Queensland’s new fisheries regulations commenced on 1 September 2019.
Some of the changes affecting recreational fishers include:
- a new annual seasonal closure for snapper and pearl perch from 15 July to 15 August
- increasing the size limit of pearl perch from 35cm to 38cm
- removing extended charter catch limits for snapper and pearl perch
- new boat limits for mud crab, prawns, snapper, black jewfish, barramundi, Spanish mackerel, shark, tropical rock lobster and sea cucumber, which hold the operator of the boat responsible for ensuring no more than 2 times the possession limit of these 9 priority black-market species is on board at any time (the boat limit does not apply to charter boats)
- general possession limit of 20 fish for species without a prescribed possession limit, excluding some bait species
- reducing the mud crab possession limit from 10 to 7
- reducing pipi and mollusc limits from 50 to 30
A more complete list of the changes is detailed in the fact sheet available from the DAF website on Fisheries reform.