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HMAS Brisbane
Anyone fishing out from Maroochydore/Mooloolabah be aware of this.
ROGUE anglers are blatantly ignoring the conservation zone around the wreck of the HMAS Brisbane, risking thousands of dollars in fines to catch fish in the protected area.
Commercial dive operators permitted to enter the HMAS Brisbane Conservation Park say they are constantly finding evidence of fishing on the wreck.
In one instance, a man was spotted spear-fishing while scuba-diving around the artificial reef. Entry to the park is by permit only. General tourism operations, fishing, boating and other watercraft activities are not permitted at the site. Fines range up to $8800.
Mike McKinnon, of Scuba World at Mooloolaba, said that fresh evidence of fishing was visible on the wreck several times a week.
"WE'RE always finding hooks and lines on one of the transit lines that lead down to the ship that the divers follow, or we just find them on the wreck itself," he said.
"We see fish with hooks in their mouths."
A spokesman for Sunreef Scuba Diving Services said it was not unusual to find the skeletons of fish that had been filleted aboard boats above the wreck.
Both businesses have
begun photographing intruding vessels and reporting them to authorities.
So far, only one person has been hit with a $330 fine in the past three months.
Both dive operators said Parks and Wildlife officers did their best, but had to cover a large area and could not be at the park around the clock.
Mr McKinnon said most of the people he approached claimed they had no idea they needed a permit.
But neither he nor Sunreef's spokesman believed them.
"There's a percentage where I would like to say it's ignorance, but it's marked on every chart as a conservation zone," Sunreef's spokesman said.
"It's been out there for eight years. Locals should know. If guys have got their own boat, they usually have their own charts and GPS.
"There's so many green zones you can barely fish anywhere without thinking about it.
"If they're not thinking about it, they should be."
Regional director for the Department of National Parks, Recreation, Sport and Racing, Peter Wright, said rangers continued to conduct patrols and monitor compliance in the park.
The HMAS Brisbane was scuttled on July 31, 2005 to form an artificial reef for the diving industry.
It lies in 28m of water, about 9km offshore from Mooloolaba.
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Re: HMAS Brisbane
I was close to there fishing first time few days ago.
Deckie started throwing up as soon as leaving the ramp and destroyed the day, will be back.
Not familiar with the area but just had a look at navionics, although the wreck is marked, there is no exclusion zone visibly marked on the map, only a note to see if clicked on to wreck under description.
Perhaps many people wont realising unless local.
Is there yellow buoys in the area marking the zone?
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Re: HMAS Brisbane
