Ballina Fishermen's Co-operative's chief executive officer, Phil Hilliard, says if proposed fishing reforms go ahead it will spell the end of the co-op.
Loading...The New South Wales Government's Structural Adjustment Review Committee (SARC), has drafted recommendations and has a $16 million buyout package on the table for the restructure of the state's commercial fishing sector.
"If these proposals go through as they've written them down, we'll see a substantial reduction in the number of fishermen that we have working almost 50 per cent of what they're currently working," Mr Hilliard said.
"That translates into 50 per cent less fish which will damage the co-op in terms of its infrastructure.
If we've only got 12 to 15 fishermen here the co-op can not sustain its current operation.
"We cannot continue to keep the same infrastructure on the amount of money that would possibly be flowing through the co-op."
There are currently 35 fishermen that use the services of the co-op, but Mr Hilliard predicts that 15 to 20 will disappear when the reforms are implemented.
"There are six or seven trawlers that bring their product into the co-op, but I would say this will reduce it down to about three," he said.
Mr Hilliard said those three trawlers will not be able to sustain infrastructure such as the trawler harbour.
"The trawler harbour currently costs us about $130,000 a year and if three trawler boats have to look after that they'll be out of business," he said.
"If we've only got 12 to 15 fishermen here the co-op cannot sustain its current operation."
With less local seafood available Mr Hilliard said consumers will look elsewhere for other meats.
"They won't be eating fish they'll be eating chicken, pork, lamb, all those other meat proteins," he said.
"The industry's going to suffer because there's going to be less of it and possibly it could turn out too that what is there will be bought up by high-end restaurants.
"So you'll only be able to get wild caught Australian seafood at a five star restaurant, you're not going to see it in the supermarkets."
Commercial fishermen argue fishing reforms not needed
Fishermen working out of Ballina believe that if the draft recommendations go ahead they face a bleak future.
Mario Puglisi is a prawn fisherman, harvests pipis, and is the chair of the Ballina Fishermen's Co-operative.
He fishes seven days a week if the weather permits it, but he said that will change under the proposed reforms.
"In the ocean prawn trawl we work anywhere from 80 to 110 nights, some years have been 130, then again it depends on the weather," he said.
Okay, there are fishers that do want this but there are more that don't and they are the voices that should be heard.
"As far as the hand gathering is concerned we're on a six-month opening from the 1st of June to the 1st of December, the fishery's open."
He said his number of nights prawn trawling will be reduced and if he wants to work more he will have to purchase more shares.
"Under the current recommendations I deem I won't get enough nights," he said.
"It's basically devalued my business, my ocean prawn trawl business, because at the moment I can work if I choose to 365 days, and if this comes forward they're going to tell me I'm roughly anywhere from 70 to 90 nights a year, on the minimum shareholding."
Mr Puglisi estimates he will need to invest $35,000 to $40,000 to purchase extra shares.
"It's something that I shouldn't have to do," he said.
"My fishing licence has jumped the hoops that DPI has presented in the past, by making me purchase more shares to continue I don't deem that I should have to."
Loading...He believes that the majority of fishermen are opposed to the draft recommendations put forward by the NSW Government.
"It has to come from a majority of fishermen not what a small minority want," he said.
"Okay, there are fishers that do want this but there are more that don't and they are the voices that should be heard."
Mr Puglisi said that fishermen unanimously rejected the proposed reforms put forward to industry at port meetings a year ago.
"They [the DPI] went way, come back now with the SARC recommendations, as far as I'm concerned not much has changed," he said.
Dallas Johnson has been fishing in the Richmond River for more than 30 years.
"I chase mud crabs, I prawn in the river, I mesh in the river, and hand gather on the local beaches," he said.
Mr Johnson described the draft recommendations on the table by SARC as "cruel" and likely to have a major impact on his business.
"For my meshing alone currently I can work up to 261 days a year and with the new reforms they're going to allocate me 52, which is a big reduction in effort," he said.
"To go to 52 days from what I currently can do would require me to buy 500 shares and the cost of that would be crippling."
But he hoped that would not force him out of the industry.
"I'll do whatever I can, but wherever the cards fall they fall."
For my meshing alone currently I can work up to 261 days a year and with the new reforms they're going to allocate me 52, which is a big reduction in effort.
Mr Johnson said the NSW Government has presented little other option for fishermen.
"They've got us pushed into a corner, these are the only things that they want to look at, keeping it simple isn't an option for them," he said.
"The majority of fishermen want it to stay as it is, perfectly viable the way they are, there's a minority of fishermen that want it to change, but it's just going to make it hard."
He said the restriction of fishing days is his major concern about the draft recommendations, and limited to 52 days on the water is not an option.
"It's called fishing for a reason because it's just fishing, otherwise it would be called catching because we don't catch every time you go, you still have your duds."
The estuary fisherman said fishing for a living is hard enough already without further constraints.
"When you've got your weather conditions, weather events, if you're crab trapping you've got thieves, you know all sorts of things on top of it that are all against you," he said.
"As the industry stands right now I'm a viable fishing business, nearly every fisherman I know is a viable fishing business, if you're not a viable fishing business you still wouldn't own your licence you'd be gone already."
Primary Industries Minister will listen to commercial fishermen's concerns
The NSW Minister for Primary Industries, Niall Blair, said he wants to hear the concerns being expressed by fishermen about the reforms.
"The Independent Structural Adjustment Review Committee is meeting with local fishers at the moment, they've got some draft recommendations out," he said.
"What we're doing is making sure that we have a commercial fishing sector that has a future and that's why we want to hear from those fishers about the latest draft recommendations."
Loading...Mr Blair said that it is unacceptable that 87 per cent of the seafood consumed in NSW is imported.
"We need more NSW fish on tables, in NSW houses and restaurants and we want to be able to give confidence to the sector," he said.
"That's why I'm asking the commercial fishers to meet with representatives of the SARC, have a look at the tailored draft recommendations, give us your feedback and then we'll make some decisions later in the year."
He said there are a range of recommendations tailored for each fishing business in the state.
"The initial recommendations earlier in the year were more of a one size fits all," he said.
"We've recognised that it needs to be customised for each business and I'm hearing different reports up and down the coast as to how those draft recommendations are being received.
"These, along with the consultation period that's happening at the moment, will come back to me as Minister and then we'll make decisions about how we spend that $16 million from here.
My message is, if people do have concerns we need to hear those concerns so that we can take that into consideration when we make the final decision.
"My message is if people do have concerns we need to hear those concerns so that we can take that into consideration when we make the final decision."
The Minister said he wants a commercial fishing sector and saying that the reforms spell the end of it is "a bit premature".
"The recommendations at the moment don't include how we're going to spend the $16 million, so one thing I'm saying is that each fisher has a package on the impact it may have on their business but that doesn't include where we then spend the adjustment money," he said.
"I want to hear the feedback, is the concern around linkage to effort, is the concern how we end up as an industry so that I can decide how we spend that $16 million.
"Some of that is also addressing those that want to get out of the industry, there's a long tale there of latent licences that aren't been exercised so that's why we're doing this consultation period."