Kingfish stocks have collapsed to just 5.5% of unfished biomass, according to today’s release of the NSW Yellowtail Kingfish Draft Harvest Strategy.
At 5.5%, this biomass level is significantly lower than the Harvest Strategy’s danger threshold of 20%, which should trigger a full fishery closure of this prized sportfish.
Despite the alarming stock assessment and the Harvest Strategy’s own fishery closure trigger, NSW DPIRD today proposed an increase in commercial stock allocation and a annual harvest of 120 tonnes per year. The annual harvest will now be split evenly between recreational and commercial fishers.
The proposal slashes the recreational bag and possession limit from five fish to one and introduces a one-fish boat limit that also applies to charter boats. In addition, it is proposed the fishery will close and become catch & release between November and January each year.
Sydney-based charter operator Justin Duggan blames the stock collapse on the Department’s incompetence and lack of action.
“NSW Fisheries have known for years that kingfish stocks were declining whilst technology, population and a huge social media impacts were having a big influence on declining stocks, yet they sat on their hands,” said Duggan.
“Now we arrive at the inevitable conclusion where every metric and best practice points to the need for a full closure. A closure I desperately argued for years was on the cards if we didn’t reverse course. I’ve never seen such incompetence from bureaucrats in a first world fishery,” he said.
Commercial fishers, who take most of their share through line fishing in the Ocean Trap and Line Fishery, would operate under interim monthly catch limits while the department develops an Individual Transferable Quota system intended to give operators long-term certainty.
More to follow.
