Blue Warehou Stock Rebuilding Strategy 2014

AFMA has updated the Blue Warehou Rebuilding Strategy.

The Blue Warehou Stock Rebuilding Strategy 2014 is a revised version of the Blue Warehou Stock Rebuilding Strategy 2008 and will continue to support the recovery of blue warehou stocks to their ecologically sustainable levels.

View the updated Blue Warehou Stock Rebuilding Strategy 2014

Q&A on the update rebuilding strategy

What management actions will be applied to assist in the recovery of Blue Warehou?

Management actions applied in the Blue Warehou Stock Rebuilding Strategy 2014 to assist in the recovery of blue warehou include:

• preventing targeted fishing by setting low total allowable catch limits to cover incidental catches only
• ensuring that incidental catch of the species is kept to a minimum
• improving our knowledge of stock status, including improved data collection and monitoring that will inform future management responses.

These actions are described in more detail in the strategy document.

How will the strategies be monitored?

The Shelf Resource Assessment Group will annually review the status of blue warehou stocks as well as the performance of the strategy against the objectives using the annual reporting template found attached to the strategy document.

What rebuilding timeframes is AFMA working to?

The initial (2008) strategy adopted a rebuilding timeframe target of one mean generation time (approximately six years for blue warehou). However, recent scientific assessments have indicated that this timeframe is unlikely to be met.

The updated strategy adopts the ‘biologically reasonable rebuilding timeframe’ referred to in the Commonwealth Harvest Strategy Policy of one mean generation time plus 10 years. This means that blue warehou stocks should be rebuilt to or above the limit reference point by 2024.

How often will the strategy be reviewed?

The strategy will be reviewed by AFMA with input from Shelf Resource Assessment Group and the South East Management Advisory Committee every five years.

What is the commercial fishing industry doing to assist in the recovery of these stocks?

The South East Trawl Fishing Industry Association (SETFIA), with support from AFMA, has developed a code of practice and an education and awareness program to encourage fishers to actively avoid catching blue warehou and highlight the importance of accurately recording data.

The code of practice captures operator requirements set down by the strategy and involves additional measures in which fishermen communicate the location of large shots of blue warehou in an effort to increase avoidance and reduce incidental catches. As a further initiative SETFIA and AFMA are developing online learning modules to educate fishers about the industry and management, including arrangements for rebuild species.