A feed of redfish now comes with a much tighter limit for Northern Rivers anglers, as new restrictions aim to help the depleted species recover.
Recreational and charter fishers across NSW can now keep just one redfish, also known as eastern nannygai, per person per day, down from the previous limit of 20.
The changes, which took effect on October 7, also introduce a minimum legal length of 25 centimetres and tighter restrictions on commercial catches.
The NSW Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development has finalised a rebuilding programme for the species, which is also being assessed for possible listing as threatened under Commonwealth environmental legislation.
‘Redfish remains a depleted stock, and these measures are an important step in supporting its recovery,’ the department’s executive director of resource management, David McPherson, said.
According to the department, Commonwealth scientific assessments indicated the stock had fallen to around three per cent of its unfished biomass in 2019.
Commercial fishers in the Ocean Trawl, Southern Fish Trawl and Ocean Trap and Line fisheries now face a 40-kilogram possession limit. Other commercial fisheries have a zero possession limit.
The NSW measures complement Commonwealth restrictions, which have progressively reduced the incidental catch allowance from 50 tonnes in 2019 to five tonnes in 2026.
The Australian Government is expected to decide by October 31 whether redfish should be listed under national environmental legislation.
The restrictions apply specifically to redfish, Centroberyx affinis. Fishers should check the species identification rather than relying on the common name ‘nannygai’ alone.
For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling. 
