EXPORT OF LIVE FISH

[Volvo]

Did someone miss a turn somewhere along the drive here??, me thought the original question asked was "Should live Trout be exported??".
roflmao.
As for the planet or mother nature i think she will put a stop to us doin her to much harm before we get too far...Like yez said she's been around a lot longer.
Cheers

[kc]

I,m glad someone said it! I thought it was a debate about live trout exports too.

Here's a few figures. Before the live trout tarde the commercial catch of coral trout was steady for years at about 1400 tonnes and "we" could afford to buy the stuff at local fish shops and restaurants. Since the live trade started the catch rate and effort has increased dramatically and the catch last year (2001) was 2098 tonnes, the majority of which was exported. The 2002 figures have not yet been released but they are above 2001 figures.

If the live trout trade was abolished the domestic demand would stabilise catch rates back to around 1400 tonnes but this is not going to happen in a free market economy so we are stuck with the live trout trade.

There is some bright news. The QLd fisheries issued investment warning in (I believe 1998) about stopping future investment by the professional ranks in this fishery. This warning was largely ignored. There are currently 1200 commercial licenses endorsed to catch coral reef fin fish (trout) but this is now being reviewed (and they are seriuos) to reduce licenses back to those numbers which dervive the bulk of there income from the fishery (about 330) and all other license holders will be subject to recreational bags limits (in other words no point fishing for trout, particularly live trout).

The new 330 boat fleet will then have a quota of 1400 tonnes. It is probable that this 1400 tonnes will all be exported and trout will totally dissapear from the domestic market, along with WA crayfish, Abalone, southern bluefin tuna and the like which all feeds export markets which have already rooted there own fishery and now find it easier to buy ours.

The end result of all this means the live trout trade will continue but overall commecial catch rates have effectively been reduced by almost half. Recreational bag limits will be down from 10 to 8 (no problem) but no one will be able to buy coral trout in Australia....just means more people will have to take up fishin'
Based on these catch rates about 1 million less trout will be taken off the reef every year and that has got to be good news. The pro's are whining like broken diffs but they were warned about this twice. Australia is not the fish monger to the world and it is about time the pro lobby realised this. If they just fished for the domestic market catch rates would be reduced by supply and demand forces, prices would come down and we would not have to eat the imported fish farm crap that is served in most fish shops and restaurants these days.
Yes some people would lose jobs and personally I have no problem with compensation. The Government issued too many licenses let them pay the price to fix it..if it cost me another cent a litre on fuel I couldn't give a sh#@.

I for one absolutely applaud the government for having the balls to take on the pro lobby, with spotties and trout the 2 most notable successes already. The Labour party in Queensland is actually getting its head around our fisheries problems and doing something about it......and the National party is siding with the pro's. I think it will be a bloody long time before we see them back in power.

KC