EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Issued by the Authority of the Australian Fisheries Management Authority
Fisheries Management Act 1991
Northern Prawn Fishery (Closures) Direction No. 169
Protected Area Closures
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 (AFMA) 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 AFMA issues a Direction, it must consult with the management advisory committee for the fishery, the Northern Prawn Fishery Management Advisory Committee (NORMAC), about the content of the Direction unless the Direction is issued in circumstances of an emergency. Under co-management arrangements, AFMA must also consult with Northern Prawn Fishery Industry Pty Ltd (NPFI) on all operational matters for the fishery, including Directions. This is outlined in the co-management policy and memorandum of understanding between AFMA and NPFI and has been endorsed by NORMAC.
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 generically 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, the number of boats in the fishery and the specifications of those boats.
The Direction
The Northern Prawn Fishery (Closures) Direction No. 169 (the Direction) closes specified areas of the Fishery to fishing. The Direction prohibits fishing in eleven specific areas within the Fishery that provide essential habitats for the juvenile growth phase of penaeid prawns, a major species in the Fishery. Fishing in these areas would not only cause destruction to vital seagrass habitat but would also result in the capture of underdeveloped and undersize prawns.
The Direction also closes two areas to fishing, as they are the sites of research surveys investigating the impact of trawling on the benthos. To avoid confounding the results of this research it is important that these areas remain closed to commercial fishing for the duration of this project.
Regulation Impact Statement
The Office of Best Practice Regulation advised that a Regulation Impact Statement was not required for this instrument 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
AFMA assesses under section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011 that this legislative instrument is compatible with human rights. AFMA’s Statement of Compatibility is attached as a supporting document.
Consultation
AFMA consulted with the NPFI and NORMAC prior to making the Direction. NPFI and NORMAC support the making of the Direction.
Details of the Direction are set out below:
Clause 1 Provides for the Direction to be cited as the Northern Prawn Fishery (Closures) Direction No. 169.
Clause 2 Provides that the Direction commences on the day after registration on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments.
Clause 3 Provides that the Direction ceases on 31 March 2024 unless earlier revoked.
Clause 4 Provides that a term used in the Direction and in the Plan has the same meaning in the Direction as in the Plan.
Clause 5 States to whom the Direction applies.
Clause 6 Prohibits fishing in the areas described in Schedule 1.
Clause 7 Provides for an exemption to clause 6.
Schedule 1 Describes the areas where fishing is prohibited under clause 6.