Victoria names first run-down ramps targeted in boating, fishing plan
Names dropped on the first five boat launching ramps in urgent need of investmentBoat ramps at Mordialloc, Queenscliff, Point Richards, Hastings and Rhyll will be the first to receive upgrades under the Victorian Government’s pre-election promise to improve the state’s run-down fishing facilities.
Fishing and Boating Minister Jaala Pulford yesterday announced that the $27 million the state receives every year in boat registration and licensing fees will be ploughed back into the recreation, with the promise that anglers “can launch anytime with the best available facilities, and without pesky parking fees”.
However, the state will first have to work out who owns and manages the state’s boat ramps before they can offer the promised free launching and parking.
“Along the way we hope to make a few of the easier ones free sooner and not get held up while we work through arrangements on the more complex ones,” the Victorian Fisheries Authority, which will work with the newly appointed minister, said.
New boating fund
Work on the first five boat ramps will come from the Better Boating Fund, a pool of money set aside in the wake of the November state election to fix boat ramps, and improve boating facilities and safety. It will include $600,000 “in addition to fishing licence fees” spent on cleaning tables and fishing platforms around Port Phillip and Corio bays.
The work flagged by the VFA includes “critical maintenance” at the Cowes jetty.
The re-elected Andrews Labor Government also appears to have looked at what the rival Liberal-National coalition had promised recreational fishers in the lead-up to the election, announcing it would review the management of boating infrastructure in Port Phillip Bay and Western Port Bay, as well as establishing “a dedicated boating infrastructure authority”.
The money will also be spent on programs to improve the state’s fish stocks:
- Phase out commercial fishing in the Gippsland Lakes through a compulsory buyout to give the Lakes back to recreational anglers, boost tourism and create jobs
- Build a $7 million native fish hatchery in Shepparton focused on warm-water species such as Murray cod and golden perch
- Increase stocking to 10 million fish a year by 2022
- Allow anglers to use boats and kayaks with electric motors on some lakes and reservoirs including Tullaroop, Lauriston, Hepburn, Barkers Creek, Upper Coliban and Malmsbury, with later consideration to be given to Tarago and Devilbend
- Mandate access for fishing and camping through opening up hundreds of kilometres of crown land river frontages, many covered by grazing licences
- Stock eastern king prawns into Lake Tyers
- Invest in science and habitat restoration in the Gippsland Lakes to ensure the environment remains healthy
Costings for the plan, released in the lead-up to the November state election that saw the Labor Government return to power, show that the state will spend just $37.4 million over the next five years on the plan – only $10 million more than it will earn from registration and licencing fees in a single year. That is based on $46.6 million in total estimated income, the pre-election costing report says.
Boatsales.com.au has requested an interview with the minister.
No timeline has been given on when the works will start, or when the first fee-free boat ramp will be announced.
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