EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Issued by the Authority of the
Australian Fisheries Management Authority
Fisheries Management Act 1991
Northern Prawn Fishery Amendment (Early Closure) Direction 2018
Subsection 41A(2) of the Fisheries Management Act 1991 (the Management Act) provides that the Australian Fisheries Management Authority (AFMA) may, after such consultation as set out in subsection 41A(2), direct that fishing is not to be engaged in in the fishery, or a particular part of the fishery, during a particular period or periods.
Subsection 41A(3) of the Management Act provides that AFMA may, at any time, by a further direction in writing, vary or revoke a direction given under subsection (2). A direction given under subsection 41A(3) of the Management Act is not subject to the notification requirements under subsections 41A(2) and 41A(2A).
Pursuant to subsection 41A(4) of the Management Act, if AFMA varies a direction given under subsection 41A(2) it must ensure a copy of the direction given under subsection (3) is sent to the holder of a fishing concession in respect of the fishery as soon as practicable.
The Northern Prawn Fishery Amendment (Early Closure) Direction 2018 (the Direction) is a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislation Act 2003.
The Fishery
The Northern Prawn Fishery (the Fishery) extends from the northern coast of Western Australia, the coast of the Northern Territory and the coast of Queensland in the Gulf of Carpentaria, to the outer limit of the Australian Fishing Zone. Fishing in the Fishery is for prawns and four major ecologically related species (namely squid, scampi, bugs and scallops). There are two fishing seasons in the Fishery, bounded by closures. The area of the Fishery overlaps the areas of a number of fisheries for other species that are managed by the States and the Territory.
The Fishery is managed by limiting the amount of fishing effort that is employed by the persons permitted by the Northern Prawn Fishery Management Plan 1995 (the Plan) to fish in the Fishery. These limitations are known commonly as input controls and are used in the Fishery to address both the biological and economic objectives of the Fishery. The specific types of inputs that are controlled in the Fishery are the amount of fishing time (limited by closures of all or parts of the Fishery), the amounts and types of fishing equipment and the number of boats in the Fishery.
As of 3 November 2018 the decision rule requirements to close the tiger prawn fishery has now been triggered (as AFMA has been informed by NPF Industry Pty Ltd. (NPFI)). Therefore the tiger prawn fishery needs to be totally closed for the rest of the season.
The Direction
The Direction varies the Northern Prawn Fishery (Closures) Direction No. 171 (Direction No. 171) to provide for additional area closures for specified times within the Fishery.
The NPF Harvest Strategy 2014 includes a maximum economic yield (MEY) based tiger prawn catch trigger used to calculate the length of the tiger prawn fishing season. This trigger is variable and is calculated in‑season, based on economic data provided by the peak industry body for the fishery, NPFI. The high variability of tiger prawn recruitment results in significant variations in stock availability from year to year, and therefore this decision rule allows AFMA to close the tiger prawn fishery once the MEY threshold is reached.
The decision rule was triggered on 3 November 2018 and the requirement to close the tiger prawn fishery has now been triggered as informed by industry (NPFI). Therefore this Direction closes the fishery area for the remainder of the tiger prawn season.
The Direction is consistent with AFMA’s legislative objectives under the Management Act to maximise net economic returns to the Australian community.
The measures imposed by the Direction commence upon registration on the Federal Register of Legislation.
Consultation
The Direction is made under subsection 41A(3) of the Management Act, therefore no consultation is required. However, AFMA has consulted with the NPFI in relation to the Direction which involved NPFI coordinating the catch reporting and informing the decision rule to close the fishery early had been triggered. AFMA will send all NPF concession holders a copy of the Direction.
Regulation Impact Statement
The Office of Best Practice Regulation has provided a standing carve out to AFMA (OBPR No. 14421) recognising that setting the opening and closing dates for a fishing season (the closing date being brought forward by the Instrument) is a machinery decision under current regulatory settings and follows established procedures.
Statement of compatibility prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011
This legislative instrument does not infringe any of the applicable rights or freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.
Accordingly, in AFMA’s assessment, this legislative instrument is compatible with human rights and a declaration is included below.
Details of the Direction are set out below:
Clause 1 | Provides for the Direction to be cited as the Northern Prawn Fishery Amendment (Early Closure) Direction 2018. |
Clause 2 | Provides that the Direction commences on the day after it is registered on the Federal Register of Legislation. |
Clause 3 | Provides that this Direction is made under subsection 41A(3) of the Fisheries Management Act 1991. |
Schedule 1 | Repeals and remakes clause 10.3 of Direction No. 171, providing for the early closure of the Fishery. |