Rock lobster management plan amendments in Tasmania

RockLobster © DPIPWE Fishing

Proposed amendments to the current Rock Lobster Fishery Management Plan (the Fisheries (Rock Lobster) Rules 2011) were released on 1 May.

Public comment is now open on these proposals. Submissions are due by midnight, 3 June 2019.

What changes are being proposed?

All proposals are outlined in the Information Paper: Rock Lobster Information Paper 2019 (PDF)

The main changes proposed include:

• Increasing the minimum size limit of female rock lobster from 105mm to 120mm in the North West (recreational and commercial);
• Increasing the maximum number of pots to be carried and used by a commercial rock lobster vessel from 50 to 60 in waters from Point Sorell west to South Cape; and
• A number of other minor amendments.

Please read the details of all proposed changes in the Information Paper before making a submission.

Draft Amendment Rules in full are available here

Have your say

Stakeholders are invited to provide a response on the issues contained in this paper from Wednesday, 1 May to Monday 3 June 2019 inclusive. You are encouraged to provide your feedback using the online response form here.

Online responses will receive an automatic acknowledgement of receipt. Respondents using email or mail submissions may make enquiries to check if their response has been received.

You can also print a hard copy of the response form and return via mail or email: Rock Lobster Response Form May 2019 (PDF)

Responses must:

• refer to proposals in the Information Paper
• use headings
• keep your responses succinct and to the point

How to submit your response

Scanned response forms, brief emails or letters can be sent to:

Rock Lobster Review
DPIPWE Wild Fisheries
GPO Box 44, Tas 7001

Responses that deal with matters outside the scope of the proposed amendments detailed in the Information Paper will not be considered as part of this management plan amendment process.

Important information

Your name (or the name of the organisation) will be published unless you request otherwise.

In the absence of a clear indication that a submission is intended to be treated as confidential (or parts of the submission), the Department will treat the submission as public.

If you would like your submission treated as confidential, whether in whole or in part, please indicate this in writing at the time of making your submission clearly identifying the parts of your submission you want to remain confidential and the reasons why. In this case, your submission will not be published to the extent of that request.

Copyright in submissions remains with the author(s), not with the Tasmanian Government.

The Department will not publish, in whole or in part, submissions containing defamatory or offensive material. If your submission includes information that could enable the identification of other individuals then either all or parts of the submission will not be published.

Right to Information and confidentiality

Information provided to the Government may be provided to an applicant under the provisions of the Right to Information Act 2009 (RTI). If you have indicated that you wish all or part of your submission to be treated as confidential, your statement detailing the reasons may be taken into account in determining whether or not to release the information in the event of an RTI application for assessed disclosure. You may also be contacted to provide any further comment.

How responses to the amendments will be used

Written submissions will be considered by DPIPWE, the Crustacean Fisheries Advisory Committee and the Recreational Fisheries Advisory Committee after the public consultation period has closed.

DPIPWE will then prepare a report for the Minister on the submissions, including the Fishery Advisory Committees recommendations and DPIPWE's final recommendations for amendments to the management plan.

This report will be publicly available following the Minister's consideration. Responses to this paper will be summarised for inclusion in the report to the Minister.

Other than indicated below, submissions will be treated as public information and will be published on this webpage at the same time as the report to the Minister is published.

No personal information other than an individual's name or the organisation making a submission will be published.

For further information about providing your response please email or phone (03) 6165 3047.