PRIMARY Industries and Regional Development Minister Tim Whetstone expects to tell the 181 Southern Zone professional lobster fishing licence holders about their quota for the 2018/19 season in “four-to-six weeks”.
The quota has remained at 1290 tonnes for several seasons and this was the ruling of previous Labor Fisheries Minister Leon Bignell.
Mr Whetstone told The South Eastern Times that it was a lengthy process to collect and analyse data and then a decision would be made about quota.
The minister met professional fishers on Tuesday at the local ports of Southend, Robe and Beachport.
He had overnighted at a Beachport accommodation venue and this enabled him to attend his first appointment at Southend at 7am.
“Along with the Spencer Gulf prawn fishery, the northern and southern zone lobster fisheries are exemplary models of fisheries management,” Mr Whetstone said.
“I also met with some holders of marine scale licences and discussed how this fishery is settling into sustainability.
“I want to bring a level of certainty to this Commonwealth fishery and I need a good understanding to achieve the best outcome.”
Accompanied by his chief of staff Simon Price and Member for MacKillop Nick McBride, the next stop was the Kimberly-Clark Australia Millicent Mill.
Their hour-long tour of the facility was led by mill manager Scott Whicker.
Mr Whetstone said his background as a tool-maker gave him an appreciation of the precision of the processes used.
‘This is my second trip to the region as minister and my first to the Millicent Mill.
“It is a world-class facility and I was blown away by the level of technology used to make the paper products.
“Mr Whicker said the State Government could assist the mill with efficiencies in logistics and transport such as the re-gazetting of roads for trucks.
“He also asked if there was any appetite by the State Government for a return to rail transport.”
In turn, Mr Whicker said he was pleased to provide the minister with an understanding of the mill’s operations, but would not elaborate greatly on the rail transport matter.
“Our transport options in this region are limited to road,” Mr Whicker said.
The final scheduled stop for Mr Whetstone was a meeting with OneFortyOne Plantations and an onsite inspection of its timber operations at Mount Burr.
Ahead of this inspection, Mr Whetstone said he was looking forward to OFO undertaking its annual compliance review, which is a requirement of the forward sale contract.
“The review will provide an assurance they are complying with the contract,” he said.
On a personal note, Mr Whetstone said he was touched by the local people who remembered his late father Graham Whetstone, who died two years ago at the age of 80.
“He worked as a stock agent in Millicent with the Bennet and Fisher and Elders Smith Goldsbrough Mort firms,” he said.
“Dad then moved to Keith, where I grew up.
“He played at full forward with the Millicent Football Club in the late 1950s and people told me he was a sharp left-footer.”
