FISHERIES MANAGEMENT ACT 1991

SOUTHERN AND EASTERN SCALEFISH AND SHARK FISHERY MANAGEMENT PLAN 2003

SESSF DIRECTION No. 05

GEAR REQUIREMENTS FOR THE COMMONWEALTH TRAWL SECTOR

I, Richard John McLoughlin, Managing Director of the Australian Fisheries Management Authority, as delegate, make the following Direction under subsection 17(5A)(a) of the Fisheries Management Act 1991 and subsection 56(1) of the Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery Management Plan 2003.

Dated             17   December             2005

Richard McLoughlin (Signed)

Managing Director,

Australian Fisheries Management Authority

Citation

1.    This Direction may be cited as SESSF Direction No. 05.

Commencement

2.    This Direction commences on the 14 January 2006.

Application

3.        This Direction applies to a holder of a trawl boat statutory fishing right in the Commonwealth trawl sector (excludes danish seine and prawn trawl) of the Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery and to a person acting on behalf of the holder.

3.1  However, this Direction does not apply to the holder of a scientific permit that authorises the use of an alternative fishing gear type.

Period of Application

4.      This Direction applies for a period beginning on the date this Direction commences and ending at 2400 hours UTC on the 31 December 2006.

Interpretation

5.1     In this Direction:

"boat"  means a boat that is nominated on a trawl boat statutory fishing right for the Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery;

"fishing" means the commercial fishing activities that are referred to in section 20 of the Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery Management Plan 2003  and defined in the Fisheries Management Act 1991;

"equipment" means equipment for fishing;

"bycatch reduction device" means a device that allows fish and other animals to escape immediately after being taken in the net and is constructed in accordance with Schedule 1;

"UTC" means Coordinated Universal Time, the time scale based on the second (SI), maintained by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures.  For the purposes of this Direction UTC is equivalent to mean solar time at the prime meridian (0 degrees longitude), formerly expressed in Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).

5.2     A term used in this Direction that is defined for the purposes of the Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery Management Plan 2003 has the same meaning in this Direction as it has in that plan.

[Notes:             1.  Terms defined in the Fisheries Management Act 1991 have the same meanings in this determination.

2.  Terms defined in the Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery Management Plan 2003 include "Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery " and "Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery area". ]

Gear requirements

             6        The fishery is closed to a boat using a net unless the net or nets used by the boat has the following requirements:

                    (a) A codend of 90 mm single twine mesh; or

                    (b) A codend of double twine mesh of at least 102 mm (4 inch) or greater; or        

                    (c) A codend of 90 mm double twine mesh, with one or more bycatch reduction device (as described in Schedule 1).

Note: All mesh sizes are measured from knot centre to knot centre when stretched diagonally.

SCHEDULE 1

Each of the following are bycatch reduction devices:

          1.       A single large square mesh (at least 90 mm) panel in the upper side of the codend bag (dimensions 15 bars X 20 bars).

          2.       A single large rotated mesh (T90) panel (at least 90 mm) in the upper side of the codend bag (15 meshes X 20 meshes).