2019-07-18 OM Agenda - Item 1 - Attachment 3 - Noosa Council Submission to State Fisheries Discussion Paper

lull in the conflict could return at any time unless positive steps are taken to address the cause of the
issues.

A further option is to extend to closure to Queensland school holiday periods. The Noosa North Shore
is a very popular destination during school holidays and the presence of commercial net fishers is not
compatible with recreational use and enjoyment of this area during high-use periods.

The tangible benefits are less potential conflict for the aforementioned groups, but importantly, this
was raised by numerous stakeholders during the consultation phase of Councils Noosa Fishing Futures
paper as being one of the major issues and sources of conflict between commercial fishers and the
community.

2.3     Move the fishing closure line from Munna Point

Feedback from some commercial fishers is to move the closure line at Munna Point back up the river.
This suggestion is to prohibit the use of regulated nets in an area that is visual to locals and tourists
and further reduce the risk of conflict and interactions between commercial and recreational fishers
and tourists. The current closure applies to north of a line joining the following points:
     from FB (Fishing Boat) sign on Lake Cootharaba’s north western shore;
     to FB sign on the southern tip of the peninsula on the eastern side of Shark bay (which is part
        of the Lake);
     to the FB sign at the southern tip of Kinaba Island;
     to an FB sign on Lake Cootharaba’s eastern shore.

Whilst there were not specific incidents of conflict cited by stakeholders during consultation for the
Noosa Fishing Futures paper, this issue was raised by commercial and recreational fishers to further
improve the image of the commercial sector in the community. A benefit of moving the closure line
further up river would be to remove commercial net fishing from a busy section of the Noosa River
and remove any potential for conflict and out of sight from community views.

There is a closure in place during the weekends however during peak tourist season there is no
prohibition on commercial netting in this busy section of the river. The issue is likely to receive support
from the local recreational fishing body, the Queensland Recreational Fishing Network, along with
support from conservation groups. Council suggests the closure line is moved to the start of Lake
Cooroibah.

2.4     Allocate and Individual Transferable Quota (ITQ) to mullet

Noosa Council supports mullet being managed under an ITQ harvest strategy. Some commercial
fishers consulted during the stakeholder engagement considered an ITQ would benefit them
significantly more than management via a TACC.

The potential economic benefits of an ITQ management regime is that it provides the freedom to fish
at an optimum time to maximise economic yield to the commercial fisher. This is less likely to occur
under a TACC as the imperative to fish will be driven by the need to ‘not miss out’ on a catch knowing
that once the trigger limit of 80% is reached, the prospect of the fishery being closed is real. An ITQ
management regime allocates quota to individual fishers, which provides a type of security of
ownership that is not present under a TACC.

At the moment, the imperative to fish is largely driven by the two major seafood processors who are
active in the Noosa North Shore (NNS) during the months of June and July. They employ crews