The licence amalgamation scheme: Taming South Australia's complex multi-species, multi-gear marine scalefish fishery

- We assessed the influence of a licence amalgamation scheme on fishing effort within a complex, multi-species fishery.
- Licences that were amalgamated declined in fishing effort in their final years.
- The scheme reduced fishing capacity by 57%, and fishing effort by 52%.
- The self-funded, effort reduction strategy was a success.

The heterogeneous mixture of participants, fishing devices, licence conditions and regulations associated with South Australia's Marine Scalefish Fishery (MSF), makes the task of managing it extremely challenging. This is further compounded by the highly dynamic nature of the commercial fishers who can switch their target effort between species at will. The complex nature of this fishery means that there has always been considerable capacity for it to expand through the realisation of latent effort. To counter this expansion, a licence amalgamation scheme was implemented in 1994 with the principal aim of reducing the number of participants (and therefore fishing effort) in the commercial sector. This perpetual scheme requires prospective fishers to purchase at least two existing licences before they can enter the fishery. Since its implementation, this unique management strategy has reduced the MSF's fishing capacity by 57%, which has translated to a 52% reduction in fishing effort. Licences that were sold as part of the licence amalgamation scheme or surrendered through additional buy-back initiatives generally displayed a decline in fishing effort in their final years. Although the licence amalgamation scheme is still active, it has lost momentum. Under the current regulations the fishery can theoretically be reduced a further 22% to become fully amalgamated, but is unlikely to achieve this target as fishers are retaining their assets (licences) due to uncertainty surrounding the future of the fishery and local economy. As a long-term fisheries management initiative the licence amalgamation scheme has been successful and widely applauded by the relevant stakeholders. There is scope, however, to augment the criteria of the scheme to encourage the amalgamation of the remaining licences and maximise the benefit of this self-funded, effort reduction strategy.