I spoke this morning to Leon Compton (Listen here) who was unaware that the Seafish Tasmania site had been taken down as I revealed 10 days ago: (Sink this shocking plan. John Hawkins: Please respond Mr Geen)*
This is a copy of the site when it was active:
Seafish_Website_Cache_from_Google.pdf
Leon Compton could ask Geen the following in the next interview:
1. If the Margiris is only taking up Seafish Tasmania’s allocation in permitted fishing areas is that allocation only around the coast of Tasmania.
2. Whose permits, if not Geen’s, allow the Margaris to fish in other than Tasmanian waters?
3. What are the Union permits for seaman working on Australian registered boats and how do you get a ticket. Rates of pay, terms of employment etc?
4. Will the catch be located by satellite; if so how do you take only 5% of the shoal? If you take every shoal how long before Tasmanian waters are fished out?
5. Geen stated that the catch would be unloaded at Devonport.
6. If this is so will it go to the Salmon fish farms on the West Coast?
7. Can someone produce a Qualified person to state the approx tonnage of JM and R bait in Tasmanian waters? The minutes of the original committee investigating the matter from its inception to close, in six years of sittings could not do it.
8. The 4 permit holding fisherman who declared this interest to the committee when members played a key part in framing policy as they provided the much of the evidence over sustainability. As a permit holder and member would Mr Geen care to comment?
That should make for a balanced interview next time.
Earlier on Tasmanian Times:
• *Last Friday Tasmanian Times posted this John Hawkins’ analysis with the observation, I suggest that the power of vested interest is here displayed … And the plea, Please respond Mr Geen: All about Seafish Tasmania: Download document: Fishery_Document_(2).docx
• Wilkie calls for Ombudsman probe
• Tasmanians have their say: Turn Back The Trawler
• Sink this shocking plan. John Hawkins: Please respond, Mr Geen
• Giant freezer trawler may become reality
• Supertrawling the spirit of Tasmania. Why is she going round in circles?
• Speakers named for trawler forum
• Turn it away
• The facts behind Macquarie Harbour fish farm expansion
First published: 2012-07-30 01:37 PM
• MINISTER HARBOURING DOUBTS OVER TRAWLER: LEAKED LETTER
Kim Booth MP
Greens Primary Industries Spokesperson
Monday, 30 July 2012
The Tasmanian Greens today called on the Deputy Premier to join with them in opposing the super trawler FV Margiris, after a leaked letter revealed that the Minister appeared to hold concerns about the ship’s impacts on the local fishery.
Greens Primary Industries spokesperson Kim Booth MP today released a copy of a letter leaked to his office, in which Mr Green calls on the Federal Fisheries Minister Joe Ludwig to address a number of issues including potential localised fish depletion.
“It appears that Mr Green is more concerned than he’s been prepared to admit about the ability of this super trawler to unsustainably scoop up thousands of tonnes of fish from our waters.”
“This leaked letter also increases the pressure on Federal Labor and the Federal Fisheries Minister, Joe Ludwig, to take seriously the growing concerns held by fishing communities, local businesses, Labor backbenchers, and now the State Minister also adding his voice to that list.”
“Despite all his previous public statements in support of the science behind this fishing operation, it now appears that Minister Green does have some doubts about issues like localised fish depletion.”
“He now needs to go the next step by joining with the Greens to call on the Federal Government to deny this vessel an operating licence and send it back where it came.”
“He also needs to come clean and explain to all Tasmanians why he hasn’t been prepared to put those concerns on the record until now.”
“The Greens are the only party that’s been prepared to stand up on this issue, but it’s not too late for Labor and Liberal to start standing up for our oceans and for the basic right of all Tasmanians to catch a fish, now and into the future.”
Letter from Deputy Premier Bryan Green to Federal Fisheries Minister Joe Ludwig:
John Hawkins, in Comments:
Mr Geen through Seafish Tasmania has been in reciept of considerable sums of public money:
$150,000 dollars from The Tasmanian Department of Economic Development Tourism and the Arts.
$10,000 dollars from the Tasmanian Department of Economic Development and Arts.
$420,000 dollars on 27 June 2012 from the Tasmanian Innovation and Investment Fund.
This suggests a close working relationship with the Tasmanian Government.
We next come to the subject of fishing licences and submissions to the Small Pelagic Fishery Independant Allocation Advisory Panel Second meeting.
This is important as it is regarding the allocation of new fishing permits This is available complete on the Web and makes interesting reading.
The money is in the allocations of permits, one submission states that; “….these speculators expect the genuine fisherman to buy them out for big money”.
Who are those who recieve the permits in Zones A,B,C,and D?
“….We all know that the catch in Tasmania has been poor for a long time. Whatever the reason for this, it is no reason to give them the right to come and fish the Great Australian Bight. It is possible that the Tasmanian Government has been pushing this to protect their own fishermen. This is not good fisheries management,and it is certainly not fair.”
There is only one significant Tasmanian player Mr Geen and from the above he is financially close to the Tasmanian Government.
“The same applies to AFMA’s objectives. We are not experts in the legislation….we have always understood that it was there to protect the fish stocks and the rights of fisherman. Nothing in the AFMA suggestion fits these things. All they do is to give a large part of Zones B and C to people who own permits in Zone A.
Who owns permits in Zone A, Mr Geen.
Mr Geen’s submission concludes “…..and would be grateful if the panel would consult Seafish Tasmania before making this submission publicly available.”
Perhaps Lindsay could put this important document up on TT.
It gives the map of Zones A,B,C and D.
I suggest that it is control of these permits how they were obtained and or granted and now passed on to the Magiris that is the area on which the Mr Compton’s of this world should concentrate their attention.
There is evidence that others were not happy with the the right to transfer when granted.
Is this forestry in Tasmania all over again with the handouts of public money, permits to log/fish, and the part played by our political masters in supporting business against the interests of those they are meant to represent.
• Groups launch national ‘Stop the Super Trawler’ campaign … Download details:
National_Day_of_Action_Supertrawler.pdf
Fourteen state and national environment groups today announced the national launch of the ‘Stop the Super Trawler’ campaign. The campaign is calling on the Australian Government to respond to community concerns over a massive industrial trawler, the FV Margiris, which is currently steaming towards Tasmania.
The 142-metre long FV Margiris, due to arrive in August, is destined to become part of the Australian fishing fleet unless the government listens to community concerns and rejects the trawler’s application to operate.
“This campaign has been launched to stop the introduction of the Margiris and other super trawlers in Australian waters after thousands of people have raised concerns,” said Rebecca Hubbard, Environment Tasmania’s Marine Coordinator. “So far the Federal Fisheries Minister Joe Ludwig’s response to these concerns has been deafening silence.”
Jon Bryan, spokesperson for the Tasmanian Conservation Trust, said that the Australian Fisheries Management Authority (AFMA) has failed to address crucial ecological issues.
“This super trawler increases the threat of localized depletions of target fish stocks. AFMA has failed to offer any effective strategies to address this critical issue, so our organisations had no choice but to elevate our campaign,” Mr Bryan said. “Basic scientific information about the fish stocks is lacking, such as fish movements and how long it would take for populations to recover from overfishing. This super trawler could spell disaster for the fish they are targeting and others in the food chain.”
Waters where the super-trawler is permitted to fish are home to some of Australia’s unique and vulnerable marine wildlife.
“The Margiris poses an unacceptable threat to our marine wildlife, which are supposed to be protected under Australian law”, said Ms. Tooni Mahto, Marine Campaigns Officer with the Australian Marine Conservation Society. “Devices designed to protect Australian fur seals and dolphins getting trapped in these huge nets could be operating as dead animal disposal devices – simply ejecting the animals after they have been killed.”
The Margiris, part of the heavily subsidized European trawler fleet, is on its way to Australia after allegations of overfishing stocks in the South Pacific and off West Africa. Seafish Tasmania has proposed a joint venture with the Dutch owners of the vessel. They plan to catch 18,000 tonnes of small pelagic fish (also known as bait fish) for freezing into 20kg blocks and exporting to Nigeria for $1/kg for human consumption.
Greenpeace has confronted the Margiris twice this year in a campaign to stem the overfishing of African waters by foreign trawlers and to pressure the EU to cut its fleet overcapacity.
“At the recent Rio Summit the Australian Government committed to solving the global overfishing crisis that is being caused in part by massive ships like the Magiris catching too many fish” said Nathaniel Pelle, Greenpeace Oceans Campaigner. “Yet now we are undermining these efforts by welcoming this monster ship with open arms. Make no mistake, allowing the Magiris into Australia would create a precedent that Australian waters are open to exploitation by super trawlers”.
The campaign is working with recreational fishing groups on this issue.
Background:
The alliance of organisations includes Environment Tasmania, Tasmanian Conservation Trust, WWF-Australia, Australian Marine Conservation Society (AMCS), Greenpeace, Conservation Council of Western Australia (CCWA), Nature Conservation Council of New South Wales (NCC NSW), Conservation Council of South Australia (CCSA), Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF), The Wilderness Society (TWS), Humane Society International (HSI), Ocean Planet Tasmania, Surfrider Foundation Australia and the Victorian National Parks Association (VNPA).
For more details on the campaign, visit the dedicated website:
www.stopthetrawler.net
A petition calling on the Australian Government to reject allowing the FV Margiris to fish in Australian waters, hosted by the Australian organisation Community Run, has been signed by nearly 23,000 people, and can be viewed here:
http://www.communityrun.org/petitions/stop-giant-fishing-trawler-in-tasmania
• National Ad Intensifies Super Trawler Campaign
With the federal government failing to address widespread concerns about the impact of the world’s second largest fishing trawler, FV Margiris, the national ‘Stop the Super Trawler’ campaign launched yesterday has taken out a full page national advert and is launching a new website.
“Building on this launch, we have placed a full page advert to be published in ‘The Australian’ newspaper tomorrow” said Environment Tasmania Marine Coordinator, Rebecca Hubbard.
“The ad will inform many more Australians of the threats to our marine life and fishing industry posed by the world’s second largest super trawler, the FV Margiris.
“We are also launching a website stopthetrawler.net to help build the conversation among concerned Australians”
“If the federal government allows this super trawler to fish here, it will change the face of fishing in Australia forever. It will threaten local fisheries and marine wildlife, such as protected seals and dolphins.
“Already over 23,000 Australians have signed an online petition calling for the super trawler to be rejected from Australian waters. This is a national issue, which the Federal Government must now address,” concluded Ms Hubbard.
• SUPER TRAWLER CAMPAIGN GOES NATIONAL
As Questions Dodged Over Commonwealth MPAs Being Accessed…
Paul O’Halloran MP
Member for Braddon
Thursday, 2 August 2012
The Tasmanian Greens today demanded Federal Minister Joe Ludwig provide a straight answer that the super trawler, FV Margiris, will be able to access Commonwealth Marine Protected Areas (MPAs).
Greens Member for Braddon, Paul O’Halloran MP, said that recent comments from Seafish Tasmania were conspicuously silent on whether the super trawler operation will respect the marine protected areas.
Mr O’Halloran also said that with today’s full page advert in the Australian newspaper, pressure is mounting on the Federal government to reject any operating licence by the Margiris to access Australian fisheries.
“Federal Fisheries Minister Joe Ludwig must rule out the Margiris having access to the Commonwealth MPAs, anywhere along its proposed fishing route from NSW through to Western Australia,” Mr O’Halloran said.
“It is bad enough that there any contemplation of this vessel being able to plunder 18, 000 tonnes of our small pelagic fishery in Australian waters, but it is adding injury to insult should it be able to access the nation’s marine protected areas.”
“These are meant to be protected to ensure fish stock biodiversity and Minister Ludwig needs to make clear in no uncertain terms that any incursion by the Margiris into the MPAs is not on.”
“With growing national concern about the imminent arrival of the Margiris, as demonstrated by the full page advert in the Australian, Minister Ludwig cannot hide from his responsibilities any longer.”
“To protect our fisheries, to protect local communities reliant on those fisheries, and to protect our national marine protected areas, all Joe Ludwig needs to do is refuse an operating licence and turn back the trawler,” Mr O’Halloran said.
Link: Advert in today’s Australian newspaper, page 9. http://stopthetrawler.net/our-new-full-page-advert-in-the-australian/
