WA gamefishing restrictions unclear

The Gallop Labor Government has been returned to office in February's State election, and the aftermath for anglers in Western Australia is still not clear as BlueWater goes to print.

Readers may recall that in its first term the Gallop Government introduced plans for a series of marine parks at some of the finest gamefishing locations along the WA coast - indeed some of the finest fishing destinations in the country, including the Rowley Shoals and Montebello Islands - which saw huge no-fishing zones of around 75 and 50 per cent respectively being created. In addition, the Ningaloo Marine Park has anglers locked out of 34 per cent of the best areas. Nobody else is locked out, just anglers, and all in the name of biodiversity!

Given the high conservation ethics required of gamefishers, no-fishing zones are particularly abhorrent. It has been confirmed that anglers have never inflicted any negative impact on the biodiversity in WA, and subsequently they find it hard to accept that they should be locked out from so many of the finest fishing locations. Recreational fishing community groups have repeatedly sought to have some of the no-fishing zones changes to non-retention areas. This would at least allow some of the state's high-profile fishing locations to maintain some degree of access with fishing restricted to catch and release only. The state's tourism industry would clearly benefit from this approach.

The WA Government has failed repeatedly to identify why anglers pose such a threat in many of the areas now closed to them. Nevertheless, the fishing closures appear to have continued unabated.

The West Australian Game Fishing Association, supported by the Game Fishing Association of Australia, has been very vocal in expressing its concerns on the fishing closures. Indeed, even the International Game Fishing Association wrote to the West Australian Premier in an attempt to apply some common sense to fishing zone closures.

West Australian anglers remain incensed at the level of closures, especially given that all parties involved agree that the current marine park development and consultation processes are flawed. And there are more marine parks to come!

In the lead up to the recent election, the Recreational Fishing Alliance (RFA) was established to get the Government and uninformed members of the public to focus on what was happening at some of WA's top fishing locations. The RFA was pleased to see a recreational fishing policy statement from the incumbent Government which put paid to no-fishing zones being promoted for Rottnest Island. There were also a series of other pro-recreational fishing policies that were clearly aimed at appeasing very disenchanted anglers, who constitute about one third of the WA's voting public.

If rumours can be relied on, it would appear that the re-elected Gallop Government is having a serious rethink about where and how it creates marine parks in its second term. It is therefore likely that the previous system of developing marine parks in Western Australia will no longer be used. There are three more marine parks in the pipeline and after that the RFA hopes to see a far more equitable system established to protect the marine environment.

But what about the current impact on anglers of no-fishing zones in marine park plans that have already been completed? Only time will tell.

Once the new State Government settles in iwe hope to be able to report in BlueWater that common sense has prevailed in the west, and that we see a far more responsible and equitable approach to future marine parks.