Sardines, SBT and snapper - driving an unmeasured economy

Almost entirely absent from the Tasmanian Sardine Fishery discussion is a serious and honest assessment of the recreational fishing economy that has emerged and continues to accelerate on Tasmania’s north west coast. This change is being driven by the Southern Bluefin Tuna and snapper fishing and, we believe, underpinned by the sardine fishery.

This is money being spent now, in regional towns, by Tasmanians.

The rapid emergence of these fisheries has triggered a cascade of real-world economic activity. Recreational fishers are not simply turning up with existing equipment; they are investing (some heavily) to locate, target and successfully catch species they have never previously encountered.

Boats are being purchased or upgraded to safely operate further offshore. Outboards are being serviced or upsized. Electronics are being improved. Better rods, reels, braid, leaders, lures and terminal tackle are being bought. Fuel is being consumed - petrol for boats and diesel for tow vehicles. Accommodation is being booked. Food is being purchased locally. Repairs, servicing and modifications are being undertaken in regional workshops.

It’s serious money.

It is a broad-based, repeatable, regional economic injection.

More importantly, it is growing, fast.

Every successful Southern Bluefin Tuna capture generates new participants. Word spreads. Confidence builds. Skills improve. Access becomes normalised. What was once unthinkable becomes achievable.

However, none of this activity appears to have been meaningfully measured, valued and included in the earliest policy considerations for a new commercial sardine fishery. This matters to recreational fishers.

When policy focuses narrowly on “economic return” through the creation of a commercial sardine industry, it risks overlooking or undervaluing a recreational economy that may already rival or possibly exceed the projected returns of the sardine fishery.

With the deadline for responses to the State government’s draft sardine policy fast approaching, we will soon be releasing a draft response for rec fisher feedback.