GIVING THE GIPPSLAND LAKES BACK TO RECREATIONAL ANGLERS

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GIVING THE GIPPSLAND LAKES BACK TO RECREATIONAL ANGLERS

Post by fishingvic » Wed Oct 31, 2018 9:24 am

GIVING THE GIPPSLAND LAKES BACK TO RECREATIONAL ANGLERS

Media contact: Ben McNair 0409 730 565 | ben.mcnair@vic.alp.org.au
Wednesday, 31 October 2018
GIVING THE GIPPSLAND LAKES BACK TO RECREATIONAL ANGLERS

A re-elected Andrews Labor Government will give the Gippsland Lakes back to recreational anglers, phasing out commercial fishing to boost local tourism and create jobs.
Removing the nets from the Gippsland Lakes will mean more fish for recreational anglers and more fishing tourists for the local economy.
Labor will buy out the last commercial fishing licences in the Lakes over four years and introduce a sliding catch cap, with all licences to be removed by 2022.
The Labor Government has already started buying out commercial fishing licences to end netting in Port Phillip Bay by 2022 and Corio Bay by the end of this year.
Just as they have been in Port Phillip Bay and Corio Bay, Gippsland Lakes licensees will be properly compensated as part of the buyout.
Four years ago, Labor promised to grow fishing participation to one million anglers by 2020 - we’re well on the way to achieving that goal, but there’s still more to do. Under Labor, fish stocking will grow to 10 million fish per year by 2022, giving every Victorian angler a better chance at getting a bite.
In another boost for Gippsland tourism, Labor will invest $1.5 million for a new on-water café on Bullock Island in partnership with the Lakes Entrance Fishermen’s Co-Operative Society.
The café will be a major drawcard for visitors and locals alike, selling fresh local fish and featuring a viewing area and waterfront decking. Labor will also invest $200,000 for the Victorian Fisheries Authority to develop a fishing tourism plan in consultation with recreational fishers, tourism boards and local government.
Quote attributable to Minister for Agriculture Jaala Pulford “Whether you fish on the coast, on our stunning bays and inlets or in pristine freshwater lakes and rivers – only Labor will deliver for recreational anglers.”
Quote attributable to Member for Eastern Victoria Harriet Shing
“We’ve listened carefully to what the community has said about the Gippsland Lakes – and that’s why we’ll remove the nets, phase out commercial licences and hand these unique waters back to recreational fishers.”
Quote attributable to Labor Candidate for Morwell Mark Richards
“This is a game changer for local fishers and for fishing tourism in Gippsland – it’ll mean more fish, better facilities and more visitors to the Gippsland Lakes.” Quotes attributable Labor Candidate for Gippsland East Mark Reeves
“When it comes to recreational fishers only a Labor Government will deliver the support they need and return these waters back to them.”

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Re: GIVING THE GIPPSLAND LAKES BACK TO RECREATIONAL ANGLERS

Post by ratbag » Wed Oct 31, 2018 10:33 am

Its difficult not to be cynical about the comments from each of the politicians! do they think that magically it'll return to the good ol days?
Sadly the various groups do not appear to be working together to solve the broader issues - the catchment & the entrance. Govt/Catchment managers/farmers/fishers etc really need to do more than just buy out commercial fishos and think they've solved the lakes fishing issues.
  • When will the take into consideration the environmental in flows or lack there of?
    Has anyone taken into consideration the deeper entrance & its effects on the saline levels in Lake Wellington?
    What impact has come from the floods in the last 10 years with the silt levels & movement of Phosphorous, Nitrogen & other sediments from farms?


I think the buy back is minor compared to the previously published fixes for the lakes. There has been some great work done in researching the catchment management issues see here with recommendations on improvements.

from Report commissioned by the West Gippsland Catchment Management Authority to inform the development of the Lake Wellington Land and Water Management Plan - Feb 2018....
  • Change-management programs must align the person, their property, and the promoted practices. Catchment programs often need a multi-faceted approach. It can take decades before environmental changes become apparent and targets may still not be achieved.

    Long-term, multi-tiered monitoring, based on clear logic (and modelled predictions if available),
    to support analysis, evaluation and reporting.
Minister for Agriculture Jaala Pulford
Whether you fish on the coast, on our stunning bays and inlets or in pristine freshwater lakes and rivers – only Labor will deliver for recreational anglers.”

Member for Eastern Victoria Harriet Shing
We’ve listened carefully to what the community has said about the Gippsland Lakes – and that’s why we’ll remove the nets, phase out commercial licences and hand these unique waters back to recreational fishers.”

Labor Candidate for Morwell Mark Richards
This is a game changer for local fishers and for fishing tourism in Gippsland – it’ll mean more fish, better facilities and more visitors to the Gippsland Lakes.

Labor Candidate for Gippsland East Mark Reeves
When it comes to recreational fishers only a Labor Government will deliver the support they need and return these waters back to them.”
Last edited by ratbag on Wed Oct 31, 2018 12:34 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: GIVING THE GIPPSLAND LAKES BACK TO RECREATIONAL ANGLERS

Post by cobby » Wed Oct 31, 2018 11:41 am

ratbag wrote:Its difficult to not be cynical about the comments from each of the politicians! do they think that magically it'll return to the good ol days?
Only thing a politician knows is how long their nose is and how far to bend over to get it up their arse. Can't expect them to have any knowledge on the environment

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Re: GIVING THE GIPPSLAND LAKES BACK TO RECREATIONAL ANGLERS

Post by frozenpod » Wed Oct 31, 2018 12:22 pm

Terrible anti science decision.

Will do stuff all for bream population and does nothing to fix the main issues faced by the gippsland lakes.

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Re: GIVING THE GIPPSLAND LAKES BACK TO RECREATIONAL ANGLERS

Post by Texas » Wed Oct 31, 2018 12:28 pm

Thanks ratbag, I enjoyed your post
Is it just me, it seems to be that "common" people know more than government agencies ???
Cheers Gra

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Re: GIVING THE GIPPSLAND LAKES BACK TO RECREATIONAL ANGLERS

Post by ratbag » Wed Oct 31, 2018 12:40 pm

Texas wrote:Thanks ratbag, I enjoyed your post
Is it just me, it seems to be that "common" people know more than government agencies ???
Cheers Gra
Gra, I fish there a lot & its just too obvious when you're down there to see the many issues. A few celebrities are getting involved without putting some logic into the mix & making a mockery of it all, when they have direct ties to Govt to influence broader changes.
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Re: GIVING THE GIPPSLAND LAKES BACK TO RECREATIONAL ANGLERS

Post by ango » Wed Oct 31, 2018 2:17 pm

There are things that are possible like stopping the netting, and things that are not possible like closing the entrance at Lakes, or undamming the Thompson river, never going to happen. I have never heard of a place where they stopped netting and the fishing got worse so it is a step in the right direction, just have a look at Westernport, snapper, calamari, whiting, gummies, it gets better and better, too bad about the PITA tides. Funny, though, how governments that have been in power for a while suddenly decide they will do things that they have had plenty of time to do already, just before an election.

Cheers
Ango

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Re: GIVING THE GIPPSLAND LAKES BACK TO RECREATIONAL ANGLERS

Post by re-tyred » Wed Oct 31, 2018 3:34 pm

Well we all new eventually this would happen. Don't expect to catch more black bream in the Lake unless there is more water coming down the rivers.

Commercial Lake fishers only fish the lakes not the rivers. The black bream live in the rivers these days not in the lake. This is entirely due to lack of river flows and nothing to do with dredging the entrance bar. The entrance bar is OUTSIDE the Lake in the ocean. Water exchange between the Lake and the ocean is controlled by the width and depth of the entrance channel through the sand dunes. This was made to restrict the flow of water so that is would scour deeper. If you want to blame someone for the lack of bream in the lake look no further than everyone of us that live in Victoria. We suck up the water and use it to grow food or take a shower. On top of that we have allowed uncontrolled development through out the catchment and Lake system. To add insult to it all we have introduced feral species such as carp and European shore crab, and let the bird population get out of control. They would have once been kept in control by the original inhabitants, as they hunted and gathered eggs and young birds.

But lets not worry about that we can just point the finger at a few families making a living catching Taylor Carp Prawn Bait and European shore crabs. Yep, jobs done fixed that problem. Least the problem of votes will be fixed.
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Re: GIVING THE GIPPSLAND LAKES BACK TO RECREATIONAL ANGLERS

Post by cobby » Wed Oct 31, 2018 4:55 pm

ango wrote:There are things that are possible like stopping the netting, and things that are not possible like closing the entrance at Lakes, or undamming the Thompson river, never going to happen. I have never heard of a place where they stopped netting and the fishing got worse so it is a step in the right direction, just have a look at Westernport, snapper, calamari, whiting, gummies, it gets better and better, too bad about the PITA tides. Funny, though, how governments that have been in power for a while suddenly decide they will do things that they have had plenty of time to do already, just before an election.

Cheers
Ango
Westernport hasn't changed at all. Still the same amount of fish coming out of the same locations at coincidentally the same times of the year.

And you have heard of a place where fishing became worse after commercial fishing was stopped. Mallacoota. Where Dusky Flathead limits were changed state wide because recreational fishers decimated the breeding population in the system, that still is yet to recover to its levels of a decade ago

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Re: GIVING THE GIPPSLAND LAKES BACK TO RECREATIONAL ANGLERS

Post by re-tyred » Wed Oct 31, 2018 5:56 pm

If the argument is that the fish are over fished then it is time to reduce the bag limit from 10 to 5 and close the rivers during spawning. The recreational catch is much greater than the commercial catch of bream.
There's nothing . . . absolutely nothing . . . half so much worth doing as simply messing around in boats.
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