Big Brother Keeps An Eye On The Bluefin Industryff
1 July 2005
Australia Ulladulla fishermen are struggling under new laws introduced to control the areas where southern bluefin tuna can be caught.
Owner of the long-line boat, Jenabar, Joe Basile said the fishermen are spending more time doing paperwork than fishing with the constant introduction of new laws and regulations.
According to Ulladulla Fishing Co-op manager Steve Basile, under the new laws Australian Fishing Management Authority (AFMA) also requires each boat to carry an observer, at their own expense, while fishing in the core zone. The core zone is the area where AFMA have determined there are the most bluefin tuna and the zone moves north with the fish migration.
â€AFMA are making the rules and they’re getting worse and worse every year,†Mr. Basile said. “The quota system has been in for a few years now and there is no doubt that it has worked to an effect. The fish are getting bigger and thicker but the authorities won’t recognize that.â€
The new laws will also see the re-assessment of zone lines every two weeks which, as the fish migrate north, will force the fishermen from their local fishing grounds.
â€This year they've brought in the observer at the expense of the boat operator and they’re re-assessing the core zones making it difficult to catch any fish. The boats have to fork out $450 per day for a government observer which is a lot of money when you haven't caught any fish. The laws also prevent them from catching yellow fin and big-eyed tuna as, although they are not a fish under quota, they swim with bluefin tuna and you need a two ton quota for bluefin in the core zone.â€
â€Basically for a two ton quota, people have to pay $25,000 and pay for the observer as well,†Steve said, “and most people can’t afford that. AFMA have also introduced the law of all long-liners installing a Global Positioning System so they are easily located at any given time. This is also at the expense of the boat operators.â€
â€It’s bad for the boats as the fishermen have to leave their families to fish out of the area; it's bad for the Co-op as we get five per cent of fish through our door and five percent of nothing is nothing. AFMA is the only one getting anything out of it,†he said.
â€We’ve had the observers on our boats for two or three years for the bird factor,†Mr. Basile said. But we didn’t have to pay directly for their wage although we did pay indirectly in fees. “But now AFMA have introduced observers for bluefin and the boat owners have to pay the $450 per day on top of all our other costs.â€
â€When we are forced from our local waters and we have to travel so far north, we use up to 1000 liters of fuel a day and fuel is more expensive up north than it is here. We also have to pay huge berthing costs, which all adds to our rising expenses,†owner of long-liner Salvatore, Tory Campisi said.
â€AFMA hasn’t taken into account the costs of berthing our boats,†owner of Sensation, Marchello Pennisi said. “It costs $90 per day to berth up north and we don't even get the use of any power for that. If we are stuck in bad weather and we have to be in port, the costs are around $200 per day on top of our other expenses. And AFMA don’t have a plan for when the bluefin come back even though we've seen a massive increase in stock and sizes of fish.
â€The stocks are back and the government needs to keep re-assessing but they don't look that far ahead. As the bluefin swim north, AFMA keeps moving the core zone line with the fish so in a couple of weeks it could be as far as Coffs Harbor or further. By October we'll be up in Queensland.â€
Owner of the Question II, Joe Puglisi said tuna is the fastest growing fish species and that is also not taken into account by AFMA.
â€There is plenty of fish out there but we can't get out to catch them.â€
AFMA stated that the authority undertakes a full review of the location of the zones every two weeks from May to October to ensure the impact on the fishing industry is minimized as much as possible.
That way the authority can quickly identify any changes in possible southern bluefin tuna movements that may allow the measures to be eased.
But Steve Basile said the damage is done for this year. “There’s not much we can do but make a lot of noise for next year.â€
