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Recfishwest says that some of the proposed no-fishing zones in the Government’s South Coast Marine Park plans released today are “completely illogical and unjustifiable”.
Recfishwest CEO Dr Andrew Rowland said, “Proposing no fishing zones in front of caravan parks, boat ramps and along several popular beaches demonstrates marine park planners in Perth are out of touch with the south coast community.
“We stand firmly for sustainability; however, we cannot support the marine parks in their current form.
“None of the evidence we have seen supports the need to implement no fishing zones over the top of places where people have fished for generations, and they simply cannot be justified.
“The Government must genuinely engage with the local community – if they had done this in the first place, they would not be proposing to implement these zones where they have.”
Orleans Bay Caravan Park sees thousands of mums, dads and kids venturing down each year to enjoy the great fishing on offer from the beach and off boats. If implemented in their current form, several of the proposed marine park zones will see great fishing experiences like this off limits to fishing families along the south coast.
In December, the Environment Minister Reece Whitby is on record saying that the Government “had listened to recreational fishers” and that fishers would “be impressed by what they see at the other end.”
“We confirm that we are not impressed by what we see in these proposals,” said Dr Rowland, “The views of local fishers have clearly been ignored and it’s now time the Government genuinely starts listening.
“We ask the Government to seriously re-think several zones and join us at the table to deliver a truly positive outcome for fishers, the environment and our future.”
“These plans are now open for public comment until 16 June and Recfishwest encourages all fishers with an interest in this coast to study the details and engage in the consultation process.”
Recfishwest will be on the south coast this week encouraging locals to have their say over the coming four months. Make sure youjoin our Cast of Thousands as a Recfishwest member to help us protect access to our prized fishing spots.
Every one of our 10 SunSmart Fishing Clinics Southern Tour was completely booked out this year, highlighting once again how popular and important fishing is on our south coast.
More than 350 excited kids took part in the clinics running from East of Esperance all the way along the coast to Augusta – with all participants enjoying learning about fishing basics, looking after the environment and being SunSmart.
This was a record attendance for the tour with record numbers of fish caught and released by the young eager anglers to match!
Check out some of the fishing action below in GWN7’s recent news item on the clinics.
Scores of whiting, flounder, skippy, tarwhine, black bream, leatherjacket and flathead catches put brimming smiles on the dials of our next generation of anglers over 11 days in January, with many participants enjoying the thrill of catching and releasing their first ever fish.
Many parents were delighted to be able to get their kids off their devices and out in the fresh air enjoying the healthy and educational experience the clinics provided.
Despite some windy, overcast and rainy conditions along the south coast, all fishing clinics at Duke of Orleans Caravan Park, Esperance, Hopetoun, Bremer Bay, Albany, Denmark, Walpole and Augusta were fully booked out, with some clinics even resulting in kids happily sharing rods with extra participants keen to get casting.
With fishing access to some of these cherished fishing spots along the south coast in question pending the release of the Government’s south coast marine park plans, these fishing clinics firmly showed that the social, physical and wellbeing benefits fishing provides to so many fishers need to be protected.
Packed to the rafters! Every clinic between Duke of Orleans and Augusta was fully booked, with local beaches and jetties full of kids hoping to catch one of the species on offer along the south coast.
“This was by far Recfishwest’s most jam-packed and successful Southern Tour since it kicked off more than 20 years ago,” said Recfishwest’s Communications Coordinator Jarrad Lawford. “The response from the community has been a fantastic illustration of just how passionate they are here about fishing and how important it is in this part of the world.
“Recfishwest’s Sam Bock and I were kept very busy baiting lines, helping carefully unhook the catches and taking snaps of ecstatic kids with their fish. Many of them created memories of their first ever catch that will last a lifetime and we’re hoping they’ve now learned enough to safely enjoy fishing as a pastime that will give them a lot of joy for the rest of their lives.
“A big thanks to Healthway for supporting these great community events and cheers to our instructors Stephen Crane and Kevin Murphy who also did a fantastic job coordinating some of the clinics. Make sure you get in quick and register your spot in 2025 for when our Southern Tour returns next year.”
In addition to all the valuable fishing knowledge provided at these clinics, all kids were taught how to stay safe while fishing and were rewarded Recfishwest stickers and lures, along with dozens of SunSmart and Shimano hats for their next fishing adventure.
Were you one of the 350 young guns getting amongst the fishing action during our recent SunSmart Southern Tour? Check out some of the great snaps below!
Dr Andrew Rowland, Recfishwest CEO, and Operations Officer Sam Bock were recently on the south coast listening to the concerns of local fishers about the potential impact of DBCA’s proposed marine park.
Stretching along 1,000 km of coastline from Bremer Bay to the WA/SA border, many local fishers told Andrew and Sam that the marine park already has a predefined political outcome and will be an unnecessary overreach coming out of Perth.
These concerns have been stoked by the bad publicity surrounding the consultation process to date.
While there, Andrew was also in the news on the front page of the Esperance Weekender and was on ABC Esperance, Goldfields, Mid-West and Wheatbelt calling for the consultation process to get back on track to enable a balanced outcome to be achieved.
Recfishwest CEO DR Andrew Rowland has been busy in the media while hearing concerns from local fishers on the south coast marine park.
If you want an example of how important fishing is to the south coast – look no further than Esperance and last weekend’s (March 10-12) sensational Esperance Deep Sea Angling Club’s (EDSAC) Esperance Archipelago Offshore Angling Classic.
With Samson fish tipping the scales at more than 22kg along with spectacular harlequin fish, snapper and breaksea cod — it’s no wonder more than 600 people came down to the weigh-in at Esperance’s biggest fishing comp and enjoyed a fantastic weekend of fishing and socialising!
There were 275 competing anglers on 83 boats taking part in the competition – making it one of the biggest boat fishing tournaments if not the biggest in WA.
The 30th edition of this great fishing competition proved not just to be one of the biggest community events of the year in Esperance, but also drew anglers from throughout the Great Southern and Goldfields regions.
It’s also something of a local spectacle as with competitors’ friends and family members turning out to watch the traditional competition boat ‘fleet’ running out of Esperance Bay.
And they’re off! Every year hundreds of spectators watch the competing boats cruise out of Esperance Bay to compete in the Esperance Archipelago Offshore Angling Classic.
The mixed bag of fish species off the south coast combined with impressive prizes for the biggest catches meant there was plenty of excitement on who would take out each prize category.
Tyson Tate’s 22.40kg Samson fish not only landed him more than $20,000 in total for the heaviest fish caught and largest Samson fish overall — but his name was also pulled out of a hat containing hundreds of other raffle contestants to win a Garmin sounder package worth more than $5,000!
See the full set of results from the Classic below.
The Esperance Classic came on the back of another firm fixture in the south coast fishing calendar — Southerners Sport Club Fishing Classic held in Hopetoun, which was celebrating its 29th edition earlier this month, with dozens of contestants landing various species to take home spectacular prizes.
The two tournaments once again highlighted how highly prized the fishing on offer on the south coast is by the people who live there and those who travel there to sample what’s on offer, with EDSAC President Corrina Worth perfectly summarising why these fishing experiences need to be safeguarded.
“We are just very privileged to be able to access some beautiful places and catch some great fish along the south coast with minimal effort. Looking after that opportunity and protecting it for future generations is very important,” said Corrina.
Recfishwest Operations Lead Matt Gillett, who was in Esperance for the comp and to talk to fishers about the Government’s proposed south coast marine park, said it was the biggest crowd he’s ever seen attending the event.
“You can’t fail to see what fishing means to this community and people in this part of the world when you attend an event like this – it’s fantastic to see how the comp brings the community together and generates such a positive and enthusiastic atmosphere.
“And that’s for anglers across the board of all ages and capabilities – that’s the power of fishing and it’s why fishing events and experiences like these must be able to continue – they’re central to the fabric of community life and regional West Aussies’ well-being.
“This is backed up by the recently published results of the National Recfishing Survey that shows fishing is highly important for improved wellbeing along with injections into our regional economies.
“These massive benefits from fishing must be dialed into marine park planning processes currently underway along the south coast because one of the purposes of parks is to maximise the benefits to the WA community from these special environments.
“Well done to all fishers who took part and made this year’s event another ripper edition of the Offshore Angling Classic and, of course, congratulations to EDSAC President Corrina Worth and her team for their hard work in hosting another cherished calendar fixture for the Esperance community.”
The south coast offers spectacular fish species that are accessible by land and boat, including this yellowtail kingfish caught by Chris Dixon near Albany (pictured left) and this nannygai landed by Jesse Smithson off Esperance.
With fishers now preparing for the 2023 GAMEX at Exmouth which kicks off from 17-25 March, the Pilbara region in WA’s north is also set to be injected with plenty of excitement and economic contributions from visitors. Stay tuned for our full GAMEX recap!
30th Esperance Archipelago Offshore Angling Classic – the full set of results
BREAKSEA 1st Boat 79 Shane Temple 2.822kg – 2nd Boat 99 Ryan Nelson 2.591kg
