As per the press release the High Court’s 2008 Blue Mud Bay decision means traditional owners have exclusive rights over commercial and recreational fishing across tidal waters overlying Aboriginal Lands. New arrangements were meant to be set by the end of this year. In their comments the Northern Land Council said that discussions have not finished so the interim permit system will stay in place until the end of 2010.
According to the statement issued by NLC the Northern Land Council has committed to this additional extension to 31 December 2010 to ensure that good faith negotiations can continue between all partners and stakeholders for the management and development of a sustainable fishing industry. It further said that aboriginal land covers approximately 5500 kilometres of Northern Territory coastline and consultations with Traditional Owners will take some time to complete.
The statement states that this scheme is free and involves the automatic grant of licences to commercial operators, with recreational licences automatically granted on request to the NLC. The Amateur Fishermen’s Association in the Northern Territory is concerned about the time it is taking to finalise future access to tidal waters. The association’s Chris Makepeace says he is still confident a free access regime will be negotiated.
