Australia Seeks to Extend Commercial Fishing in Protected Waters
Instead, he said, the country would increase "the total area of the reserves open to fishing from 64 percent to 80 percent." Much of the increased fishing would take place
in the Coral Sea Reserve, one of the country’s most stringently protected areas, where large-scale operations would be allowed for the first time in at least five years.
Describing the area as "iconic," Mr. Leck said increased fishing would add to "the risk of degradation." One side of the Coral Sea
Reserve abuts the Great Barrier Reef, one of the world’s great natural wonders, at risk of death from rising sea temperatures.
David Ellis, chief executive of Tuna Australia, said in a statement
that the new rules would be a boon for "jobs, regional economic stability, and seafood availability — especially to consumers that enjoy sushi and sashimi." According to the government’s most recent statistics, from 2015, seafood is a 2.8 billion-Australian-dollar, or $2.2 billion, industry, with wild-caught fish making up 58 percent of the market’s value.
By RUSSELL GOLDMANJULY 21, 2017
Australia plans to allow fishing across 80 percent of its protected maritime sanctuaries, the government said on Friday in a proposal
that would vastly extend commercial activity in the world’s largest marine-reserves network.
Environmentalists argued Friday that the government’s plan would threaten species important to the ecosystem, injure Australia’s reputation as a global conservation leader
and come at the cost of the country’s tourism industry, which offers diving and whale watching.
"It’s one of the few places in the world where big species — sharks, tuna
and billfish — still roam in relative abundance." Please verify you’re not a robot by clicking the box.
