According to Mulherin changes to the East Coast Trawl Management Plan would ensure that the current Scallop Replenishment Areas stay in place. He explained that the Queensland Government is well aware of the issues facing the trawl industry at this time and we are responding to them. Experts believe that high fuel costs, competition from other seafood products and a weak demand in the domestic and export markets have all put downward pressure on the wharf price of a trawler’ s catch.
It is said that maintaining status quo for these scallop replenishments is tough which means trawl fishers can continue to harvest saucer scallops efficiently, maximising the catch for the time spent at sea and therefore maximising profitability. For trawl fishers these changes would mean that the three SRAs that opened to trawling on January 1 this year will close on 1 November this year and will not reopen until January 3, 2010.
It is observed that changes would also result in the three other SRAs opening on January 3, 2009 and not January 1 2009, remaining open until September 20, 2009 when they again will be closed. No changes would be made to the size or the location of the six SRAs. Mulherin opined that more than 200 people provided written responses to the proposal to maintain SRAs and 160 attended port meetings where it was discussed.
