The ERA and the effectiveness A review of the 2.5 Sustainability Assessment of Fishing The Department considers this recommendation of management responses Effects (SAFE) analysis, originally competed in late 2007, was met. should be reviewed as completed in early 2011. This assessment incorporated appropriate, but at within updated fishing catch and effort data, as well as scientific three years of completion of the data. level 2.5 SAFE analysis. An update of the ecological risk assessment is expected to be completed in early 2014. AFMA to continue to cooperate The Australian Fisheries Management Authority continues to The Department considers this recommendation with relevant jurisdictions to liaise with the relevant jurisdictions on all relevant matters in met. pursue complementary the Northern Prawn Fishery through the Northern Prawn management and research of all Fishery Management Advisory Committee (NORMAC) which aspects of the fishery, including includes representatives from Queensland and the Northern target, byproduct, bycatch Prawn Fishery Industry. Catch limits for Northern Prawn (including protected species) Fishery byproduct species taken in other state managed and impacts on the ecosystem. fisheries are established via memorandums of understanding with the Queensland, Northern Territory and Western Australian governments under Offshore Constitutional Settlement arrangements. AFMA to continue to improve Since the 2009 Australian Government assessment of the The Department considers this recommendation monitoring systems for Northern Prawn Fishery, harvest strategies for byproduct met. byproduct species ensuring species and biological catches’ have been ‘allowable trigger limits and reference developed for major byproduct species. The harvest strategies points are biologically incorporate outcomes of research which developed statistical meaningful, and that models, based on aggregated logbook data, for byproduct management responses have species groups in the fishery and developed catch limits for clear timeframes for each byproduct groups (Milton 2010). This has allowed et.al. implementation. reference points and decision rules for byproduct species groups to be included in the fishery’s harvest strategy document (see Table 1).
The ERA and the effectiveness of management responses should be reviewed as appropriate, but at within three years of completion of the level 2.5 SAFE analysis. A review of the 2.5 Sustainability Assessment of Fishing Effects (SAFE) analysis, originally competed in late 2007, was completed in early 2011. This assessment incorporated updated fishing catch and effort data, as well as scientific data. An update of the ecological risk assessment is expected to be completed in early 2014. The Department considers this recommendation met. AFMA to continue to cooperate with relevant jurisdictions to pursue complementary management and research of all aspects of the fishery, including target, byproduct, bycatch (including protected species) and impacts on the ecosystem. The Australian Fisheries Management Authority continues to liaise with the relevant jurisdictions on all relevant matters in the Northern Prawn Fishery through the Northern Prawn Fishery Management Advisory Committee (NORMAC) which includes representatives from Queensland and the Northern Prawn Fishery Industry. Catch limits for Northern Prawn Fishery byproduct species taken in other state managed fisheries are established via memorandums of understanding with the Queensland, Northern Territory and Western Australian governments under Offshore Constitutional Settlement arrangements. The Department considers this recommendation met. AFMA to continue to improve monitoring systems for byproduct species ensuring trigger limits and reference points are biologically meaningful, and that management responses have clear timeframes for implementation. Since the 2009 Australian Government assessment of the Northern Prawn Fishery, harvest strategies for byproduct species and ‘allowable biological catches’ have been developed for major byproduct species. The harvest strategies incorporate outcomes of research which developed statistical models, based on aggregated logbook data, for byproduct species groups in the fishery and developed catch limits for each byproduct groups (Milton et.al. 2010). This has allowed reference points and decision rules for byproduct species groups to be included in the fishery’s harvest strategy document (see Table 1). The Department considers this recommendation met.