Compliance

Compliance Statistics from 1 July 2018 to 31 January 2019

During this period there were:

2 534 angling licence inspections.
111 whitebait licence inspections.
445 recreational vessel inspections under Marine and Safety legislation.
4 commercial fishing inspections.
5 search warrants executed.
8.5 kilograms of whitebait seized.
8 whitebait nets seized.
3 lobster traps seized.
2 cray rings seized.
6 defendants convicted of 32 offences in the Magistrates Court.
122 offences detected and dealt with via Infringement notice and/or Infringement Notice endorsed as a Conditional Caution notices.

$20 609 in court fines.

$15 301 in infringement notice fines.
15 notices of disqualification are current, preventing offenders from holding a recreational whitebait licence.

Our Compliance Operations in this report have focussed on the tail end of the whitebait season and angler checks in the Central Highlands. We have also worked with the Commercial Eel Fishing sector, threatened species protection (giant freshwater crayfish) and pest fish prevention.

We are currently submitting court files from the 2018 whitebait season that will involve charges for 35 offences.

Compliance operations have issued 58 Infringement notices and 60 Infringement Notices endorsed as Conditional Cautions for 118 offences since 1 st July 2018. This includes:

54 Offences committed under the Inland Fisheries Act 1995; and
64 Offences committed under the Marine and Safety Authority Act 1997

We have inspected 2 534 angling licences with 97.9% of people complying with all Inland Fisheries
rules.

Boating safety continues to be of concern. So far this season we have checked 445 vessels. Of these, 23 people (5.17% of vessels checked) were failing to wear their PFD while motoring and 20 vessels (4.49% of vessels checked) did not carry the minimum required safety equipment.