EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Issued by the Authority of the
Australian Fisheries Management Authority
Fisheries Management Act 1991
Bass Strait Central Zone Scallop Fishery (Closures) Direction No. 3 2013
The Bass Strait Central Zone Scallop Fishery (Closures) Direction No. 3 2013 (the Direction) is a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.
Subsection 41A(2) of the Fisheries Management Act 1991 (the Management Act) provides, inter alia, that the Australian Fisheries Management Authority (the Authority) may, after such consultation as set out in s41A(2), direct that fishing is not to be engaged in the fishery, or a particular part of the fishery, during a particular period or periods.
Subsection 41A(2) also provides that, before the Authority issues a Direction, it must consult with the management advisory committee for the fishery, the Bass Strait Central Zone Scallop Fishery Management Advisory Committee (ScallopMAC), about the content of the Direction unless the Direction is issued in circumstances of an emergency.
Subsection 41A(2B) provides that in an emergency, a Direction may be given under subsection 41A(2) without any consultation and subsection 41A(2A) does not apply. It further provides that the Authority must send holders of fishing concessions in the fishery a copy of the Direction as soon as possible.
The Fishery
The Bass Strait Central Zone Scallop Fishery (the fishery) lies in Bass Strait above the State of Tasmania and extends from the Victorian/New South Wales border, typically outside 3 nautical miles, around southern Australia to the Victorian/South Australian border.
Management in the fishery is through a combination of input and output controls in the form of individually transferable quotas with a Total Allowable Catch determined for each of the two quota species, commercial scallops and doughboy scallops for each fishing season. The main target species in the fishery is the Commercial Scallop (Pecten fumatus). The Doughboy Scallop (Chlamys (Mimachlamys) asperrimus) is common throughout Bass Strait however it is rarely retained. The target species are caught primarily for the domestic market.
The scallop resource’s naturally sporadic and fluctuating availability and intermittent recruitment make the concept of unfished biomass problematic. Commercial Scallops aggregate in sub-populations (beds) which have a commercially viable rate some years and not others. The aim of maintaining the fishery at a nominated target reference point is difficult to attain given the nature of the species. The harvest strategy for the fishery requires all parts of the fishery to be closed to fishing other than those recognised as viable fishing areas. The intent of the harvest strategy is to maintain the adult spawning biomass at a level that provides the opportunity for ongoing recruitment in the fishery.
The Direction
The Direction closes the fishery to fishing while allowing for an area of the fishery to remain open to fishing for a specified period. The fishery’s 2013 season opened on 20 August 2013 under the Bass Strait Central Zone Scallop Fishery (Closures) Direction No. 1 2013.
Prior to the commencement of the 2013 season, boats operating under scientific permits surveyed areas of the Fishery to determine size and the commercial viability of scallop beds. The surveys located two areas containing commercially viable catches. One of these areas was opened to fishing however on 23 October 2013 the Authority was advised that testing for paralytic shellfish toxin (PST) of scallops taken in the area of the Fishery showed PST levels in excess of the safe human limit of 0.8 mg/kg. The Authority therefore closed this area to fishing by registering the Bass Strait Central Zone Scallop Fishery (Closures) Direction No. 2 2013 on 25 October 2013.
Further surveying under scientific permits, when catch rates declined in Area 1, showed a further two areas contained commercially viable scallops. Testing for PST in the area the Scallop Management Advisory Committee recommended should be opened to fishing (Area 4) showed the PST levels to be below the safe human limit. These test results were received by the Authority late on 25 October 2013. The Determination opens this area to fishing. The Authority considers this an emergency and urgent action is required to ensure the Authority pursues its objective to maximise the net economic returns to the Australian community from the management of Australian Fisheries.
The Direction revokes and replaces the Bass Strait Central Zone Scallop Fishery (Closures) Direction No. 2 2013.
Regulation Impact Statement
The Office of Best Practice Regulation advised that a Regulation Impact Statement was not required for this Direction consistent with the agreement in place to cover all regulatory changes deemed to be of a minor or machinery nature.
Statement of compatibility prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011
The Authority assesses under section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011 that this legislative instrument is compatible with human rights. The Authority’s Statement of Compatibility is attached as a supporting document.
Consultation
Subsection 41A(2B) of the Management Act provides that in an emergency, a Direction may be given under subsection 41A(2) without any consultation. The Authority is satisfied that the circumstances constitute an emergency and urgent action is required.
The Authority is satisfied that the Direction is consistent with the objectives of the Bass Strait Central Zone Scallop Fishery Management Plan 2002; as well as with its obligation to pursue the objectives set out in Section 3 of the Management Act, in particular the objective concerned with the sustainability of fisheries resources (paragraph 3(1)(b)).
Details of the Direction are set out below:
Clause 1 Provides for the Direction to be cited as the Bass Strait Central Zone Scallop Fishery (Closures) Direction No. 3 2013.
Clause 2 Provides that the Direction commences on 1 November 2013.
Clause 3 Provides that the Direction ceases to have effect as if it was repealed on 31 December 2014 unless earlier revoked.
Clause 4 Provides that a term used in the Direction and in the Plan or Act has the same meaning in the Determination as in the Plan or Act.
Clause 5 States to whom the Direction applies.
Clause 6 Prohibits fishing in the Bass Strait Central Zone Scallop Fishery.
Clause 7 Provides for an exemption to the prohibition in clause 6.
Clause 8 Provides for the revocation of the Bass Strait Central Zone Scallop Fishery (Closures) Direction No.2 2013.