Fisheries (Commercial Dive) Rules 2021

Fisheries (Commercial Dive) Rules 2021

3 December 2021

I make the following rules under the Living Marine Resources Management Act 1995.

These rules may be cited as the Fisheries (Commercial Dive) Rules 2021.

These rules take effect on 16 February 2022.

In these rules – abalone means fish of the genus Haliotis;Act means the Living Marine Resources Management Act 1995; commercial dive direct sales receipt means a receipt in an approved form that – relates to the sale, transfer or transit of fish taken under the authority of a fishing licence (commercial dive); and is part of a record required to be kept under the Act; commercial dive fishery means the taking of controlled fish, for commercial purposes, by diving in State waters; commercial diver’s docket means a docket in an approved form that – relates to the taking of fish under the authority of a fishing licence (commercial dive); and is part of the records required to be kept under the Act; controlled fish means – periwinkles; or sea urchins; or a fish of a kind specified in an endorsement on a licence under rule 9; direct sale, of controlled fish, means a sale of controlled fish – to a person other than a fish processor; or if the fish have not been caufed or in some other way processed; diving means diving, or swimming, below the surface of the water; fish cauf means apparatus used to hold live fish; fish cauf site, in relation to a licence, means the location where the holder of the licence is authorised under the licence to hold live fish in a fish cauf; fish processor means the holder of a fish processing licence;Grade 1 penalty means the penalty specified in regulation 5 of the Fisheries (Penalties) Regulations 2021;Grade 2 penalty means the penalty specified in regulation 6 of the Fisheries (Penalties) Regulations 2021;Grade 3 penalty means the penalty specified in regulation 7 of the Fisheries (Penalties) Regulations 2021; kind includes genus and family; landing site means an area specified in Schedule 1; licensing year means the period beginning on 1 September each year and ending at midnight on 31 August the following year; on, a vessel, includes being on a dinghy, a tender or a small auxiliary craft being used in connection with the vessel; periwinkle means mollusc of the species Lunella undulata; point of sale means the point at which a purchaser of controlled fish takes possession of the controlled fish; prior fishing report means a report, provided before undertaking a fishing trip under the authority of a fishing licence (commercial dive), that is part of records required to be kept under the Act; published notice means a notice published in one or more of the following ways:published in the Gazette; published, on a website operated by or on behalf of the Department, for the duration of the period for which the notice is in effect; published in a newspaper circulating generally in the State; reporting service means a service approved by the Secretary under subrule (2); rock lobster means rock lobster of the genus JasusorSagmariasus; sea urchin means sea urchin of the genus Heliocidaris or Centrostephanus; shellfish has the same meaning as in the Fisheries (Shellfish) Rules 2017;Undaria means – exotic marine alga Undaria pinnatifida (commonly known as wakame); and sporophyll of that alga; whole weight, in relation to a fish, means the whole weight of the fish before it is dismembered, dried, shelled or otherwise processed.

The Secretary may approve a service as the service that may receive reports for the purposes of these rules.

In these rules, a reference to the holder of a fishing licence includes a person who has been granted approval to use the licence in accordance with section 87 of the Act.

These rules apply to the commercial dive fishery.

These rules continue in force for a period of 10 years.

The Minister is to consult with the relevant fishing body in relation to the commercial dive fishery about any changes relating to –

the areas where fishing may occur; and any matter relating to the characteristics of controlled fish; and the opening and closing of the fishery; and fishing gear; and limits on the taking and possession of controlled fish.

For the purposes of these rules, a fishing licence is one of the following classes:

class commercial dive, fishing licence (commercial dive);

class personal, fishing licence (personal);

class vessel, fishing licence (vessel).

A fishing licence (commercial dive) authorises the holder of the licence to, for commercial purposes –

take and possess controlled fish; and take and possess shellfish by diving if the holder of the licence also holds a fishing licence (shellfish); and take and possess Undaria by diving if the holder of the licence is acting under an authority to take Undaria.

The Secretary may endorse a fishing licence (commercial dive) to allow the holder of the licence to take, for commercial purposes, fish of a kind specified in the endorsement.

The holder of a fishing licence (commercial dive) must not hold more than 3 fishing licences (commercial dive) at any one time.

Grade 3 penalty.

The Minister is to ensure that no more than 53 fishing licences (commercial dive) are in force at any one time.