Commonwealth marine reserves
Fisheries Adjustment Assistance Package
The Fisheries Adjustment Assistance Package (the Package) will provide assistance to help commercial fishers and fisheries adjust to changes that will result from the displacement of commercial fishing from new Commonwealth marine reserves. This Package is consistent with the Fisheries Adjustment Policy which was release by the Government in May 2011. The major elements of the Fisheries Adjustment Assistance Package include:
- Transitional Business Assistance - payment to fishing businesses based on their recent fishing history in those parts of the new marine reserves where they won't be allowed to fish once the management plans are operational.
- Sectoral Measures - a total of up to $20 million will be awarded on a competitive basis to projects brought forward by research organisations and other bodies, in partnership with fisheries managers and the fishing industry, to promote industry development and improve the long term sustainability of fisheries displaced by the marine reserves.
- Removal of commercial fishing effort - the purchase of individual fishers' entitlements or quota units in fisheries where the scale of the fishery has been reduced by the reserves to help ensure that they remain sustainable.
Fishing businesses that receive the Transitional Business Assistance will be able to participate in other elements of the assistance program. Payment under one element will be independent of payments under another.
The Government has also made provision for additional assistance to a small number of Vertically Integrated Fishing Businesses (those that catch and process their own fish and others' catch) that are left with stranded non-fishing assets as a result of significant loss of access to historic supply. The Government will be working with these businesses to evaluate whether they require assistance above that provided for in the core elements of the adjustment package.
Assistance under the package will begin to flow next financial year (2013-14) once management plans for the Commonwealth marine reserves are in place, but ahead of commercial fishing exclusions from the new reserves taking effect. This will enable businesses to make investments and changes to their business plans and operations as soon as possible.
The Government will work closely with industry and fisheries management agencies to implement the package progressively over a number of years.
More detail on the elements of the Package is provided in the Fisheries Adjustment Assistance Package fact sheet.
Discussion paper
The Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities released a discussion paper outlining proposed features of a Fisheries Adjustment Assistance Package. The discussion paper served as a basis for consultation with the commercial fishing industry and fisheries management agencies ahead of decision on the design of the Package. The paper was presented without prejudice for discussion purposes.
Comments on the discussion paper have now closed.
- Discussion Paper - Fisheries Adjustment Assistance Package for new Commonwealth Marine Reserves (PDF - 1112KB) | (Word - 1156KB)
Find out more
- Fisheries Adjustment Assistance Package to support the creation of marine reserves - Media release, 16 November 2012
- Industry assistance to precede marine reserves - Joint media release, 14 June 2012
- Fisheries Adjustment Policy
Network management plans finalised
- Management plans and explanatory statements
- Media release - 12 March 2013
