The Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation (DEEDI), through Fisheries Queensland, has developed a project to help the East Coast Trawl Fishery reduce its bycatch by switching to more effective bycatch reduction devices (BRDs).

The project promotes three devices:

• turtle excluder devices (TEDs)
• square mesh codend (SMC)
• fisheye bycatch reduction devices.

Three major strategies have been developed to promote the use of these devices:

• a rebate scheme for SMCs and upgraded TEDs
• testing for new and improved BRD designs
• an extension and education program.

Reducing bycatch in the trawl fishery ensures that a fishery causes minimal ecological impact and improves the efficiency of fishing operations. Reducting bycatch also:

• improves product quality, as large, non-target species are prevented from entering nets and damaging product
• reduces operating costs due to reduced drag and better fuel efficiency
• results in cleaner shots, which reduces sorting time
• leads to safer working conditions due to reduced handling of large and sometimes dangerous non-target species.

Turtle excluder devices (TEDs)

TEDs exclude turtles and other large marine species (such as sharks, rays and sponges) from trawl nets, and are compulsory throughout the east coast trawl fishery.
Fisheries legislation has recently amended design specifications to increase protection for turtles and meet strict accreditation standards. These amendments aim to enable the export of Queensland-caught prawns to the United States market.

Square mesh codends (SMCs)

SMCs have been trialled in the Queensland scallop fishery and are already being used by a number of trawlers. When made to specification and used with a TED, SMCs can reduce bycatch by up to 77 per cent and reduce the capture of undersized scallop with no loss of legal-sized scallops.

Fisheye bycatch reduction devices

A recent study on sea snake capture in the trawl fishery has shown that up to 62 per cent fewer protected sea snakes are captured when a fisheye BRD is fitted to nets.

The highest proportion of sea snake capture occurred in the red-spot king prawn sector of the fishery. The use of fisheyes in this sector will significantly reduce the number of sea snake deaths caused by the trawl fishery.

The rebate scheme

A $1 million rebate scheme is available to the East Coast Trawl Fishery to help fishers change to alternative and more effective BRDs.

Fishers who purchase SMCs for use in the scallop fishery or updated TEDs throughout the entire fishery may be eligible for the rebate.

The rebate scheme will assist fishers to test SMCs for real-world effectiveness with the view that they will eventually become compulsory in the scallop fishery. It also provides assistance to fishers who must update their TEDs to meet the new specifications introduced in early 2010.

For further details, including specifications for SMCs and TEDs and the relevant rebate periods, see the SMC and TED rebate scheme guidelines.

Fisheries Queensland has mailed all relevant fishers a copy of the rebate guidelines and the SMC and TED rebate scheme application form.

In the coming months, officers from Fisheries Queensland will visit several ports around Queensland to raise awareness of the rebate scheme, and encourage uptake of the new TED and BRD specifications.

Testing of alternative BRDs

The testing program for alternative BRD designs includes proposals to:

• trial SMCs in the shallow-water eastern king prawn sector
• send newly modified TED designs to the United States for testing
• develop improved bycatch reduction devices for the beam trawl sector of the fishery.

Education and extension

An extension and education program is being implemented to increase the uptake of these new and improved bycatch reduction devices. This component of the project is supported through the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC) Tactical Research Fund - an extension of fisheries research and development-funded research results on improved bycatch reduction devices to the Queensland East Coast Otter Trawl Fishery.

The program will include:

• guidelines on construction and use of the devices
• guidelines on how to apply for the rebate
• independent expert technical advice
• preparation of a gear library
• port visits
• net maker engagement
• program evaluation.