DEPARTMENT OF FISHERIES ANNUAL REPORT TO THE ...

SUMMARy OF THE yEAR � FROM THE CHIEF ExECUTIvE OFFICER
Fishery (commonly known as the West Coast shark
fishery), the West Coast Demersal Scalefish Fishery
(targeting dhufish, pink snapper, breaksea cod) and
the Northern Shark Fishery to address sustainability
issues. The Department is also undertaking further
research to determine the sustainability status of
the commercial herring fishery on WA’s south coast.
The highest priority for the Department in
2010/11 was the progression of measures to
secure the long-term sustainability of the western
rock lobster fishery, following the dramatic decline
The West Coast rock lobster fishery will operate under a fully
Individual Transferable Quota system in the 2013/14 fishing year.
Photo: Henrique Kwong
in observed recruitment of juveniles to the fishery
three years ago. The measures included a reduction
in the total allowable commercial catch to 5,500
tonnes (roughly half of the long-term average annual
catch) and the introduction of a catch limit (or
quota) for each pot (or unit) permitted to be used in
the West Coast Rock Lobster Managed Fishery.
The introduction of a unit catch limit was a
significant milestone in transitioning the fishery
from an input-controlled fishery (based on the
number of allowable pots, as it operated prior to the
2009/10 season), to a full Individual Transferable
Quota system (based on the weight of rock lobster
that may be taken by authorisation holders) as will
apply in the 2013/14 fishing year.
The move to pot catch limits created a number
of challenges and obligations on both the industry
and the Department of Fisheries. The Department
needed to design a robust management and
compliance strategy that was also capable of
accommodating the practicalities of an industry that
requires some licensees to continue to land their
catch in remote locations. This strategy involved
considerable effort from all areas of the Department
and industry in determining new rules for the
fishery, the design and printing of new catch and
disposal records for use by industry, the drafting of
substantial amendments to the fishery management
plan and running a number of workshops to inform
industry about the new rules prior to the start of the
2010/11 fishing season.
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