Fishing is now temporarily prohibited around the recently constructed Glenelg and O’Sullivan Beach shellfish reefs for a 12-month period to allow the reefs and marine life to settle and develop.
The Department of Primary Industries and Regions (PIRSA) has implemented the temporary management arrangements under Section 79 of the Fisheries Management Act 2007.
PIRSA’s Acting Executive Director, Fisheries and Aquaculture Dr Shane Roberts said the latest management arrangements follows on from a similar ban which was implemented during the construction of Windara Reef off Yorke Peninsula.
“It’s essential the new reefs are protected to allow the limestone that was deployed and the marine life that will utilise the reef to settle and begin to develop for an extended period, to maximise the ecological value of the reef,” he said.
Department for Environment and Water Principal Marine Science, Simon Bryars, said shellfish reef habitats are important to the marine environment, along with fish breeding and quality, but they can also provide recreational and economic opportunities for the state.
“The Glenelg Reef is a low-profile native oyster reef about one kilometre offshore in approximately seven metres of water within a five-hectare development area,” he said.
“At O’Sullivan Beach, construction has recently wrapped up on a five-hectare native shellfish reef about 500 metres offshore.
“O’Sullivan Beach was chosen as the next metro shellfish reef as it offers suitable environmental conditions with good opportunities for colonisation of marine species from the nearby rocky reefs.”
Dr Roberts said the angasi oysters used for both reefs were grown at the hatchery of PIRSA’s research division, the South Australian Research and Development Institute (SARDI).
“The oyster spat are now about one centimetre in size and settled on Pacific Oyster shells. When mature, in about two years, they will reproduce and contribute to the angasi oyster population on the reef naturally,” he said.
Endemic to southern Australia, angasi oysters had been an important coastal habitat protecting coastal landscapes, water quality, providing food for many marine species and delivering economic benefits to local/regional communities.
Due to over exploitation across its distribution range, the angasi oyster reef habitat was extinct across its distribution range by the early 20th century.
The coordinates of the proposed closure area of the five hectare Glenelg Shellfish Reef site are:
- 34°58.314 S, 138°29.787 E
- 34°58.314 S, 138°29.955 E
- 34°58.422 S, 138°29.787 E
- 34°58.422 S, 138°29.955 E
The coordinates of the proposed O’Sullivan Beach closure are:
- 35°7'42.93 South, 138°27'33.801 East
- 35°7'42.93 South, 138°27'43.758 East
- 35°7'49.394 South, 138°27'33.801 East
- 35°7'49.394 South, 138°27'43.758 East
For more information on fishing closures in South Australia visit www.pir.sa.gov.au/fishing/closures_and_aquatic_reserves