By Ross Winstanley* In July 1862, Victoria's out-going Inspector of Fisheries and Oyster Beds, James Putwain, wrote a report of his observations of the colony's commercial fisheries to deputy premier Charles Duffy.  Irish-born Duffy was the Commissioner for Public Works, President of the Board o...

The peak industry body for commercial fishers in Victoria is Seafood Industry Victoria (SIV).  SIV is funded by a small compulsory fee on all Victorian fishing licences. The Victorian Government recently wrote to Victorian fishers asking if they wanted to continue paying this fee.  Victoria has...

Four years ago, AFMA installed cameras on gillnet vessels targeting sharks in the south-east fishery to monitor dolphin and sea-lion interactions. However, a consequence of doing this was that human observers were removed from these vessels.  These observers collected data on interactions with d...

REPRODUCED FROM AUSTRALIA POST WEBSITE Sustainable fishing means keeping fishing activity to a level that allows it to continue indefinitely, maintaining the integrity of ecosystems where fishing occurs, and using non-destructive, wild-capture fishing techniques. Australia rates highly on an i...

By Ross Winstanley* Recreational fishing in Australia faces an interesting challenge: a recent decline in the community's view of its sustainability.  While community perceptions of commercial fishing's sustainability sit at a lower level, the industry has invested heavily - and with some succes...