Commercial fishers nurse northern snapper fishery back to health
A commitment to science-based fisheries management has seen commercial fishers in the Gascoyne region celebrating the first increase in pink snapper quota since 2018.
Oceanic pink snapper in the Gascoyne Demersal Scalefish Resource (GDSR) has been operating under a recovery strategy since 2018 when stocks were found to be at severe risk, with the spawning biomass assessed at below the reference levels.
Commercial fishers took the lead and voiced concerns about the stock status before undertaking a voluntary reduction in catch mid-season, while the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development finalised its official assessment.
After finalising the commercial quota cut, the commercial fishers then asked DPIRD to establish a closed-fishing zone around Bernier and Kox Islands to provide further protection for Pink Snapper in the peak winter spawning months in order to speed the recovery while applying maximum protection across this important spawning area.
Managing Director of Sabea Fishing Company, Phil de Grauw said it was obvious that there was a decrease in the available stock, so fishers agreed to take a cut in catch while DPIRD finished a stock assessment.
“The commercial fishers agreed to a voluntary cut from 240 tonnes to just 50 tonnes mid-season until we had a better understanding on stock and the decline in catch numbers. For a business, it’s always a hard decision to make when your bottom-line is impacted, but long-term sustainability is critical, so we took the hit.”
As part of the recovery strategy, a Gascoyne Demersal Scalefish Resource Harvest Strategy Reference Group (HSRG) was formed, which included members from the commercial sector, as well as charter operators and recreationals, to oversee development of a recovery plan for pink snapper.
Key measures included the protection of spawning snapper around the key aggregation site off Bernier Island.
By 2022, the stock had showed signs of recovery with the spawning biomass climbing above the limit reference levels.
An updated 2024 stock assessment shows that the female spawning biomass is now above the threshold. The benchmark has been reached three years earlier than forecast in the recovery strategy and would support an increase in sustainable catch to 150 tonnes for all sectors combined.
As a safeguard, the commercial catch quota has been lifted slightly to 100 tonnes for the 2024-25 season.
Ongoing monitoring and stock assessments will be undertaken within the recovery plan, with expectations that a full recovery will be met within the agreed timeframe.
The science and management have produced an outstanding result, with the recovery timeline exceeding DPIRD’s estimations.
Based on stock-recovery modelling by world-renowned marine scientist, Andre Punt, who reviewed all the research data, stock numbers are almost 12 years ahead of the planned recovery timeline, with biomass already close to 40 per cent of its target.
“The original estimated time of recovery was positioned for 2037, but signs are now pointing to a full recovery later in 2025.”
“With most of the hard work done, the next challenge is to increase the commercial tonnage to a figure that will re-boot the economic yield for fish buyers, catches and licence holders in the fishery and this will provide more fish for consumers.”
“We are really proud of how the commercial fishers worked to manage this issue. No one is more committed to sustainability than commercial fishers, so we need to know we get the balances right to ensure there will always be fish for the future.”
“This recovery strategy is a great example of what can be achieved when fisheries and fisheries managers work together,” Phil said.