2019-07-18 OM Agenda - Item 1 - Attachment 2 - Fisheries Regulation Discussion Paper

16. Implement small prawn strip closures in the Southern Offshore Trawl Management Region.
    Introduce small prawn closures from October to last quarter moon in March to prevent targeting of
    small prawns in the southern offshore region. This includes the following strip closures, which are
    being mapped in consultation with industry:
       Tweed to Point Lookout
       East of Cape Moreton 36 fathom north past Flinders to northern point Flinders Reef, then
        west/north-west to a point east of Currimundi Lakes
       Old Woman Island north to Noosa Headland
       Area north of Sandy Cape.
17. Change the existing southern closure. The closure would apply to the southern offshore and
    southern inshore regions and would be amended to 20 September to 20 October each year as well
    as all of February each year. Hydrographers Passage would also be closed in February. This
    would effectively see off all the east coast closed (except Moreton Bay) in February. It is also
    proposed to remove the eastern king prawn trigger (24 nights a month) for the southern offshore
    region given the additional closures and the effort cap which would be in place.
18. Introduce management arrangements to support the recovery of scallops. A number of
    changes are proposed to further rebuild scallop stocks which are still considered depleted. This
    includes shifting the existing no take closure period to 1 June to 30 November and introducing a
    specific effort cap for scallop within the southern inshore region. If the scallop cap is reached prior
    to 1 June this would result in scallop becoming a no take species earlier. Fishers could continue to
    fish for other species (eg prawns and bugs) once the scallop cap has been reached or the no take
    period has commenced.

Proposed commercial fishing changes to the East Coast Inshore Fishery
19. Divide the existing East Coast Inshore Fishery into six management areas and establish a
    separate total allowable commercial catch (TACC) based on sustainable catch limits for
    each management area (MA 1–6).
    The TACC would be adjusted up and down in accordance with a harvest strategy:
       Management Area 1 Far North—10°30’S north of Cape York to 15°00’S, just north of
        Cooktown
       Management Area 2 North—15°00’S, just north of Cooktown to 18°00’S, near Tully Heads
       Management Area 3 Northern Central—18°00’S, near Tully Heads to 20°30’S, near Cape
        Conway
       Management Area 4 Central—20°30’S, near Cape Conway to 22°00’S, near Corio Bay
       Management Area 5 Southern Central—23°00’S, near Corio Bay to 24°30’S, Baffle Creek
       Management Area 6 South—24°30’S, Baffle Creek to the Queensland–New South Wales
        border.
   In response to feedback from stakeholders, some of the boundaries have changed since the last
   consultation.
   Commercial fishers who hold a N1, N2, N4, N10, N11, K1-K8, L1, L2 or L3 fishery symbol would
   be able to access all management areas as they currently can. However, they would only be able
   to retain inshore finfish ITQ species if they hold ITQ units for that management area.




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