January 14, 2014
The South East Trawl Fishing Industry Association (SETFIA) is supporting Lakes Entrance fishermen to become national leaders in the reducing the impact of commercial fishing equipment on seabirds.
Federal Member for Gippsland Darren Chester today announced the organisation would receive $360,000 for a seabird interaction mitigation project from the Commonwealth’s Landcare Innovation Grants.
The project will involve a range of trials on new methods to avoid harming seabirds which will be monitored by scientific observers.
Mr Chester said measures were already in place to protect seabirds, but SETFIA was determined to further reduce the low number of collisions that occur between seabirds and the cables used to tow trawl nets.
“All Commonwealth trawl vessels in South East Australia and the Great Australian Bight currently operate with regulated Seabird Management Plans to limit interactions with seabirds,” Mr Chester said.
“Most vessels use large inflatable buoys attached to the vessel to ensure that seabirds do not collide with trawl cables and although the buoys can be effective, they are difficult to use and tangle easily.
“Two devices will be analysed with a view for further development, one of which is a water spraying device which has already been successfully trialled.
“SETFIA will also ask commercial fishers to put forward their ideas with a panel of experts to select a second device for testing.”
In welcoming the Federal Government’s support for the project, SETFIA Executive Officer Simon Boag said the organisation was constantly investigating best practice methods for use in the commercial fishing industry.
“Fishermen in the Commonwealth trawl fisheries are developing a reputation for strong environmental stewardship,” Mr Boag said.
“Australian fisheries are amongst the best managed in the world, and this grant will support our efforts to continue world leadership on environmental measures.
“It will also allow several young fishermen from South East Australia and the Great Australian Bight to travel to New Zealand to learn about New Zealand seabird mitigation measures.
“An expert from New Zealand will also travel to Australia to help trawl fishermen develop more methods to avoid any harm to seabirds.”