Recreational abalone fishers are reminded to fish safely and sustainably for the next session of the Western Zone fishing season on Saturday 7 February, based on predicted weather and ocean conditions.
The third fishing session will be open for one hour between 7am and 8am with about 16,000 abalone fishers licenced to fish along reefs between Busselton Jetty and the Greenough River Mouth.
Surf Life Saving WA (SLSWA) modelling predicts an average tide of 0.4 metres and an average wave height and swell of 1.1 metre or above. The air temperature range is expected to be from 19 to 35 degrees with winds of about 20 kilometres per hour.
Fishers north of Lancelin are urged to exercise additional caution and monitor local conditions on the day to manage personal safety with a predicted swell of between 2 to 3 metres and winds of up to 40 kilometres.
The modelling uses the best available information on conditions from several sources, rating the risks for factors like wind speed, wave height, tide, swell period and direction.
Conditions may differ at various locations throughout the zone and anyone collecting abalone should ensure they have sufficient water skills to match the conditions, wear the right gear and keep an eye on waves that wash across the reefs.
DPIRD management officer Aidan Walsh said the abalone season was tightly managed to provide recreational fishers with safe access to the abalone and ensure the long-term sustainability of the fishery.
"It's essential for all fishers to know the abalone size and bag limits before fishing and ensure there are sustainable and healthy stocks for the future," Mr Walsh said.
"The bag limit for Roe's abalone is 15 and the minimum size limit is 60 mm measured across the widest part of the shell.
"Measuring abalone before they are removed from a reef is the best practice so that undersize abalone are left to grow. If abalone is in your catch bag it's considered your catch. It's too late to measure when you return to shore."
The fishing rules are available in DPIRD's Abalone Recreational fishing guide . A Fisheries Education video is available online for abalone fishing .
DPIRD fisheries officers will be attending beaches within the Western Zone to ensure people understand and follow the rules. SLSWA will be on patrol to ensure fisher safety, excluding the area north of Yanchep to Greenough River Mouth.
