5. Commercial and non-commercial use

Fishing removes biomass from the Region and, when harvest is not conducted in an ecologically sustainable way, it can affect the abundance of targeted species locally and at a population level. Declines in populations of culturally significant species affected by fishing can have flow-on implications for the Region’s Indigenous heritage values (Section 4.3), such as cultural practices, observances, lore, stories, songlines and sites. 

Since 2019, the Sustainable Fisheries Strategy has guided a range of key efforts by the Queensland Government to better understand the impacts of fishing, including through updated stock assessments, stock status reports, ecological risk assessments and a data validation plan (Box 5.3). Approximately 42 per cent of more than 60 Queensland east coast fisheries resources that are fished within the Reef have been assessed as sustainable.^1325,1326 However, 32 per cent have not been assessed or are undefined and the status of some targeted species remain cause for community and scientific concerns.^{793,1256,1261,1265,1276} 

Predators, such as coral trout, emperors, mackerel and sharks, make up nearly 40 per cent of the total commercial harvest (Figure 5.11) and the majority of the recreational fishing catch.¹²²⁵ Reductions in predator populations can have long-term effects on marine systems, including direct and indirect effects on the food chain (Section 3.4.5). For example, predator abundance and behaviour changes can alter food webs and result in flow-on effects for herbivore populations that moderate algal cover on coral reefs.^{1329,1330,1331}

Some predatory species are subject to considerable fishing effort, as demonstrated by stock assessment and stock status findings described earlier in this section for Australian snapper, pearl perch, Spanish mackerel, saddletail snapper and black jewfish.^{1261,1265,1257 1276 1254} In some cases, assessments are hindered by data limitations, and no stock assessment has been completed for some key target species.

Some sharks and rays are at higher risk from fishing than others.^{817,1332,1333,1334,1335,1336} The stock statuses of three common species of reef shark have been assessed as sustainable. However, current assessments of other shark species are lacking, including hammerhead sharks and bronze whaler. Sharks and rays are discarded in the trawl fishery, but mortality and health impacts are still a concern.^{1337,1338,1339,1340} The equipment used in the Queensland Shark Control Program extracts targeted sharks and also interacts with other species, including some species of conservation concern (Section 5.4.1).

Particle feeders (such as prawns and scallops) account for more than half of the weight of the total retained commercial catch across the Region’s four main fishery types (Figure 5.1).¹²²⁷ Overharvesting will cause population declines. Saucer scallops were identified as depleted in 2022 with limited evidence of recovery since 2016.⁷⁹³ Potential flow-on effects of extraction include damage to other particle feeders, such as sponges, and changes to other ecosystem processes (for example, to predation through changed feeding opportunities).⁹ Uncertainties around the impact of coral harvest remain and existing efforts to improve data collection and reporting in the harvest fishery are expected to enhance this understanding.

In addition to extracting retained catch, fishing can cause death, or injury and stress, to the discarded species. For example, post-trawl survival analysis for two small elasmobranch (shark and ray) species caught incidentally in the Region’s prawn fisheries found lowered survival with increased time on deck and differences in capture and release resilience.¹³³⁸

Preliminary analysis for the Region in the Outlook Report 2009 suggested non-retained catch (discards and bycatch) by commercial fisheries is likely to be significantly higher than the retained catch, with the trawl fishery responsible for most of the non-retained catch.³ Discards from the Queensland East Coast Otter Trawl Fishery declined by around  one third between 1988 and 2014 primarily due to concurrent reductions in fishing effort over this period.¹³⁴¹ Due to an increase in fishing effort, discards from the deepwater eastern king prawn component of the trawl fishery approximately doubled from 1988 to 2014, which contrasts markedly with the other components of the fishery and the overall fishery trend. Discard rates in the shallow eastern king prawn component of the trawl fishery were 3 to 6 times higher than the deepwater fishery.¹³⁴¹ Commercial fisheries are not required to report discards so discard rates in the trawl fishery since 2014, and from other fisheries, remain poorly quantified. 

Recreational fishers generally release more than 70 per cent of animals caught due to catch-and-release practices or due to the catch being undesirable, too small or outside the legal size limit.¹²²⁴ Sharks and rays are not generally targeted by recreational fishers; an estimated 95 per cent of these catches are released because they are unwanted.¹²²⁴ Catch-and-release practices presume the fish is likely to resume normal behaviour and survive.¹³⁴² However, stress or injury from fishing interactions can lead to post‑release mortality. Behavioural impairments can increase a released fish’s susceptibility to predation.¹³⁴³ Recreational fishing can be a significant pressure on coastal fish stocks, with recreational harvest exceeding commercial harvest for some species.^{1223,1225,1344}

Information from voluntary recreational fisher boat ramp and diary surveys are highly valuable but are limited in their ability to allow a comprehensive assessment of recreational fishing take and associated impacts. Recreational fishers typically harvest a wider range of species and size classes than those targeted and taken by commercial fishers. The increase in efficiency of recreational fishers through new technologies, such as GPS, side-scan and three-dimensional sonar, and changes to fisher behaviour, such as rapid information transfer via social media, may alter the harvest profile of the fishery in the Region.^1345,1346 Impacts to particular species or stocks from recreational fishing are difficult to quantify due to the high number of fishers and different techniques used. New research methods are being trialled under the Sustainable Fisheries Strategy to improve estimates of recreational harvest and effort.

Understanding depredation of catch, which occurs when a fish caught in fishing apparatus is completely or partially consumed by other marine animals before it can be landed, is coming under increasing focus.^{839,842,844,1347,1348} Depredation can lead to economic (lost fishing gear and catch), social (reduced quality of fishing experience and conflict between stakeholders) and ecological (increased mortality of target species, injury and bycatch of sharks) impacts.¹³⁴⁷ Depredation is likely to lead to underestimates of fish mortality in both commercial and recreational fisheries and may affect stock assessments. However, the nature and scale of depredation impacts on biodiversity, social and economic values remain a knowledge gap.^407,839 

Incidental capture, entanglement and death of species of conservation concern as a result of commercial fishing continue to affect the Region’s ecological values.^{1349 ,461} The 2021 Queensland ecological risk assessment for the East Coast Inshore Fishery identified that gillnets present a high risk to the majority of species of conservation concern.¹³⁴⁹ These species, such as inshore dolphins, dugongs, sawfishes and some marine turtles, are particularly vulnerable.^{1350,1351,1352,1353,1354} Loss of even small numbers of individuals may have a substantial effect on population status, resilience and rate of recovery from past impacts. The 2023 Queensland ecological risk assessment for the East Coast Otter Trawl Fishery identified several species at high risk from trawling activities based on these vulnerabilities, and further management action was required to reduce risks to one species, green sawfish, in the Region.⁴³⁷

Between 2003 and 2017, the East Coast Inshore Fishery reported around 2000 green turtle interactions from large mesh net operations, followed by loggerhead turtles and hawksbill turtles with 124 and 41 interactions, respectively.¹³⁴⁹ In the same period, 37 dugong and 6 dolphin interactions were reported. Interactions are also reported through the Queensland StrandNet marine wildlife stranding and deaths database,461 though not all incidents can be directly attributed to in situ fishing activities (as opposed to marine debris and ghost nets).

Between 2019 and 2021, in the East Coast Otter Trawl Fishery, approximately 2400 interactions were reported with threatened, endangered and protected animals of which more than 99 per cent were sea snakes. Despite mandatory reporting of these incidents, many interactions are not reported, and reporting of the survival of released animals may be inaccurate.¹³⁴⁹ Therefore, the magnitude of the impact is likely to be underestimated and concerns remain about the reliability and accuracy of report interactions. It is also important to consider the cumulative impact of interactions across multiple fisheries.¹³⁵⁵ The removal of gillnets from the Marine Park by 2027 is expected to reduce the likelihood of interactions. Work is progressing under a Queensland Data Validation Plan, with a key focus on field trials of onboard cameras, control systems and software to detect and provide validated reporting of interactions during commercial trawl fishing activities (Box 5.3).¹³²⁷

Fish spawning aggregations are recognised as a natural phenomenon that contributes to the Reef’s outstanding universal value.¹³⁵⁶ They are protected to some extent by the current zoning arrangements. Seasonal fishing closures have been introduced since 2019 for Spanish mackerel, snapper and pearl perch. Other than for barramundi, spawning aggregations of inshore species — including golden snapper, barred javelin and black jewfish — are not protected by seasonal fishing closures. The Coral Reef Fin Fish Fishery is subject to short seasonal closures during spring based on the expected seasonal and lunar spawning of the common coral trout. However, new research has indicated that this species spawns year-round with little to no alignment with existing closures.¹³⁵⁷ The spatial and temporal distribution of spawning aggregations of Spanish mackerel has contracted over time, with one aggregation near Cairns now commercially extirpated.^1358,1359 The loss of spawning aggregations has important ramifications for fish population dynamics and can lead to localised stock collapse with negative ecological, social, cultural and economic consequences.¹³⁶⁰

Physical damage to the seabed and reef habitats occurs as a result of some fishing activities. Line fishing gear can cause direct physical damage to live coral tissue and coral colonies and can contribute to increased coral disease.¹³⁶¹ Physical damage to reefs and shoals can be caused by poor anchoring and retrieval practices, and is of concern, but the extent to which this occurs across the Region is poorly quantified. Damage to benthic habitats is also caused by grounding (and in some cases sinking) of commercial and recreational fishing vessels in the Region (Figure 5.16). Trawling has physical impacts on habitats in the Region and can remove or damage seabed plants and animals. While risk for seabed biodiversity has been reduced by trawl management actions, some concerns remain. For example, an area in the southern Reef has been identified as being among the national hotspots for risk from trawling and is the area at highest potential risk within the Region.^1237,1238 High trawling effort levels and a poor understanding of the habitat in this area contribute to the risk. At-risk, long‐lived, deep‐water elasmobranch species occur in this area and are taken and killed in trawl bycatch.¹³³² Further information on the risk from fishing to these species is needed. The impacts of trawling on upper continental slopehabitats must also be better understood. Physical damage can also affect underwater historic heritage sites. Discarded fishing line and loss of fishing gear contribute to marine debris (Section 6.5.1), causing entanglement and ingestion by marine species.

Illegal recreational fishing in the Region continues to be of concern. The number of reported offences has averaged around 670 each year since 2018–19 (a 35 per cent increase since the preceding 5 years).¹³⁶² During the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of reported offences peaked at 814 which likely correlates to an increased number of people accessing the Reef for recreational purposes. Illegal recreational fishing accounts for approximately 50 per cent of the 1266 fishing and non-fishing possible offences reported in 2022–23. The increasing trend in non-compliance reports may reflect improved surveillance efforts and technologies, such as new high-speed patrol vessels armed with technology for detection at night. Rate of change in recreational fishing effort (and therefore, likelihood of offences) is not well known, but is generally expected to correlate with population growth in the Catchment and long-term increases in recreational vessel registrations (Section 5.5.1).

Understanding of the spatial and behavioural patterns of fishers remains a focus and indicates illegal extraction from no-take zones is more likely to occur at some locations than others.^{1363,1364,1365, 1366} Between 2019 and 2023, 37 per cent of all reported poaching occurred in only 10 no-take zones.¹³⁶² By contrast, in 2017 this was higher with 50 per cent of all reported offences occurring in 10 no-take zones.¹³⁶² Reported offences tend to occur in no-take zones that also attracted high levels of legal non-fishing activity, a finding that provides insight into the opportunity factors that increase the risk of poaching.¹³⁶³ While the majority of recreational fishers consider this type of illegal poaching to be personally and socially unacceptable, the use of different social survey techniques has found that between 3 and 18 per cent of recreational fishers will admit to having fished in no-take Marine Park zones during the past year.¹³⁶⁴ Even low levels of poaching can have substantial impacts on fish populations and ecosystem health.¹³⁶⁷

The number of commercial fishing offences in the Region increased from 66 in 2017–18 to around 230 in the 2019–20 and 2020–21 financial years.¹³⁶² During this period, the industry was transitioning to compulsory vessel tracking, with all commercial fishing boats required to have tracking capability by 2020. Since implementation, the number of reported offences has steadily declined to 133 in 2022–23. The majority of offences involved Coral Reef Fin Fish Fishery dories transiting no-fishing zones while not attached to a primary fishing vessel. Fishing offences in other commercial fisheries are generally less frequent. 

Some commercial and recreational fishers employ counter-surveillance tactics to avoid detection of their illegal activity. Therefore, the actual extent of illegal fishing by both sectors is considered to be greater than the number of detected offences suggest. The expansion of commercial fishing vessel tracking has substantially improved commercial fishing compliance rates and the efficiency and efficacy of the multi-agency surveillance program.¹³⁶²