- Wind back of commitment for 100% of boats to have cameras means 80% of fishing activity will not be recorded.
- Reduced camera coverage for threatened, endangered and protected species (TEPS) risks significant underreporting of TEPS caught in commercial barra gillnets.
- NT Government must urgently protect critical habitats from commercial gillnetting and buyout the displaced fishing effort as a priority first step in the gillnet phase-out.
The Australian Marine Conservation Society (AMCS) has welcomed the Northern Territory Government's renewed commitment to phase out gillnets, with the last season slated to end in September next year. However, AMCS warns that cutting back cameras on all boats will reduce transparency and leave endangered species at greater risk during the transition.
Under changes announced by NT Fisheries Minister Gerard Maley, cameras will now rotate across boats, recording just 20 per cent of fishing activity each year. This is not only falling short of the previous commitment for cameras on 100 per cent of vessels by July 2025, but significantly weakens the ability of the NT Government to randomly check any footage from any boat at any point.
Dr Leonardo Guida, AMCS shark scientist said: "The shift in monitoring is a major step backwards, because 80% fishing will go unrecorded and irresponsible fishers will know when it's their turn to fish with no oversight. Having cameras on all boats means not only better data, but also significantly reduces the chances of irresponsible fishing if the footage can be randomly reviewed at any time on any boat."
"Rotating cameras across vessels creates serious blind spots in critical habitat for sawfish, like around the mouth of the Roper and Daly Rivers. Sawfish are vulnerable to localised extinctions because females return to their river of birth to breed, so the last thing you want is concentrated amounts of fishing at these critical locations going unrecorded."
"Thor Jensen, Darwin based Community Campaigner said: "The NT barramundi fishery has recently been assessed by Australia's peak body of threatened species scientists as having 'very high' risk to endangered freshwater sawfish, a species that is culturally significant for some Traditional Owners and vital to keep Top End waters healthy."
Dr Guida said, "If the NT Government can't properly account for endangered species caught in gillnets, then it must urgently protect critical habitats from commercial gillnetting and buyout the displaced fishing effort as a priority step in the gillnet phase-out."
