When will we expect to see the results of the proposed Dusky Flathead bag and size Limit changes?

[nal]

Hi all,

Now that the submissions for the dusky Flathead bag limit reduction and size reduction have concluded, I was wondering when we will expect to see the results from that poll and the likely changes to dusky flathead bag and size Limits?

I feel that this implementation will be a very positive thing for our fisheries, especially the 5 per person bag limit which I believe is far more than reasonable.

[noelm]

These things take time, statistics have to be viewed and collated, then some kind of "working party" will discuss how and when it will be implemented, fisheries need time to publish the changes in order for the public to be informed, all this takes time and more time.

[XD351]

Give it 12 months at least . There is no reason why you can’t start using the  proposed slot and bag limit for Flathead  right now and by the time they get implemented you won’t even notice them 😀

I would wait until they do implement the changes to the lobster bag limit  though or you will find yourself in trouble !

[Bryant fish]

For duskies I'm all for it  butblue spots are everywhere  I'm happy to take extra for family or the freezer as there about the only fish I freezel

 

 

 

 

[XD351]

As I have mentioned in another post on the subject , you can always target something else or keep catching Dusky flathead as long as you don’t have more than the bag limit in your possession - just because you have your bag limit doesn’t mean you have to go home !

[kingie chaser]

So it's ok for commercial operator to rake the sea, take whatever they want to sell, discard the "rubbish" dead into the ocean & the consumer gets chargead this & we can only take 5??

Wake up people!

 

How about they restrict the commercial quata which is why we agreed to pay for a fishing license in the 1st place.

No point us agreeing an erosion of our fishing rights to a bag limit of 5 when commercial operators are not affected!!

Edited December 1, 2021 by kingie chaser

[slowjigger]

12 minutes ago, kingie chaser said:

So it's ok for commercial operator to rake the sea, take whatever they want to sell, discard the "rubbish" dead into the ocean & the consumer gets chargead this & we can only take 5??

Wake up people!

 

How about they restrict the commercial quata which is why we agreed to pay for a fishing license in the 1st place.

No point us agreeing an erosion of our fishing rights to a bag limit of 5 when commercial operators are not affected!!

NSW commercial fishermen don't generally have quotas, just limits on their number, where they fish, what gear they use etc. Also 92% of seafood sold in NSW is imported. And remember the rec licence paid for the State's 30 rec fishing havens.

[Yowie]

Yep, quite a bit is exported, and the rubbish is imported.

I have seen 'flathead' fillets in some shops, faint yellow coloured 'fillets' that were not Aussie flatties, and probably not real flatties. A good filleter can shape fillets to look like what is wanted by the consumer.

Regarding bag limits, you can use your own bag limits. Sand whiting are 20, I limit it to 10, duskies 2 to 4.

As for chinamen jackets, take the limit every time - My grandfather caught stacks of them in the 1920's and 30's, and they still breed in big numbers now. Pirahna of the ocean.

[slowjigger]

8 minutes ago, Yowie said:

Yep, quite a bit is exported, and the rubbish is imported.

I have seen 'flathead' fillets in some shops, faint yellow coloured 'fillets' that were not Aussie flatties, and probably not real flatties. A good filleter can shape fillets to look like what is wanted by the consumer.

Regarding bag limits, you can use your own bag limits. Sand whiting are 20, I limit it to 10, duskies 2 to 4.

As for chinamen jackets, take the limit every time - My grandfather caught stacks of them in the 1920's and 30's, and they still breed in big numbers now. Pirahna of the ocean.

I don't think much is exported from NSW except for the high value  lobster, abalone, sashimi grade tuna, etc. What would be the point when there is so much demand here? The imports aren't all rubbish either, eg snapper from interstate and NZ, barramundi from the NT QLD, Nile perch from Africa, etc.

[GoingFishing]

4 hours ago, kingie chaser said:

So it's ok for commercial operator to rake the sea, take whatever they want to sell, discard the "rubbish" dead into the ocean & the consumer gets chargead this & we can only take 5??

Wake up people!

 

How about they restrict the commercial quata which is why we agreed to pay for a fishing license in the 1st place.

No point us agreeing an erosion of our fishing rights to a bag limit of 5 when commercial operators are not affected!!

Dusky flathead are much more spread out and not as numerous as say the offshore species like blue spots, marble and tigers.

I think most fishos would be having a really good day to find 2 or 3 legal size duskies in a session. Let alone 5.

As long as they dont change the bag limit on the offshore species i cant see this really impacting many people.

Ps. Its so woke to say....wake up 🤣🤣

[noelm]

11 hours ago, kingie chaser said:

So it's ok for commercial operator to rake the sea, take whatever they want to sell, discard the "rubbish" dead into the ocean & the consumer gets chargead this & we can only take 5??

Wake up people!

 

How about they restrict the commercial quata which is why we agreed to pay for a fishing license in the 1st place.

No point us agreeing an erosion of our fishing rights to a bag limit of 5 when commercial operators are not affected!!

Commercial fishing licenses have been bought out, there is only a couple of fish trawlers in Wollongong now, lots of estuary licenses have been bought out, it's not just open slather like you think. Regardless of the price a fish market charges, it doesn't reflect what the fisherman gets (just like meat and milk) anyone who paid that price for Flathead is nuts, you can buy them for half that in season, and Flathead is a very light fish, a kilo of fillets would feed a lot of people.

[noelm]

10 hours ago, slowjigger said:

I don't think much is exported from NSW except for the high value  lobster, abalone, sashimi grade tuna, etc. What would be the point when there is so much demand here? The imports aren't all rubbish either, eg snapper from interstate and NZ, barramundi from the NT QLD, Nile perch from Africa, etc.

Basa from the filthy rivers of Vietnam, stinking Venami Prawns from dirty Prawn farms, with no health regulation at all.....don't forget those imports.

[Yowie]

11 hours ago, slowjigger said:

I don't think much is exported from NSW except for the high value  lobster, abalone, sashimi grade tuna, etc. What would be the point when there is so much demand here? The imports aren't all rubbish either, eg snapper from interstate and NZ, barramundi from the NT QLD, Nile perch from Africa, etc.

Yes, we do get some good quality fish imported, but, not all is good quality, and a lot is frozen, and not good quality as Noel stated.

Just look at the origin of many frozen supermarket seafood products. Some of it caught in one country, sent to another country to be processed, then sent here.

I am talking Auss wide, not just NSW.

Edited December 1, 2021 by Yowie

[noelm]

$30 for school Prawns is probably a good price for this time of the year, schoolies are in pretty short supply at the moment.

[slowjigger]

3 hours ago, Yowie said:

Yes, we do get some good quality fish imported, but, not all is good quality, and a lot is frozen, and not good quality as Noel stated.

Just look at the origin of many frozen supermarket seafood products. Some of it caught in one country, sent to another country to be processed, then sent here.

I am talking Auss wide, not just NSW.

Well Australia wide we import 70% of the seafood we consume and very little fin fish is exported - so it's a similar story.

[noelm]

Quite a bit of quality reef fish is exported, as are the best Prawns, in return we get frozen Basa, frozen Hoki, rubbish processed baby Octopus and various other species farmed in what amounts to sewerage ponds! Who is to blame? we are, the consumer, continuing to buy the cheapest possible garbage. I don't think you can blame the fisherman, put yourself in their shoes, send overseas for a premium price, and try to sell to supermarket shoppers who see/want "cheap" produce and sell to them for a quarter (or less) price.....hhmmm 

[Little_Flatty]

Regardless of what the fish markets sell them for, any feed of freshly caught lizards that I bring home well exceed $80/kg  

Except of course the money is spent on lures, not fish!

The only comment I will make on the proposed restrictions is that this is something that people in the recreational fishing community have pushed for and DPI is only reacting to public pressure. So it's angler-driven rather than government-imposed. Whether we agree with the proposal or not is another matter (which is why the DPI asked for submissions).

Personally, I'm rarely at risk of hitting up against the new limits, let alone the old ones! I have an idea...maybe we should limit hours on water rather than catches, like the fishing hours are limited for me...oh wait, I'd better get back to work! 🤣

[slowjigger]

1 hour ago, noelm said:

Quite a bit of quality reef fish is exported, as are the best Prawns, in return we get frozen Basa, frozen Hoki, rubbish processed baby Octopus and various other species farmed in what amounts to sewerage ponds! Who is to blame? we are, the consumer, continuing to buy the cheapest possible garbage. I don't think you can blame the fisherman, put yourself in their shoes, send overseas for a premium price, and try to sell to supermarket shoppers who see/want "cheap" produce and sell to them for a quarter (or less) price.....hhmmm 

No it's very little fin fish that is exported - in volume terms. It would hardly make a dent in our imports. The only way to redress this is to fish our waters harder which will mean more risk and impact. And plenty of the imports are high quality - as i pointed out.