Carefishnt concerned about Top End barramundi fishery after impressive numbers caught in Rockhampton

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
There's been a bit of discussion that Rockhampton may be
emerging as the barrow moundy capital of Australia. It is
thanks to the success of their net free zone in
the Fitzroy River. Now, since that establishment of that zone,
it's reportedly seen more than five hundred percent increase in
trophy sized barrow while anglers are now apparently catching meter

(00:21):
plus fish or left, right and center. Now this year
is Fitzroy River Barrabash drew hundreds of competitors with two
hundred and seventy three fish over one meter landed. Now,
obviously this boomin rocky has seen locals here in the
Northern Territory quite concerned that the government is not working

(00:43):
quickly enough on gilnets. Now joining me in the studio
to talk more about this from Carefish, it is Chris
O'Brien and Peter Palitis. Good morning to you both. Good morning,
Good to have you in the studio. Now, obviously I've
heard a bit of this discussion rock Hampton potentially overtaking
and of course we feel concerned, or I certainly feel concerned.

(01:03):
You know, we want this crown as the borough capital
of Australia, but it's a bit more serious than that,
isn't USh.

Speaker 2 (01:10):
Well, look we're not happy, are we.

Speaker 1 (01:12):
We don't want to lose the crown.

Speaker 2 (01:13):
We don't want to lose it. But look, I think
we're standing here as Territorians, community members, part of the
business community. Again, congratulations to our leaders that have made
the decision to take out the gill nets. We're looking
at Rockampton booming, visitation, tourism, it's all going to the roof.
They took out the nets in twenty fifteen and I
think they fumbled onto this and just seeing we've watched

(01:36):
it for about three years now and we cannot believe
the numbers of fish, big trophy fish that they're catching now.
It is absolutely staggering.

Speaker 1 (01:44):
So give us some perspective, Peter. I mean, like, by
the sounds of it, that most recent competition, you're talking
more than two hundred and seventy three fish over one meter.

Speaker 3 (01:54):
Landed two hundred and seventy three fish in two point
five days. And give you some perspective. At one of
the barrow competitions this year, the Borough Classic, there was
over five days in the Northern Church and the Daily
River we are caught nine. So that's the difference nine
in five days two hundred and seventy three in two
point five days. To give you some sort of perspective.

Speaker 1 (02:15):
What is going on here? Because the Northern Territory, you know,
we always we really pride ourselves on being the place
that you go to barrowfish. So what is going on?
Is it quite simply that's in Queensland they phased out
the nets there in the Fitzroy River.

Speaker 2 (02:31):
I think there's a combination of things. It's incredible to
see the way the council, the community, even the schools program,
they've all jumped on this and are really promoting and
can see the benefits to the economic value, what it's
going to do to their city. That's what's staggering. I
think we've all, I mean, we all grew up here
and we all believed we were the barrow capital of

(02:52):
the world. We all believe that. But to watch these
guys rise and watch Territorians now consider going over there
to fish. What we're asking ourselves? And I guess we're
business people and I think what we'd love to do
is start a conversation with all the right people at
the table, all the stakeholders, and say what's the opportunity
we're going to lose if we don't, if we wait

(03:15):
till twenty twenty eight or twenty twenty nine. Now we
don't see all the bits and pieces, but I think
there's going to be an opportunity cost if we don't
jump on it.

Speaker 1 (03:23):
What do you think we will lose? I mean obviously
tourism and people heading over there to fish instead.

Speaker 3 (03:28):
So what we actually did. We got some economists and
some other people who actually speak dial up numbers we
wanted to. We were trying to send this message for
the last fifteen months, and we just felt like we
kept on hitting the wrong targets. So we went away
and said, okay, why aren't we hitting the right the
right volume or the right you know numbers. So we've
got some people involved, So look, can you please look
at these numbers. Can you look at what's happening over

(03:49):
here in the territory? Tell us what it actually means
if we do nothing. Now, if we do nothing and
we lose just ten percent of visitors, just ten percent
of visits, we twenty thousand visitors a year coming to
the territory over three years, that'll cost us over sixty
six million dollars and five hundred jobs and that's just
ten percent of visitors.

Speaker 1 (04:10):
So that's over the next ten years if we don't
act on this three years.

Speaker 3 (04:14):
So if the government says, you know, and as Christy congratulations,
they've said that the nets are going, but if they
wait another three years, that's the cost just on visitors.
So it's enormous. It's not something we can wait three years.
It's got to happen now. And the other thing I
want to say, and if I can jump in there,
is that we're talking about Rockhampton, but McKay is now online,

(04:34):
Kansa is now online, so now you're not just going
to be competing with one, you've actually got three. I mean,
there's four point two million visitors in Australia who go fishing. Now,
if we start losing those people to all these other cities,
where do we.

Speaker 1 (04:47):
End up well. And also the other thing that needs
to be taken into account there, I think is from
a tourism perspective, it can be quite easy to get
to some of those locations within Queensland if you live
in Brisbane or if you live in Sydney or wherever
you may be, to get to us sometimes it can
be a little bit more expensive. So you've got to
be more attractive, You've got to have more going for
you to be able to get people here to catch

(05:09):
a massive barre.

Speaker 3 (05:10):
Yeah, I think that And probably no fault of anyone's
is that maca. Rockhampton started it is about ten years
ago in twenty fifteen, and at the time they said,
you know what, we actually need to do something to
get our economy going, and they put the right people
in the right places, had some nice strategies and now
you know what, they're actually seeing the results big times.

Speaker 1 (05:30):
So what do we need to do. How do we
get onto this and get onto it fast?

Speaker 2 (05:34):
Well, firstly, I think if we look at the results
of the million dollar fish teak congratulations, wow factor for
our economy, Imagine if we had a whole team of strategy.
This barrel Monday is a natural resource for us, and
I think we've just realized it's the cousin over there
and we've not put that much energy into promoting it,
growing it, nurturing it. Imagine if we got all the
right stakeholders to grow this resource. I think the one

(05:57):
thing that we all know about fishing is that we're
never out there looking for the smallest fish. And I
think that what Peter's saying is absolutely we need to
get the right people to look at the opportunity we're
going to win, so to speak, as an economy if
we can start to nurture this thing called the barrel mundy.

Speaker 1 (06:16):
And look, I'll be really blunt about it. I've never
been much of a fisherman, but I'll tell you what,
my son loves it. And I've never seen so much
money go into something from a young fellow, so I
can only imagine how much you adults spend on it.

Speaker 3 (06:28):
We would never tell partners, wives never tell you.

Speaker 1 (06:32):
I know my producer will be definitely shaking her head
because her husband spends a lot on fishing. But the
point is right, when people then come to the Northern
Territory and they come here to catch a barrow, they're
not keeping all their money in their pockets, are they.
They're spending up and that's what we want.

Speaker 2 (06:48):
One of the big things that has really surprised us
is that we normally fish just a season, sort of
the runoff. What's going to happen now with the gillnets
being removed, We're going to open up our shoulder seas
and to potentially an eight month with live technology. Everyone's
getting that on their boat, So boats that used to
cost five thousand dollars sixty one hundred thousand dollar boats

(07:11):
and you can target these fish. I would say, correct
me if I'm wrong, But eight months a year.

Speaker 3 (07:16):
Eight to ten months a year, absolutely, and everyone's doing that.
And they're finding fish, you know, on pylon's bridges, rivers,
places where no one caught fish before. So locals who
probably contribute about sixty nine percent to the fishing economy
in the Northern Territory, they're all out starting to do
it sort of as you said, Chris, eight months, ten
months a year.

Speaker 2 (07:35):
Now, the thing you got me last night, Kjo' sitting
down having tea and the phone. I've got a message
and it's a photo of a young girl seventeen years old.
Great family here in the territory. They're all fishing the
Fitzroy River. They send me the picture. She's got a
meter seventeen, her first fish. What's she going to do
with all her teenage friends? Is she going to go
to Darwin Harbor or is she going to go to
the Fitzroy River. That's what. It's got us all fired

(07:57):
up a bit and there's a little bit of you know,
loot Rocky. We want to piggyback on to what they're
doing and this is about our economy and future proofing
as and getting a strategy for the next ten, twenty
thirty years.

Speaker 1 (08:08):
Yeah, we need to do We've got to be forward
thinking in that way. Well, look, thank you both so
very much for joining me in the studio this morning
from Carefish Peter Palitis and Chris O'Brien, thanks for your.

Speaker 2 (08:18):
Time, pleasure.

Speaker 1 (08:19):
Thank you