The catch share allocations for West Coast demersal scalefish will be the main topic of debate in the meeting of south West recreational fishers with the authority. WA’s West Coast Bioregion extends from north of Kalbarri to east of Augusta and there are about 200 species, including some of the State’s most iconic finfish, which are subject to a range of management rules to ensure sustainability of the stocks.
Recommendations on sharing these valuable community resources have been given by the Integrated Fisheries Allocation Advisory Committee (IFAAC). There will be two meetings and the issues are too complex that the interested parties are urged to attend the meetings.
Recreational fishers have taken part in meetings in the Mid-West, the Metropolitan area and Mandurah and they have helped in providing useful feedback to the independent advisory committee on its draft allocation report. IFAAC has proposed two-thirds of the resource be allocated to the commercial sector and one third to recreational fishers. There are additional recommendations to ensure the dhufish take does not increase beyond historical proportions for the sectors.
