Western Australia’s Gascoyne fisheries will be the first to undergo scrutiny in the Government’s new $14.5 million initiative to measure and certify a wide range of the State’s commercial fisheries against internationally-recognised sustainability standards.
Department of Fisheries’ Director General Stuart Smith made the formal announcement as part of celebrations in Perth to mark Sustainable Seafood Day.
“The western rock lobster fishery has benefitted from independent certification by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) for more than a decade and with increasing demand from export markets and local consumers for seafood to be harvested sustainably, it’s time to ensure many of our other fisheries are similarly recognised,” Mr Smith said.
“Commercial fishers along the Gascoyne coast harvest prawns, scallops, pink snapper, goldband snapper, mullet and whiting, as well as blue swimmer and deep sea crabs and the fisheries will now undergo the important first step of pre-assessment against MSC standards.
“The department is working with the WA Fishing Industry Council and industry members to help build profile and public acceptance that our State’s fisheries are well managed.”
Mr Smith said WA was the first jurisdiction globally to pursue MSC pre-assessments at a bioregional level.
“While groups of fisheries in regions elsewhere in the world have been assessed together, this will be the first time that ecosystem impacts will be considered in a holistic manner across all fisheries in a region,” he said.
“We created history when the western rock lobster fishery became the first fishery in world to get independent recognition as sustainable through MSC, now more than decade on we are creating another first with the new sustainability strategy for our State.
“A panel of three independent and expert international companies has been established to ensure sufficient experience and capability with the MSC assessment process is available to comprehensively address the complexity and magnitude of the task ahead for WA.
“Food Certification International Ltd (FCI), Intertek Moody Marine Ltd and MRAG Americas make up the panel and the Scotland-based company FCI has been appointed to carry out the MSC pre-assessments for the Gascoyne fisheries.”
More details on WA’s MSC certification program are available on the department’s website at www.fish.wa.gov.au. More info on Sustainable Seafood Day is available at www.msc.org.
