Now they are raving about a total of thirty (30 ) fads between Steep and Albany
Submitted by sunshine on Tue, 2023-10-24 18:21
Saying that this "fintastic" deployment will allow the average boat fisherman to target pelagic fish rather than bottom dwellers"..........no info on how close some of them will be but with Perths strong sea breezes and strong easterlies I have a great deal of doubt they will benefit Joe average as the present distances offshore limits boat size for safety.
Was recently in the eastern states and they cannot believe the ridiculous refs we have to abide by.
As a radio operator for MRC at the distance of the present southern ones you cannot or only get extremely marginal radio coverage even using the repeaters ......how long before a disaster occurs ......it is only a matter of time
sea-kem
Posts: 14967
Date Joined: 30/11/09
Agree Gordon, you'll have
Agree Gordon, you'll have guys shooting out there in small boats on an Easterly and miscalculating the run home. Nothing worse than an angry following sea up your ginger, got caught at Gnarloo once , thankfully not too far from shore but it was an uncomfortable slow ride home. They need to have some in the 10-15km range that boats like mine will do easily with those small windows we get in summer, if any.
Love the West!
resurgence
Posts: 577
Date Joined: 23/04/14
FADs have been there for years
PGFC FADs have been around for thirty years, RFW FAD program ran for three years. To the best of my knowledge there's never been an incident attributable to a miscalculated FAD trip.
If you're sensible a FAD trip around the metro area is quite achievable in moderate sized boat, even on days that aren't quite ideal. Run out with the easterly in the morning, fish for a few hours when the wind has dropped off, then run back in around lunch time or early afternoon with the sea breeze.
sea-kem
Posts: 14967
Date Joined: 30/11/09
Totally understand that, but
Totally understand that, but what they are spinning is going to have fellas heading out there that haven't done big outwide trips before. I do 30km comfortably in mine up north but only on days where I know I'm not going to cop a strong sea breeze. That far out will muck around with fuel consumption as well as timing the run in ,usually 45-50 mins with the boat at full throttle. We try and get in with daylight to spare.
Love the West!
resurgence
Posts: 577
Date Joined: 23/04/14
PGFC FAD's have been deployed for years
Some people will find anything to complain about. PGFC have been deploying FADs for over thirty years. I guess if you wait long enough there'll be some sort of incident to justify overinflating the risk...
sunshine
Posts: 2600
Date Joined: 03/03/09
Not talking about PGFC fads
The new deployments are those being "raved" about by DPIRD and the thirty no doubt include PGFC's ......so subtract PGFC fads, the two new ones off Dampier and one off Pt Samson ( which have absolutely NO effect on demersals off the metro coast nor the ones they are putting off the south coast ) Bluntly that is a pathetic effort by Fisheries and they reckon they are investing $1.5 million on this "initiative"........$50,000 per fad ....really they have to be joking.
What concerns me is the advertised emphasis and governmental fanfare on this so called 'programme' diverting fishing pressure away from demersals......absolute political spin and nothing more.
I have always applauded PGFC's efforts but this Fisheries effort is bluntly pathetic.
resurgence
Posts: 577
Date Joined: 23/04/14
Recfishwest FAD program
The Recfishwest FAD program was started back in 2019 to expand on the PGFC FAD program so it pre-dates any rule changes for demersal fishing in the west coast zone. It ran for three years and was successful. This is now expanding on that original program.
There are 40 FADs planned for the Recfishwest program, which does not include the PGFC FADs which are still funded by PGFC. The $1.5M is for three years. It will include not only purchase of new FADs and anchoring equipment but the deployment and recovery of the FADs each season.
Regardless of what you think about the restrictions on demersals, the FADs have been successful in getting more anglers to fish for offshore pelagic species. Trying to discredit their effectiveness and usefulness to many anglers with a weak "safety" argument is puerile.
sunshine
Posts: 2600
Date Joined: 03/03/09
No mention whatsoever of the $1.5 million over 3 Years
The publication by Fisheries makes absolutely no mention of the three year period .......perhaps you need to become their copywriter and FFS Safety of the boating community is never PUERILE ...
resurgence
Posts: 577
Date Joined: 23/04/14
It’s in the announcement
It says in the announcement on the Fisheries page and Recfishwest page that it's $1.5M over 3 years.
resurgence
Posts: 577
Date Joined: 23/04/14
Plenty of info on location
All the existing and planned FAD locations are on the Recfishwest website. Not that hard to find.
Daniel Westerduin
Posts: 429
Date Joined: 30/10/06
Pretty sure they're about
Pretty sure they're about 50kms out on average. I go that distance in my 4.8m quite regularly and it definitely gets hairy at times and no radio reception out that far. Definitely not recommended for the inexperienced.
Reefsta
Posts: 311
Date Joined: 03/08/19
Waiting for the windfarms
Those FADS will be way too far out for me, so I'll have to wait for a few windfarms closer in?
Pete F
Posts: 310
Date Joined: 07/01/18
Wind farms will be out a
Wind farms will be out a long way too, from what i read 200m depths!
Cheers
Reefsta
Posts: 311
Date Joined: 03/08/19
Probably well out
Yes, if they build floating ones , 200m depths could be the way for them. But plenty of the ones built on structures attached to the seabed get put in much shallower. Average <20m and in some countries <10m. Pretty unsightly that close in and a nav hazard at night I recon, but would be good fish attracting structures if you could get near enough.
Pete F
Posts: 310
Date Joined: 07/01/18
Not sure where I got it from
Not sure where I got it from now but read the proposal for the one up near Lancelin. They were proposing to put piles down into mud seafloor 200m depths.
Cheers
sunshine
Posts: 2600
Date Joined: 03/03/09
I will say no more on the subject other than to point out
That in the Eastern States MANY of the fads, indeed nearly all, are located water depths of 100 metres or less and are very successful yet here, as far as I can deduce from the maps, not a single one will be deployed in those sort of depths. Surely a few shallower experimental locations are warranted
Tim
Posts: 2497
Date Joined: 26/09/06
Shallow
There has been many fads trialled in shallow over numerous years and none have shown to be beneficial.
Fad locations have been developed making use of currents, water temps etc
The shallow PGFC fad is Club Maarine in and around the barges and is usually barren.
The best result in shallower water are artificial reefs and structures like the fish towers which hold all sorts of fish
keg
Posts: 398
Date Joined: 17/07/07
water temps
it`s not worth while putting anything in closer around because the water is too cold
resurgence
Posts: 577
Date Joined: 23/04/14
Nature of the water conditions
Many places on the east coast the East Australia current comes in much closer to shore. We aren't so lucky here except way up north. There's been a PGFC FAD deployed in about 130m southwest of Rotto for many years. It just doesn't see the same fish aggregation as the deeper ones that touch the edge of the Leeuwin Current. Little point deploying FADs in locations that don't produce good fishing.
CD
Posts: 46
Date Joined: 06/12/16
Spot on. I completely agree
Spot on. I completely agree with the sentiment around providing something that is accessible by everyone, but I have never caught anything decent off the shallow FAD.
Pete F
Posts: 310
Date Joined: 07/01/18
40 Fads for 40,000 displaced
40 Fads for 40,000 displaced dermersal fishers, I can see that being fun on one of the few weekend days they are acessable to average trailer boats
I wonder how many of those lost days to dermersal fishing will realy be compensated for? I am certainly not heading out there in my 4m tinnie on the rare day it might be considered slightly safe to find there are some divers on it.
Cheers
scotto
Posts: 2470
Date Joined: 21/04/08
sunshine
@Sunshine: the east coast current is totally different to our leuwin current. They are definately exposed to more pelagic action than we are, unfortunately. especially with big tuna, wahoo, marlin, etc.
my 2 cents is i'll happily accept this offer of more fads, but it is absolutely no deterrent to me ever voting Labor again. They could possess the cure for cancer, and i still wouldnt trust them to hold a half drunk, warm can of export, let alone government power.
I just sincierly hope whoever knocks them out can actually undo whatever entaglement of shit they have done to rec fishing and marine parks. i really fkn hope you guys and your friends/families all do the same.
tcarroll
Posts: 265
Date Joined: 17/12/13
Amen!
Couldn't have said it better myself.
sea-kem
Posts: 14967
Date Joined: 30/11/09
I'm dead keen on hearing
I'm dead keen on hearing what the opposition's policy is on all of this, if they actually have one ....
Love the West!
Pete F
Posts: 310
Date Joined: 07/01/18
Once we get closer to the
Once we get closer to the election it will become interesting.
Cheers
tcarroll
Posts: 265
Date Joined: 17/12/13
Seems like low hanging fruit
Seems like low hanging fruit to me in terms of drumming up support if the recreational fishing numbers are correct. Admittedly, of the 25% of the state reported to partake in recreational fishing, I'm guessing it is only a small portion of those who truly care.
Shooters Hunters and Fishers seem to be doing some ground work to capitalise on the number of disgruntled fisherman and shooters in the state and at least at the Federal level, their one page policy statement looks reasonable.
As it stands, i'm not sure that if/when labour are thrown out that it will be as a result of better opposing policy rather than a large enough percentage of the population just been sick of their overreach!
Sea goat
Posts: 962
Date Joined: 26/03/17
agreed. would also be good if
agreed.
would also be good if they had designated spering fads. especially now that there will be more out. i know some people would ignore it, but would make it better for all involved.
sunshine
Posts: 2600
Date Joined: 03/03/09
I said I would say nothing further BUT
In discussions tonight I found out it would be simple to fit ANY out the more southern fads with an antenna, solar panel and repeater massively improving boating safety for those that venture out to those fads. Just saying!
resurgence
Posts: 577
Date Joined: 23/04/14
Enough signal
If there's enough signal for a repeater then wouldn't there be enough signal for a vessel?