Western Australia’s wild catch abalone fishery, along with the Pilbara and Kimberley trap fisheries, are set to undertake Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) full assessment.
The three fisheries have all recently signed contracts seeking certification, said Western Australian Fishing Industry Council (WAFIC) chief executive officer, John Harrison.
The assessment by an independent, third party consultant appointed by the MSC will take 12-18 months.
“WA has a global reputation for the quality of its fisheries’ management,” Mr Harrison said.
“The State’s rock lobster fishery was the world’s first to achieve MSC certification in 2000 and also the first to subsequently be re-certified three times.”
WA-based company Austral has also been MSC certified for the Glacier 51 toothfish it catches in the sub-Antarctic waters of the Southern Ocean and for its Skull Island prawns that are caught in Commonwealth waters around northern Australia. In late 2015 the State’s two biggest prawn fisheries, Shark Bay Wild and Exmouth Gulf, also gained MSC certification.
“Achieving MSC certification gives seafood consumers and the broader community confidence that the relevant fishery is managed to world’s best practice in terms of the environment and the long-term sustainability and viability of stocks,” said Mr Harrison.
In September 2012, the State Government, in partnership with WAFIC, announced a $14.5m MSC initiative designed to help every commercial fishery in WA gain independent third party sustainability certification.
