Fisheries Management (Abalone Fisheries) Regulations 2017 (SA)

South Australia Fisheries Management (Abalone Fisheries) Regulations 2017 under the Fisheries Management Act 2007

Contents 1 Short title 3 Interpretation 4 Conversion of whole weight to meat weight 5 Constitution of fisheries 6 Maximum number of licences that may be in force 7 Transfer of licence 8 Registration 9 Revocation of registration 10 Individual catch quota system—Central Zone 11 Individual catch quota system—Southern Zone 12 Individual catch quota system—Western Zone 13 Only 1 registered boat to be used at any 1 time 14 Use of registered masters in fishing activities 15 Registered boat not to be transported or towed to fishing location 16 Catch and disposal requirements 17 Periodic returns 18 Provision relating to keeping of records 19 Minister's determinations Schedule 2—Transitional provisions Part 2—Transitional provisions 2 Eligibility to be granted fishery licence Legislative history

1—Short title These regulations may be cited as the Fisheries Management (Abalone Fisheries) Regulations 2017. 3—Interpretation (1) In these regulations, unless the contrary intention appears— abalone fishery means— (a) the Central Zone Abalone Fishery; or (b) the Southern Zone Abalone Fishery; or (c) the Western Zone Abalone Fishery, constituted by these regulations; Act means the Fisheries Management Act 2007; Blacklip Abalone means Haliotis rubra; Central Zone means the waters adjacent to South Australia between the meridians of longitude 136°30′ East and 139° East, but does not include the waters of the Coorong or any other waters inside the Murray Mouth; conversion value means the number determined by the Minister to be the conversion value for the purpose of calculating the weight of abalone meat before removal from the shell; Corporations Act means the Corporations Act 2001 of the Commonwealth; current company extract means a document prepared by the Australian Securities and Investment Commission from its national database kept under the Corporations Act that contains current details of the following in relation to a company: (a) the company's name; (b) the address of the company's registered office; (c) the date of registration of the company; (d) the State or Territory in which the company is taken to be registered under the Corporations Act; (e) the company's Australian Company Number; (f) whether the company is a proprietary company or a public company; (g) the full name of each director of the company; (h) the full name of each secretary (if any) of the company; Department means the administrative unit of the Public Service that is responsible for assisting a Minister in the administration of the Act; Greenlip Abalone means Haliotis laevigata; Mean High Water Springs means the line representing the average of all high water observations at the time of spring tide over a period of 19 years; meat, in relation to an abalone, means all the muscular foot of the abalone from which the viscera have been detached by the usual shucking procedure; Southern Zone means the waters adjacent to South Australia east of the meridian of longitude 139° East; Western Zone means the waters adjacent to South Australia west of the meridian of longitude 136°30′ East; whole, in relation to an abalone, means the whole of the abalone including the meat, viscera and shell. (2) In these regulations, unless the contrary intention appears, company, director, proprietary company and public company have the same respective meanings as in the Corporations Act. (3) In these regulations— (a) all lines in spatial descriptions are geodesics based on the Geocentric Datum of Australia 2020 (GDA2020) as defined in the determination under section 8A of the National Measurement Act 1960 of the Commonwealth for the recognised-value standard of measurement position, and all coordinates are expressed in terms of GDA2020; (b) common and scientific fish names are given according to AS 5300—2015 Australian Fish Names Standard published by Standards Australia, as in force from time to time; (c) a reference to the taking of abalone includes a reference to an act preparatory to, or involved in, the taking of abalone. (4) In these regulations, a reference to a class of abalone is a reference to a class of abalone determined by the Minister by reference to all or any of the following factors: (a) a species of abalone; or (b) a description of abalone by reference to sex, size, weight or any other characteristic. 4—Conversion of whole weight to meat weight For the purposes of these regulations, the weight of abalone meat before removal from the shell is to be determined by multiplying the number of kilograms in the weight of the whole abalone by the conversion value determined by the Minister for the time being. 5—Constitution of fisheries (1) The following fisheries are constituted: (a) the Central Zone Abalone Fishery; (b) the Southern Zone Abalone Fishery; (c) the Western Zone Abalone Fishery. (2) The Central Zone Abalone Fishery consists of the taking of abalone in the waters of the Central Zone. (3) The Southern Zone Abalone Fishery consists of the taking of abalone in the waters of the Southern Zone. (4) The Western Zone Abalone Fishery consists of the taking of abalone in the waters of the Western Zone. 6—Maximum number of licences that may be in force (1) The maximum number of licences that may be in force in respect of the Central Zone Abalone Fishery is the number of licences in force in respect of that fishery immediately before the commencement of this regulation. (2) The maximum number of licences that may be in force in respect of the Southern Zone Abalone Fishery is the number of licences in force in respect of that fishery immediately before the commencement of this regulation. (3) The maximum number of licences that may be in force in respect of the Western Zone Abalone Fishery is the number of licences in force in respect of that fishery immediately before the commencement of this regulation. 7—Transfer of licence (1) Licences in respect of an abalone fishery are transferable. (2) An application for consent to the transfer of a licence must be accompanied by— (a) the licence to be transferred; and (b) a form of return as required by regulation 17 completed by the holder of the licence up to the date of application; and (c) if the transferee is a company—a current company extract relating to the transferee issued not more than 1 month immediately preceding the date of application. (3) The Minister may only consent to the transfer of a licence if satisfied as to the following: (a) that any fees or other amounts payable in relation to the licence under the Act have been paid in full; (b) that the licence to be transferred has not been suspended; (c) that no proceedings alleging an offence against the Act are pending or likely to be commenced in the State against the holder of the licence; (d) if the transferee is a natural person, that the transferee is at least 15 years of age and is a fit and proper person to hold a licence in respect of an abalone fishery; (e) if the transferee is a company, that each director of the company is a fit and proper person to be a director of a company that holds a licence in respect of an abalone fishery; (f) if a boat registered for use under the licence is the subject of, or registered for use under, or is otherwise referred to in, a licence, permit, authority or other entitlement to take fish granted under a law of the Commonwealth or a corresponding law— (i) that the entitlement is either to be transferred together with the licence to the transferee or to be surrendered on or before the transfer of the licence; or (ii) that— (A) the transfer of the licence separately from the entitlement is not likely to result in fishing activities that over‑exploit or endanger the aquatic resources of the State; and (B) the person or body that granted the entitlement concurs with the separate transfer of the licence. 8—Registration An application by the holder of a licence in respect of an abalone fishery— (a) to register a boat or device for use under the licence; or (b) to register a person as a master of a boat that may be used under the licence, must be accompanied by the documents specified in the application form. 9—Revocation of registration (1) The Minister may, on application by the holder of a licence in respect of an abalone fishery, revoke the registration of— (a) a boat or device used under the licence; or (b) a person as a master of a boat that may be used under the licence. (2) An application for revocation of registration must— (a) be made in a manner and form approved by the Minister; and (b) be completed in accordance with the instructions contained in the form; and (c) be accompanied by the documents specified in the application form. 10—Individual catch quota system—Central Zone (1) In this regulation— abalone quota entitlement or quota entitlement, in relation to a licence in respect of the fishery and a class of abalone, means the maximum number of kilograms of meat of abalone of that class that may be lawfully taken by the holder of the licence during a quota period, being the product of— (a) the unit entitlement under the licence in respect of that class of abalone; and (b) the unit value for the fishery and that class of abalone and quota period, subject to any variation applying during that quota period; fishery means the Central Zone Abalone Fishery; following quota period, in relation to a first quota period and the holder of a licence in respect of the fishery, means the next quota period during which abalone may be taken by the holder of the licence following the first quota period; quota period—a quota period for the fishery is a period of 12 months commencing on 1 January; quota period 2020 means the quota period ending on 31 December 2020; quota period 2021 means the quota period ending on 31 December 2021; quota period 2022 means the quota period ending on 31 December 2022; quota period 2023 means the quota period ending on 31 December 2023; quota period 2024 means the quota period ending on 31 December 2024; quota period 2025 means the quota period ending on 31 December 2025; unit entitlement means the number of abalone units for the time being allocated to a licence in respect of the fishery in respect of a class of abalone; unit value means the number of kilograms of abalone meat determined by the Minister to be the value of an abalone unit for the fishery, a class of abalone and a quota period. (2) The Minister— (a) must determine— (i) the number of kilograms of abalone meat that is to be the value of an abalone unit for the fishery, a class of abalone and each quota period; and (ii) the conversion value for the fishery and a class of abalone; (b) may, from time to time, vary the conversion value for the fishery and a class of abalone. (3) The Minister may vary conditions on licences in respect of the fishery fixing abalone quota entitlements as follows: (aa) if— (i) the total catch of abalone of a particular class taken by holders of licences in respect of the fishery during the quota period 2020 falls short of the total allowable catch of abalone of that particular class for the fishery and that quota period; and (ii) the total catch of abalone of that class taken by at least 1 holder of a licence in respect of the fishery during the quota period 2020 falls short of the quota entitlement under that licence in respect of that class of abalone and that quota period by an amount exceeding 50 kilograms of abalone meat, the Minister may vary the conditions of all licences in respect of the fishery so as to increase the quota entitlements under the licences in respect of that class of abalone for the quota periods 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025 by the same number of abalone units; (a) on joint application made to the Minister by the holders of any 2 licences, the conditions of the licences may be varied so as to increase the unit entitlement under 1 of the licences in respect of a particular class of abalone and decrease the unit entitlement under the other licence in respect of that class of abalone by a corresponding number of units; (b) if the total catch of abalone of a particular class taken by the holder of a licence in respect of the fishery subject to a condition fixing an abalone quota entitlement during a quota period (the first quota period) (being a quota period that commenced on or after 1 January 2022) is less than the abalone quota entitlement under the licence in respect of that class of abalone and that quota period, the Minister may vary the conditions of the licence so as to increase the abalone quota entitlement in respect of that class of abalone for the following quota period (the subsequent quota period) by 1 kilogram of abalone meat for each kilogram by which the catch fell short of the abalone quota entitlement for the first quota period up to— (i) — (A) 10% of the quota entitlement for the first quota period; or (B) such lower percentage of the quota entitlement for the first quota period, or such other lower kilogram amount of abalone meat, as is determined by the Minister on or before the commencement of the subsequent quota period; or (ii) if the Minister is satisfied that exceptional circumstances apply— (A) a percentage that exceeds 10% of the quota entitlement for the first quota period; or (B) such other greater kilogram amount of abalone meat, as is determined by the Minister on or before the commencement of the subsequent quota period; (c) if the total catch of abalone of a particular class taken by the holder of a licence in respect of the fishery subject to a condition fixing an abalone quota entitlement during a quota period (the first quota period) (being a quota period that commences on or after 1 January 2023) exceeded the abalone quota entitlement under the licence in respect of that class of abalone and that quota period, the conditions of the licence may be varied so as to decrease the quota entitlement in respect of that class of abalone for the following quota period (the subsequent quota period) as follows: (i) if the catch exceeded the quota entitlement by— (A) an amount not exceeding 10% of the quota entitlement for the first quota period; or (B) such lower percentage of the quota entitlement for the first quota period, or such other lower kilogram amount of abalone meat, as is determined by the Minister on or before the commencement of the first quota period, by 1 kilogram of abalone meat for each kilogram taken in excess of the quota entitlement; or (ii) if the catch exceeded the quota entitlement by— (A) an amount greater than 10% of the quota entitlement for the first quota period; or (B) such lower percentage of the quota entitlement for the first quota period, or such other lower kilogram amount of abalone meat, as is determined by the Minister on or before the commencement of the first quota period, by 2 kilograms of abalone meat for each kilogram taken in excess of the quota entitlement. (e) if— (i) the holder of a licence has assisted in the carrying out of research work under the Act in relation to the fishery; and (ii) the Minister considers that it is appropriate to compensate or reward the holder of the licence for the time spent in providing that assistance, the Minister may vary the conditions of the licence so as to increase the abalone quota entitlement under the licence; (f) a variation of a quota entitlement or unit entitlement under this subregulation (other than under paragraph (a)) must be expressed to apply only for the quota period during which the variation is made. (4) For the purposes of— (a) subregulation (3)(b)(i) and (ii); and (b) subregulation (3)(c)(i) and (ii), the following must be disregarded: (c) any increase in the quota entitlement under a licence applying during a first quota period as a result of a variation of the quota entitlement under the licence made under subregulation (3)(aa); (d) any increase in the quota entitlement under a licence applying during a first quota period as a result of— (i) a variation of the quota entitlement under the licence previously made under subregulation (3)(b)(i) or (ii); and (ii) in the case of the quota period that ends on 31 December 2022—a variation of the quota entitlement under the licence made under subregulation (3)(d)(i) as in force immediately before the commencement of this paragraph. (4a) An application under subregulation (3)(a) may not be made in respect of abalone units allocated to the licence under subregulation (3)(b). (5) An application to vary unit entitlements must— (a) be made in a manner and form approved by the Minister; and (b) be completed in accordance with the instructions contained in the form; and (c) be accompanied by the prescribed fee. (6) The holder of a licence in respect of the fishery must not, for a commercial purpose, take abalone of any class if the unit entitlement under the licence in respect of either class of abalone specified in column 1 of the following table falls below the number specified alongside in column 2. Maximum penalty: $5 000. Expiation fee: $500.