Exmouth Marine Park must deliver for commercial fishers
The new Exmouth Marine Park has been announced, with the government confirming there will be no adverse impacts for Western Australia’s commercial fisheries.
Exmouth Gulf is a complex marine environment with a wide range of activities, including commercial fishing, recreational fishing, defence, tourism and neighbouring coastal industrial developments.
WA Fishing Industry Council Chief Executive Officer, Melissa Haslam said while commercial fishers are not opposed to Marine Parks per se, they have lived through some disastrous marine park announcements and implementation processes, and the devil is always in the detail.
“So far, the lead up to the announcement of the Exmouth Marine Park has been much better, with industry at the table from the beginning and consulted in a fair and transparent way.
“The Marine Park itself is not a shock, but the impact to industry will again hinge on the placement of the sanctuary zones.
“Fortunately, throughout the process we have been repeatedly assured by successive Environment Ministers that there will be no adverse impacts to existing commercial fishing operations,” she said.
Throughout the process, fishers have clearly conveyed to government the important fishing grounds within the Gulf, so adverse impacts to the commercial fishing operators can be completely avoided.
“The Taskforce has noted that commercial fishers won’t be adversely impacted by the marine park, which is appropriate given there are no sustainability concerns over fish stocks within the gulf. The majority of commercial fishing in the Exmouth region is certified by the Marine Stewardship Council standards, which is the global gold standard for sustainability,” Ms Haslam said.
“Exmouth was originally a fishing town. It grew and thrived because of its fishing heritage, so it’s encouraging to see these values recognised, respected and supported.”
No-impact commercial fishing has been promised and is the expectation, and WAFIC will work collaboratively to see this delivered.
“WAFIC’s ultimate goal is for co-existence with marine parks and other marine users, which is why we are calling on the State Government to support the development of an Ocean Planning Policy that will provide a long-term outlook for marine parks and other coastal developments,” Ms Haslam said.
A State Government-endorsed Ocean Planning Policy will ensure a high standard of planning, evidenced-based research and genuine engagement with industry to underpin sound decision making, whilst securing a supply of WA seafood for West Australians to enjoy.
“Exmouth Gulf might just be the right model to put this to the test,” Ms Haslam said.