NSW bag limits halved

Proposals to halve amateur catch of popular species and tighten bag limits

The community has been invited to provide feedback on a range of proposals to change key recreational fishing rules in NSW, including bag limits, size limits and fishing methods. The changes have the potential to impact every angler in the State.

The discussion paper, now released for public exhibition and comment, has been developed based on community feedback made to the NSW Government since the last review of fishing rules was completed in 2007.

NSW Fisheres says the proposals were based on the latest information relating to fish stocks, as well as advice from expert anglers.

Recreational fishing is one of NSW’s most popular pastimes, with an estimated 14 per cent of the population wetting a line each year.

WHY CHANGE THE RULES?

In short, the proposals and options in the review paper have been developed to:
- Ensure the sustainability of NSW’s fisheries resources
- Answer community feedback received in response to previous reviews indicating general support for more conservative bag limits
- Address ongoing concerns about illegal fishing and black marketing of fish
- Reply to submissions made by anglers and the general public to the Government since the last review
- Create fishing rules to conserve our fisheries resources
- Answer the ongoing need to fairly share aquatic resources between recreational fishers
- Respect available research information
- Ensure that fishing rules are reasonably easy to understand and simplified where possible
- Respond to advice provided by expert committees (note: these committees provided feedback on potential options and were not requested to endorse the options in this paper)

BIG CHANGES TO BAG LIMITS

Fisheries has proposed that it introduce a combined daily catch limit for recreational fishers of 20 finfish per day per person on the saltwater. There is an option to boost that to 30 finfish but, either way, the recreational harvesting is being discouraged.

Despite the above proposal, the prescribed bag limit for individual species would still apply. But specified baitfish species and all invertebrate species including blue swimmer and mud crabs, squid, prawns and saltwater nippers would be exempt from the combined daily saltwater finfish bag/possession limit.

Among the other proposals destined to impact the everyday dangler are:

Bag limit reductions from 20 to 10 fish per person:

- A bag limit reduction from 20 to 10 for all flathead except the dusky (see below)
- A bag limit reduction from 20 to 10 for yellowfin bream, black bream and tarwhine
- A bag limit reduction from 20 to 10 for tailor
- A bag limit reduction from 20 to 10 for all species of trevally
- A bag limit reduction from 20 to 10 for luderick
- A bag limit reduction from 20 to 10 for blue swimmer crabs
- Reduce default bag limit for any species without a limit from 20 to 10 only

Bag limit reductions from 10 to 5 fish per person:

- A bag limit reduction from 10 to 5 for dusky flathead
- A bag limit reduction from 10 to 5 for snapper
- A bag limit reduction from 10 to 5 for mahi mahi or dolphin fish
- A bag limit reduction from 10 to 5 for grey and jackass morwong

Bag limit reductions from 5 to 2 fish per person:

- A bag limit reduction from 5 to 2 for kingfish
- A bag limit reduction from 5 to 2 for cobia
- A bag limit reduction from 5 to 2 for the combined deep-sea species of blue trevalla, banded rockcod, hapuka and bass groper
- A bag limit of 2 gemfish and no more than 10 per boat in total
- A bag limit reduction from 5 to 2 for Spanish mackerel
- Combined bag limit of no more than 5 for spotted mackerel and five mackerel in total only, ie, two Spanish and three spotties
- Reduce bag limit from 5 to 2 for wahoo
- Reduce bag limit from 5 to 2 for Mangrove jack
- Reduce bag limit from 5 to 2 for teraglin

Other recreational bag limit options

The fishing regulation review is detailed and includes a host of other proposed options including reducing the combined bag limit of yellowfin tuna, longtail tuna, albacore and bigeye tuna to five with only one fish over 90cm. There’s an option to reduce the combined tuna bag limit to two fish as well. Southern bluefin tuna bag limits are being reviewed separately.

Proposed marlin bag limits range from one of billfish per person per day to a boat limit of two billfish to day. This includes all species rather than the current limit of one of each species per day.

Those fishing for sharks and rays face likely big changes. The bag limit would be reduced to just one shark per day, no matter whether it’s a tiger, mako, hammerhead, blue or whaler. The boat total limit would be two sharks.

OTHER PROPOSED CHANGES

There are proposals to remove the existing limit of only one mahi mahi over 110cm, proposals to limit the use of witches hat crab nets, dip nets and other nets, further restrictions on bass fishing, proposals to slash trout bag limits, and limits on other forms of freshwater fishing. But they do intend to allow bowfishing, that is, with an arrow, for carp.

It is easy to make a submission on the various options via the online submission form or by post, email or fax. Submissions to the discussion paper close on July 31, 2013. See www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/fisheries/recreational/info/review

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NSW bag limits halved

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