| Marine mammal casualties an inevitable risk of Geelong Star operations: AFMA |
The killing or injuring of marine mammals is an inevitable part of the Geelong Star trawler's operation, the Australian Fisheries Management Authority (AFMA) says.
Four dolphins and two seals were killed by the trawler, operated by Seafish Tasmania, nine days ago during its first outing on Australian waters.
AFMA chief executive James Findlay told ABC 936 Hobart while everything was being done to prevent all mammal deaths, there was still some inherent risk.
"Unfortunately, it's a bit like driving your car down the road to get some groceries and hitting a kangaroo," he said.
"Some risk is inevitable, and that's just the nature of interacting with the environments and you need to weigh up that risk against the benefits."
He said two AFMA officers would be on board the Geelong Star at all times for the near future and extra measures were being taken to enhance the ability to monitor its fishing operations.
These efforts were in addition to others restrictions and equipment modifications already imposed by AFMA immediately after the mammal deaths.
"We'll be doing everything we can to keep that as close as possible to zero," he said.
AFMA has allowed 7.5 per cent of Australia's small pelagic fishery to be harvested and the Geelong Star has approval to take about 16,500 tonnes.
Dr Findlay said the quotas were sustainable and would have a detrimental effect on neither recreational fishers nor the fish's predators.
"We don't think they're very dependant on those species so we don't think the impact will be large," he said.
Dr Findlay said commercial tuna fishers would have objected to the Geelong Star was to degrade the food supply of tuna.
With new catch limits to be set on May 1, Dr Findlay would not rule AFMA increasing fishing quotas.
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