MINISTER NOW RESPONSIBLE FOR FUTURE TRAWL KILLS

MEDIA RELEASE

28 February 2002

"The Commonwealth Minister for Environment and Heritage, Dr. Kemp must now accept responsibility for all future trawl by-catch incidents within the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park." That was the message to Dr. Kemp from Sunfish Deputy Chair and environmental coordinator, Vern Veitch.

" Dr. Kemp's office has refused all approaches to allow other stakeholders to put forward their arguments for a closure. He has effectively ignored Sunfish and it's 45 000 members. The commitment of the Commonwealth Government on sustainable use of world heritage areas must now be questioned." Mr. Veitch said. "They fiddle around the edges whilst major issues continue to burn. They have ignored the views of the majority." he said.

"By excluding Rockingham Bay from the trawl closure, Dr. Kemp has endorsed the continued slaughter of thousands of juvenile fish species before they get a chance to breed. Unlike line caught fish that can be successfully returned to the water alive, trawl caught fish are crushed and drowned in the nets. Even by-catch reduction devices are only partly effective by day and ineffective at night." Mr. Veitch said.

Mr. Veitch said that this decision by Dr. Kemp had effectively torpedoed the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority's Representative Areas Program. "What chance has Dr. Kemp and the Commonwealth Government got of closing off up to 25% of all coastal waters to all types of fishing when they cannot even exclude trawling which is recognised globally as the most destructive form of fishing from a small area such as Rockingham Bay. The representative Areas Program is clearly dead in the water after this decision." he said.

"Dr. Kemp has sent a clear signal that he does not trust the advice he has received from GBRMPA which is clearly nothing more than an aquaculture and tourism licensing office. He should now consider winding back it's funding and putting it to better use." Mr. Veitch said.

"Dr. Kemp has been conned by the commercial fishing industry and it's supporters. He must now accept responsibility for their ongoing impacts." Mr. Veitch said.

End of release.