National Rec Fishing Survey a Step Closer ?

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Taken from FW e-mail newsletter

01 Dec 2014

THE Australian Recreational Fishing Foundation managing director Allan Hansard today welcomed Government steps towards delivering the long awaited national survey on the social and economic benefits of recreational fishing, as promised at the last election.

“A national workshop held this week by the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES) was a huge step forward as our sector provided input into the first nationwide survey of this kind.†Mr Hansard said.

This workshop followed a national policy summit held in Canberra last week at which ARFF set a forward-looking agenda for recreational fishing in Australia.

“The policy summit was a coming of age for ARFF. We now have an organisation that is built on a foundation of all State peak bodies, national fishing associations and industry groups, which truly represents the broad interests of recreational fishing in this country. We also have an organisation that has a proven record in delivering real outcomes for recreational fishers.†Mr Hansard said.

The policy summit was attended by representatives from across Australia, and focused on key issues facing the recreational sector.

Recfish Australia Chairman Russell Conway, said: “The formation of ARFF has achieved something that individual organisations in isolation could not. That’s unity and the ability to speak as a single collective voice.

Australian National Sportsfishing Association Executive Officer John Burgess said: “We are facing a busy 12 months with a number of government processes that we will be providing input into. These include the Marine Park Review Process, the Harvest and Bycatch Review, the Independent Scientific Panel reports on the Small Pelagic Fishery and the response to the Borthwick Review. In meeting these challenges we can draw on the wealth of experience that sits around the ARFF table.â€

ARFF representatives, including a number of “young future leaders†from the recreational fishing community, also took the opportunity to meet with the Parliamentary Secretary for Fisheries, Senator Richard Colbeck.

Recfishwest Chief Executive Andrew Rowland said: “We had a constructive discussion with the Senator on how ARFF can assist in delivering key policy outcomes for the Government, including the proposed Recreational Fishing Council. The Senator is a keen recreational fisher and this is a great advantage when discussing our issues.â€

The ARFF executive also met with the National Seafood Industry Association (NSIA) to discuss greater collaboration between recreational fishers and the commercial sector.

“The great thing when peak bodies get together is that we are reminded that we have a lot of ‘common ground’ on many issues related to sustainable fisheries resources.†Mr Hansard said.