With the 2017/18 cray season almost upon us, we’re happy to bring you some news that is sure to make your cray fishing experience more enjoyable and safer than ever before. Recfishwest has worked with the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development – Fisheries Division (Fisheries) on clarifying and simplifying the cray rules focused on optimising fishing experiences and improving diver safety. 
This clarification will ensure the 55,000 people who hold a recreational cray licence in WA, can continue to access this sustainable public resource in a safe and enjoyable way.
How do the clearer and simpler rules affect my fishing?
We can confirm:
1. Divers will be provided 5 minutes to sort and recheck crays once safely on-board the boat following their dive.
- This clarity eliminates unnecessary pressure on divers to check and re-check catches while underwater and in the case of free divers, it reduces the risk of shallow water blackout.
2. Crays in setose condition can now be kept.
- Allowing crays with setose to be kept reduces the amount of time divers need to spend in the water and reduces the chance of fishers making honest mistakes. Crays that are in tarspot and berried condition are easy to identify and these animals are still classified as protected and cannot be kept.
For more information see the 2017/18 Western Rock Lobster guidebook
We are currently developing Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ’s) to help divers better understand the rules in certain circumstances. Keep an eye out for these this week.
