|
New TED Definition A New TED definition is currently being developed for the east coast trawl fishery, including M1 and M2 symbols. DPI&F have advised to not invest in new TED gear until the definition is released. MBSIA will advise members as soon as the new specs are released. The new requirements will come into effect in December this year.
Square Mesh Cod Ends: Why One Size Doesn’t Fit All To follow-up from last year’s BRD trials, Kev Baker and MBSIA were keen to see how some of the square mesh cod-end (SMC) arrangements performed when the greasies were plentiful in the Bay. Preliminary trials of Kev’s SMC arrangements in 2008, suggested they may be useful at reducing bycatch while targeting tigers and bananas in the Bay. Recently, MBSIA project officer, Sam Stone, collected some additional data while Kev was targeting greasies. Some video footage from the day (link below) tells the story. The SMC, emptied first, had a square mesh size of 38mm and consistently lost far too many of the small greasy prawns. The conventional diamond mesh (38mm) cod end (emptied second) retained more than four times the weight of greasies. This highlights the importance of closely involving industry in gear trials and management decisions. For square mesh cod-end arrangements to be seriously considered for use in the Bay, flexibility in mesh size and cod end requirements is needed to encourage industry innovation and fine tuning. To view video of the trial click here Note, large (6Mb) file.
|