Minister for Boating and Fishing, Jaala Pulford, was in Mallacoota last Thursday, visiting local fisherman, Paul Bezinis, during her time in the Far East to have a look at his banded morwong fishery.
Mr Bezinis holds one of only two permits for banded morwong fishing issued in the eastern zone, which covers an area east of Lakes Entrance to the New South Wales border. He was advised by the Minister last week that from February 2020 his fishing permit would be converted to a licence, a conversion he is happy about.
The banded morwong ocean access licence that Mr Bezinis is set to receive will give him viability and future security. He told the Minister he was happy as he had been “waiting 20 years for that news”.
Mr Bezinis had been operating under a developing fisheries permit since 2000 to take banded morwong; the only other state operating morwong fisheries was Tasmania.
He has monitored the banded morwong for the past 20 years, initially to see how sustainable it was, working with government fisheries departments over the years, submitting catch and effect returns on a regular basis.
He said the government is happy with the sustainability and progress of the fisher sustainability based on research and is happy to grant him his banded morwong ocean access licence in February.
The fishery is currently closed for three months during the spawning period.
Mr Bezinis uses mesh netting to catch the morwong, which are kept live in his homebased tanks. When he has a full load, trucks take the live fish to Melbourne or Sydney where it is eagerly purchased for the Chinese restaurant market.
The catch size is between 40-50cm with anything above and below being released.
PICTURED: Minister for Fishing and Boating, Jaala Pulford, with Mallacoota based banded morwong fisher, Paul Bozinis, last Thursday.
