Aquaculture & fishing

Sarah Herrmann. if it goes on for another month, I don't know that we'll still be in business." That's the sentiment of Stansbury oyster farmer Steve Bowley. Mr Bowley's farm, Pacific Estate Oysters, is one of several in the area closed due to the level of brevetoxin present.

Last November, a weak and injured Green Sea Turtle (Chelonia mydas) was found near the jetty by young Lord Howe Island residents ... The turtle was given the name Howeana ... Howeana was flown back to the Island in April, and taken to Old Settlement Beach for release in to sheltered seagrass meadows.

Michelle Daw. Entire marine habitats around Yorke Peninsula could be destroyed by the current algal bloom, a local marine conservationist has warned. Speaking at a community forum in Marion Bay on Sunday, June 1, Andy Cameron of Foul Bay said the full extent of the damage caused by the bloom was yet to be revealed.

WaterNSW is closing Bell’s Bay campground and cottages at Toonumbar Dam in late June ... Kyogle Fishing Club has been using the campground for more than 50 years.

Two men – one from Butler and the other from Narrogin – have been fined for fishing for marron out of season. The Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) said 22-year-old Butler man was ordered to pay $7000 and a 39-year-old Narrogin man $6500 for their involvement in marron fishing offences committed at Harris Dam in December 2023.

This first in a series of articles from Robert Onfray on the history of Fraser Island, ranging from the timber days to tourism booms, shipwrecks to settlement struggles. This week's tells the story of the Fraser Island Fishing Expo, first held in 1984.

Local Cohuna manufacturer, AWMA Water Control Solutions, were a part of the Mallee Regional Innovation Centre contingent attending the Mildura Field Days ... AWMA were showcasing their high-performance, self-cleaning intake screens that optimise water extraction...

Sarah Martin. A project documenting Barkandji knowledge of the Baaka river and floodplains has been ongoing for about 6 months. It has included a large oral history project which collected knowledge from Barkandji and kin about fish traps, fishing, the floodplains, and how they have changed so much over the last few decades.

Sarah Herrmann. Oyster farms in Stansbury have been forced to close while authorities investigate whether food safety is at risk from brevetoxins produced by the microalgae Karenia. At least six farms were closed from Monday, May 5, as a precaution under the Primary Produce (Food Safety Schemes) (Seafood) Regulations 2017.

Thousands of fingerlings stocked to boost local fishing. On Tuesday, 29 April, Nhill Lake received a boost to its aquatic life with the release of 5,000 golden perch fingerlings. The restocking initiative … aims to encourage more people to take up fishing across the state.

Australia’s fish habitat charity, OzFish, is calling on the help of Australia’s recreational fishing and ocean-loving super sleuths to track down the country's remaining tropical shellfish reefs — so they can be studied and restored. OzFish, in collaboration with Griffith University, is asking Australians to keep their eyes peeled for tropical shellfish reefs while out on the water.

Sarah Herrmann. Southern Yorke Peninsula residents have criticised the speed at which advice was provided to the public about the toxic microalgae bloom, which has been detected at Edithburgh and Coobowie, and caused dead marine life to wash up on numerous other SYP beaches.

Michelle Daw. An algae toxic to marine life has been detected in water samples collected from Edithburgh and Coobowie ... The PIRSA spokesperson said the algae could cause mass deaths of marine life and particularly affect the gills of fish. "This is a dynamic situation as the bloom travels depending on weather and water conditions, and the impact therefore is unpredictable."

Dead sea creatures are being discovered along the east coast of southern Yorke Peninsula, believed to be linked to a microalgal bloom ... "We saw 30 to 40 dead octopus, and normally you have to really look to see one octopus during the daytime ... It was the saddest and most emotional dive I have ever had": diver Paul Macdonald.

After having spent five years in the NSW Government's Narrandera Fisheries Centre native fish hatchery, 19 mature Murray Cod saved from the drought-ravaged Macquarie River in 2019 have now been returned to their home waters.

Reports from the public about fish gasping for air have been coming in to fish habitat charity OzFish ... The organisation has received messages and photos from locals who said thousands of fish were gasping for air, or washing up dead, following the recent cyclone and flooding.

Agriculture, fisheries and forestry is well placed to take on future challenges and opportunities, according to the latest ABARES Snapshot of Australian agriculture. Sector value and production have continued to grow over the past 20 years with another strong performance expected in 2024-25.

When South Australians were trying to turn their estuary into a freshwater dam in the 1940’s, the Mulloway natural migration was devastated. Now, Australia’s only freshwater estuary hangs like a noose around the neck of the Murray Darling Basin, consuming huge volumes of freshwater to raise an artificial lake height for yachting, and an attempt to dilute the Southern Ocean, under the fundamentally flawed Murray Darling Basin Plan.

"A healthy working forest where native species can flourish, and where local communities can connect and co-manage the forest for future generations" ... Over the past few months, various locations within the KP Forest have been sampled for native and exotic fish abundance and biomass, as part of the annual monitoring program. This sampling has involved a combination of fyke netting...

Roy Butler, Member for Barwon, tells us he visited a place run by Oceans2Earth. They make a product called Soil Enhancer. They mix fish waste and wood together to make a fertiliser. The man behind this is Tim Crane, originally from Wilcannia.

DPIRD, dated January 22, 2025, announces a $7 million splurge under the banner of “Building Climate Resilience on WA Farms.” Tucked neatly inside this generous handout is an eye-watering $1,071,770 for “future-proofing” Western Australia’s aquaculture industry. Future-proofing? Against what, exactly? Climate change? Cue the laughter.

In 2025, economic conditions, geopolitics, and supply availability will significantly influence global animal protein markets, according to RaboResearch’s Global Animal Protein Outlook. While demand remains vulnerable to macroeconomic fluctuations and policy changes, seafood is poised to surpass poultry...