Got this from another site.
Cheers
Ray/
Taken from DAF Catch news email newsletter 26-5-16

Buyback Scheme for Net-free Zones rd1 Completed
The first round of a structured Buyback Scheme for commercial fishers directly affected by Queensland's new net-free fishing zones has been completed.

Three net-free zones were established at Cairns, Mackay and Rockhampton on 1 November 2015 as part of the Queensland Government's Sustainable Fishing Policy.

$10 million was set aside to help affected fishers. Three assistance schemes administered by QRAA closed on 2 December 2015.

The first scheme, the Buyback Scheme targeted commercial fishing boat licence holders who used the zones between 2012 and 2014, seeking to buy back up to 46 licences voluntarily to minimise commercial fishing effort moving into other areas or other fisheries. Twenty-seven offers were received at a cost of $3.318 million.

Under the remaining two schemes, voluntary offers were made to commercial fishers based on the level of commercial netting undertaken in each zone. There were 95 fishers eligible for the Settlement Scheme and 87 chose to accept the offer totalling $1.026 million. 30 fishers were eligible for the Impact Alleviation Scheme and all chose to accept the offer made at a total cost of $1.5 million.

The report Outcomes of the Fisheries 2015 QRAA Assistance Schemesis available for download.

For more details, visit net-free fishing zones.


Monitoring King Threadfin Salmon
Commercial fishers and processors have shown strong support for a new pilot program to monitor King Threadfin in the Gulf of Carpentaria and in areas of the East Coast.

The program which started in January 2016 involves the biological monitoring of the length, sex and age of King Threadfin from the commercial and recreational harvest.

Fisheries Queensland scientists are measuring fish from commercial fishers before sale, at seafood wholesalers and processors and from donated fish frames.

The King Threadfin species has also been added to the Fisheries Queensland Keen Angler Program where recreational fishers can donate their fish frames for monitoring research.

King Threadfin in East Coast Queensland is classified as an undefined stock while the species is classified as transitional – depleting in the Gulf of Carpentaria Queensland.

For more information, visit the King Threadfin Stock Status Assessmentwebpage.