.g. exclusion of sub-legal crabs and finfish prone to entrapment in crab pots). Reports from crabbers indicate that some of the regulated escape vents allow legal crabs to escape, whilst the small escape vent (75 x 60 mm) reportedly allows very little bycatch to escape. A quantitative study that encompasses regional variation in mud crab morphometrics (i.e., carapace depth/height ~carapace width) would provide empirical data upon which management decisions can be objectively made.
Better documentation on marine turtle entrapment in crab pots (which is currently of limited public access) and gear modification to efficiently reduce or prevent marine turtle entrapment would be of benefit to threatened and endangered marine turtle populations of Queensland (in particular loggerhead turtles) and would contribute to the development of a risk mitigation strategy for the fishery.
Objectives: 1. Benchmark bycatch reduction devices and strategies currently in use in the Queensland crab fishery. 2. Trial alternate configurations and advise on potential changes to escape vent regulations achieve better commercial and ecological outcomes. 3. Collate information on marine turtle interactions with crab pots (including ghost pots) and consider pot configuration(s) that could contribute to a risk mitigation strategy for marine turtles in the Qld crab fishery. 4. Develop options for adoption of bycatch reduction devices and strategies in the recreational sector of the Qld crab fishery. Read moreRead less
CITES 19th Conference Of Parties, Panama City, Panama - Natalie Manahan
Funder
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
Funding Amount
$13,000.00
Summary
Myself, and other attendees with ICFA will liaise, network and collaborate with other groups (Intergovernmental organizations, National governmental organizations, other International NGO's, and the private sector) and provide an expert fisheries & aquaculture perspective to discussions.
Novel Fishery Independent, Biological And Economic-processing Methods To Underpin Expansion Of Australia's Fastest Growing Fishery, The Western Rock Octopus
Funder
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
Funding Amount
$650,260.00
Summary
The Western Rock Octopus fishery has become Australia’s fastest growing fishery, with a 5-year average growth of 50% per annum between 2017 and 2022. Despite this expansion, there are still significant gaps in knowledge and practice that do not allow this fishery to grow and develop in an optimum sustainable and socio-economic manner. This project will fill the information gaps and develop pro-active management and economic policy settings that facilitate a comprehensive development of the fishe ....The Western Rock Octopus fishery has become Australia’s fastest growing fishery, with a 5-year average growth of 50% per annum between 2017 and 2022. Despite this expansion, there are still significant gaps in knowledge and practice that do not allow this fishery to grow and develop in an optimum sustainable and socio-economic manner. This project will fill the information gaps and develop pro-active management and economic policy settings that facilitate a comprehensive development of the fishery to its natural capacity. It meets FRDCs two main outcomes of the 2020-2025 R&D plan; growth for enduring prosperity, best practices and production systems, and also meets Enabling Strategy IV: Building capacity and capability. Objectives: 1. Quantify species mix, growth, population connectivity, and reproduction of the unexplored South Coast and deep-water West Coast stocks of Octopus djinda. 2. Develop and test an octopus trap mounted camera system as fishery independent survey tool for density, bycatch, habitat, and environmental data. 3. Develop a bioeconomic model for octopus fishery management and expansion in Australia. Read moreRead less
Understanding The Economics And Markets Of The Western Rock Lobster Industry
Funder
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
Funding Amount
$749,000.00
Summary
The Program is required to enable the economics research required over the next 3-4 years by retaining the WRL Economist and engaging a WRL Data Analyst to :
1. undertake research and demonstrate the effects of COVID-19 and international trade disruptions on the industry’s financial wellbeing and economic contribution, as a narrative incorporating the pre-, current and post-disruption era;
2. investigate and implement enhancements to the WRL MEY model based on verified stakehol ....The Program is required to enable the economics research required over the next 3-4 years by retaining the WRL Economist and engaging a WRL Data Analyst to :
1. undertake research and demonstrate the effects of COVID-19 and international trade disruptions on the industry’s financial wellbeing and economic contribution, as a narrative incorporating the pre-, current and post-disruption era;
2. investigate and implement enhancements to the WRL MEY model based on verified stakeholder feedback; • MEY modelling is based on (among other factors) expected longer-term beach prices for lobster achieved by fishers. Beach prices are themselves underpinned by prices achieved in domestic and export markets for live, frozen and other processed forms of western rock lobster, and supply chain costs — all of which have changed markedly over the past couple of years and have influenced the longer-term outlook considerably. o Domestic markets have absorbed higher volumes of Australian product over the past two years than in the previous ten, encouraging a pivot by processors to include more cooked, frozen and other processed product in the product portfolio. o Frozen and chilled product has also been demonstrated to have general acceptance in overseas markets, albeit at lower prices than achieved by similar live product. o Air and sea freight costs and reliability have been adversely compromised in the face of the continuing COVID-19 pandemic, with the medium-term outlook for freight costs expected to be a multiple of pre-COVID rates – affecting the relative attractiveness of domestic versus export markets. o Processors and marketers have explored alternative export markets and paths to market in the wake of political uncertainty and trade disruptions. There is a need to understand the implications of this market shift on the net beach prices achievable by fishers, which will be achieved through a better understanding of the changes in market access and supply chain costs (transport, live holding, handling, additional processing, freight forwarding by air and by sea). o Taken together, this suite of change constitutes a significant, and potentially longer-term, challenge to the western rock lobster industry that has high potential to bring about changes in industry structure.
3. research and implement mechanisms by which individual fishers / business owners can benchmark their businesses against relevant industry economic standards.
• Benchmarking aims to improve the internal performance of fishers' private business operations by providing each business with an opportunity to compare itself to the industry's performance • Benchmarking is not limited to economic metrics, including physical metrics such as fuel use that enable a more granular understanding of the carbon footprint of the fishing fleet. • The aim is to generate an understanding of the range of cost structures in the fishing fleet, to better inform the cost elements of MEY modelling for economic sustainability of the fishery.
4. investigate and implement enhancements to the WRL Global Trade Report.
• The pandemic and its ongoing turmoil, combined with trade disruptions to Australia’s live exports, has brought about a change in global lobster trade flows into the highest volume, highest value market – at Australia’s expense. o The resultant situation includes a loss of market share and value to alternative suppliers of live spiny lobster, other lobster species, and other high value crustaceans. o Consumer preferences have shown signs of changing in response to COVID and associated health policies, regulations and restrictions. During the course of the pandemic, consumption of rock lobster pivoted to at-home consumption, with some preference-shifting to frozen product, particularly in countries with aggressive health policies that enacted operating restrictions on restaurants and larger gatherings.
5. research and implement mechanisms by which WRL's Global Trade Report, MEY Model and Markets Dashboard would work together with DPIRD's Harvest Strategy to underpin TACC setting into the future, adding considerable benefit to government as the resource manager by supplying timely, independent, industry-oriented information to the consideration set
Objectives: 1. Enable the Global Trade Report the MEY Model and the Markets Dashboard to work together with the Harvest Strategy to underpin TACC setting and ensure the continued sustainability of the stock. 2. Demonstrate the effects of the SARSCoV2 pandemic and trade disruptions on the industry’s resilience, economic contribution and adaptation to changing market forces. 3. Develop benchmarks for use by fishers’ businesses against industry economic standards to enhance industry reslience and adaptation to trade disruptions. 4. Ensure usability of economics data by driving further integration of data sets, models and tools, and building into the digitization program. Read moreRead less