About Snapper recovery
The Snapper Recovery Package is a three-year, $8.8 million support package announced by the South Australian Government in response to the extended closure of the Spencer Gulf / West Coast and Gulf St Vincent Snapper stocks to 30 June 2026. It includes:
- $5 million Snapper Science Program that is co-funded by the South Australian Government and the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC)
- $2.4 million to support impacted fishers
- $1.2 million to support the continuation of the snapper restocking program
- $200,000 for reef restoration projects.
Background about Snapper
Snapper is an iconic fish species and one of the most significant fishery resources in southern Australia. It is a long-lived, slow growing species that supports important commercial and recreational fisheries and is of cultural significance throughout its distribution.
Over the past decade there have been significant declines in the productivity and stock statuses of Snapper fisheries throughout Australia. One example of this is the progressive decline in annual commercial catches of Snapper from each mainland Australian state between 2011–12 to 2020–21.
South Australian Snapper fishery
There are currently 3 recognised stocks of Snapper in South Australia:
- Spencer Gulf / West Coast stock
- Gulf St Vincent stock
- Western Victoria stock
Over the past 2 decades, the above 3 stocks have demonstrated very different trends in biomass and fishery catches, which primarily related to two processes:
- recruitment – the number of juvenile Snapper that enter the population each year
- exploitation – the number of fish that are removed from the population.
Spencer Gulf / West Coast stock
Historically, the Spencer Gulf / West Coast stock has provided the highest contribution to the state's catches and supported the most productive regional fishery in Australia. However, the biomass of Snapper for the Spencer Gulf / West Coast Stock declined considerably from 2006 and has remained at record low levels since 2012.
The decline in biomass reflected an extended period of poor recruitment (that is the number of juvenile fish that enter the population each year) and the continued exploitation of the population. This decline resulted in the Spencer Gulf / West Coast stock being classified as depleting in 2012, which was further downgraded to depleted in 2018.
Gulf St Vincent stock
The Gulf St Vincent stock followed a much different trend. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the biomass of Snapper in the Gulf St Vincent stock was comparatively quite low. The biomass then progressively increased during the 2000s and early 2010s due to multiple recruitment events in the 1990s and 2000s. In response, catches from Gulf St Vincent increased exponentially from 2006 and remained at record high levels from 2010 to 2015, before also declining considerably.
The decline prompted a change in stock status to "depleted" and resulted in the implementation of fishery closures from 1 November 2019.
