Batemans Marine Park .. Email Group mailout #48

[pink nipper]

Narooma Port Committee

Chairman Dr. Philip Creagh BVSc.

Secretary Mr. John Moore

PO Box 596

Narooma, NSW, 2546



Greetings All



1A, 1B, 1C. Response of three Narooma residents to the extraordinary attack by the three Sydney based Marine Scientists on Professor Kearney. Subsequent to this a friend who works in the NSW Public Service told me this was organized by the NSW Marine Parks Authority, through the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service. The journalist who did the ghost writing was allegedly Tonia Liosatos, the Merimbula based media officer with the NPWS.

1D. The article as it appeared in the Narooma News



2. News about the National Parks Association proposed Sydney Marine Park, and the Merimbula-Cape Howe Marine Park ... This is being taken very seriously by the NSW Department of Environment and Climate Change.





1. Following the article by the three scientists in the Narooma News of November 19 2008 (sent to everyone) I received two “Letters to the Editor” that had been sent in, including mine, made three. Two were published in the Narooma News of December 3rd 2008.

Below is the three “Letters ..”



1A. From Philip Creagh



Narooma Port Committee asks “Who are the real charlatans?”

The extraordinary response by Associate Professors Booth, Gladstone and Davis in last week’s Narooma News (NN 19th Nov 2008 “ Kearney ’s talk disappoints scientists”) clearly demonstrates a willingness to attack the messenger rather than the message. This is the typical response of the “lock it up and lock ‘em out” mentality of the extreme Green’s, and yet this comes from three professionals in their field. It is so unusual it makes one question whether they were, in fact, the author’s of that response.

They claim that Professor Kearney “does not support his assertions with data from NSW Marine Parks”, and yet Professor Kearney has stated quite explicitly that since the first “no take” zoning was established in Solitary Islands Marine Park in 1992, there has only been one minor paper that demonstrate any benefit in biodiversity improvement or benefits to fish. There has been no “robust data” in 16 years that demonstrates any statistically significant benefit in all six NSW Marine Parks sanctuary zones within estuaries and beaches.

The three Professors have completely ignored Professor Kearney’s position that well designed Marine Parks have great potential to improve marine biodiversity, and as a secondary effect improve fish stocks. However NSW Marine Parks are NOT well designed and the “no take” sanctuary zones, which merely stop fishing and nothing else, will have no benefits at all.

Finally, Professor Booth claims “there appear to be a lot of charlatans in this debate”. One million fishers in NSW are wondering who the real charlatans are?



1B. From Richard Tilzey, ex DAFF



The article titled ‘ Kearney ’s talk disappoints scientists’ (NN 19 Nov) once again demonstrates the insidious spin-doctoring emanating from the NSW Marine Park Authority and its cronies. The article and the quotes from Professors Booth, Davis and Gladstone make no mention of the fact that the central premise of Professor Kearney’s talk was that recreational fishing has been unfairly singled out as a major threat to biodiversity within marine parks, despite there being no substantiated evidence to support this claim. Kearney did not dispute the value of such parks in maintaining biodiversity. What he does dispute are the fallacious claims made by the MPA and the Institute of Marine Science (IMS) about the so-called harmful effects of fishing. Such claims have been used to exclude recreational fishing from 20% of marine park areas along the NSW coast.



The three academics quoted note the need for scientific claims to be published in peer-reviewed science journals and imply that criticism of marine park management largely comes from uninformed ‘charlatans’. As a scientist it behoves me to request copies from these learned gentlemen of peer-reviewed papers demonstrating that recreational line fishing in NSW estuarine and coastal waters has had an adverse impact on biodiversity. I do not expect a response as no such hard published evidence exists. The bulk of evidence used to denigrate fishing is derived from overseas studies on destructive commercial fishing practices and on over-exploited fisheries. Good science is certainly not about the selective use of information, in this case used to advance the hypothesis that recreational fishing is having a significant impact on biodiversity.



There appears to be a coordinated effort by the MPA and IMS to besmirch the integrity of Professor Kearney and minimise the impact of his well justified claims that the exclusion of recreational fishers from park areas is based on fraudulent scientific information. Indeed, the apparent collusion between these two organisations is starting to reek of “jobs for the boys”. It should certainly be noted that many well respected fisheries scientists support Professor Kearney’s views.



The incompetence of the current NSW government and its arrogant disdain for the recreational fishing industry is further demonstrated by their recent attempts to close down the Gaden trout hatchery at Jindabyne to save less than $1 million in annual expenditure, much of the money for which comes from fishing licences. This flies in the face of recent surveys estimating that trout fishing in the Snowy Mountains area generates $70 million per annum for local tourism industries. If the State coffers are in such parlous condition, perhaps it’s time to look at the cost of policing marine park sanctuary areas based on misleading information.



Richard Tilzey

Central Tilba



1C. From Dave Clarke President Narooma Services Club Fishing Club



Dear Editor



So after reading this week’s letter that Kearney ’s talk disappoints scientist maybe next weeks can read scientists disappoints thousands of fisherman and woman on the east coast of NSW



I am very certain Professor Booth and his colleagues have been disappointed by comments, but the people that they say are unqualified have many years of real life fishing and know their own local areas (something that is not taught in uni) and this was all passed on to the advisory committees that were set up to start Marine Parks but guess what nobody was listening and then the so called academics got involved and for what?



No normal person could not say that the oceans were suffering from over fishing and the methods that were being used to rape the oceans were not sustainable and this was voiced to NSW Fisheries by fisherman for the last 30 years but then bingo a Marine Park was invented and after 15 years in operation what has a Marine Park got to show that by simply stopping trawling could have done? Not much if any



The rhetoric that is being pushed by the marine parks is rubbish and the lies that have been sent to me from former Marine Park Managers would open your eyes but some how we ( the local fisherman) ended up being the bad people in all of this. How long ago was it the grey nurse sharks were on the slide ? yet a count by recfish has seen the numbers jump to 1150 so again the people have been let down by the academics



Maybe you the academics can explain to many hundreds of thousands of fisherman why the government is closing down the Gaden Trout hatchery at Jindabyne ? Now here is a place that uses science and has done so for the last 50 years and educated many thousands of young fishermen in doing the right thing yet you let this happen!!! I like many think it’s time you get into the real world and start to listen to us charlatans (as you put it) because the way Marine Parks are set up now they too will suffer the same fate as the NSW labour Government which is a pity because the idea was right but you people ( the academics ) have let us down in a big way



Dave Clark

President NSSCFC

1D. Kearney's talk disappoints leading NSW scientists, November 19th 2008



NSW marine scientists were dissatisfied with the controversial rhetoric put forward by Professor Robert Kearney at a recent seminar about NSW Marine Parks in Sydney . Professor David Booth, chair of the Sydney Institute of Marine Science's Scientific Committee said "Professor Kearney made all sorts of assertions, but he did not support them with robust data from NSW Marine Parks."



These sentiments were echoed by Associate Professor Andy Davis from the University of Wollongong who added "that unless Professor Kearney shortly publishes his claims in a credible scientific journal they will have little impact on the broader science community."



President of the Australian Marine Science Association (NSW branch), Associate Professor Bill Gladstone, felt that Professor Kearney's seminar was out of touch with views of the vast majority of Australia's marine scientists.



"In the last decade, hundreds of marine scientists have signed statements supporting the need for marine reserves to conserve biodiversity. This support is based on hundreds of published studies costing million and millions of dollars, although more work need to be done. In the end, it takes a lot more than unpublished rhetoric to change scientists' minds."



Professor Booth was also disappointed by comments in the media from unqualified individuals. "There appear to be a lot of charlatans in this debate. If you want sensible comment about marine biological issues, you should go to professional marine biologists. If not, comments should be taken with a grain of salt."





2. The proposed new Marine Parks in NSW.



2a Protecting our oceans to benefit us all now and for future Blue Is The New Green

We wanted you to be amongst the first to know that we are launching the biggest NSW marine sanctuary plan ever next Thursday, 4th December.

Thank you for your involvement in this campaign to date. Your support is very important to us.

Thursday’s launch will unveil a proposal to gain marine sanctuary status for 20% of NSW oceans. This will include the creation of the largest urban marine park in the world and collectively result in over 200,000ha of completely protected marine sanctuaries reaching from Tweed Heads in the north to Cape Howe in the south.

Further information on the plan and how you can help will follow after the launch!

Thanks once again for your role in this campaign. We look forward to continuing to work together to help provide the world’s best protection for NSW oceans and the marine life that calls it home.

Kind regards,
Nicky

Nicky Hammond
Marine Program Manager
National Parks Association of NSW
PO Box 337, Newtown NSW 2042
Tel: 02 9299 0000; Fax: 02 9290 2525
Email: marine@marine.org.au … Website: www.marine.org.au







2b

Marine Park for Sydney
From eNews 419 – Friday, 17 October 2008 CLOVER MOORE

The National Parks Association is campaigning to get a marine park in the Hawkesbury Shelf Bioregion, which comprises the coastline around Sydney . The Hawkesbury Shelf is one of only two bioregions in NSW without a marine park.

While the World Conservation Union has set a target for sanctuary protection of 20 to 30 per cent of global waters, only 6.7 per cent of NSW waters have such protection. Overfishing, climate change, habitat destruction and degradation, and pollution are causing detrimental impacts in our coastal marine waters and pose serious threats to future marine habitat and biodiversity.

"No-take" marine sanctuaries can double fish and invertebrate densities, triple biomass, increase mean fish sizes by 20 to 30 per cent, boost the number of species by 23 per cent, quadruple catch-per unit efforts in nearby waters, and make marine ecosystems 21 per cent less vulnerable to environmental changes.

Marine sanctuaries provide tourism and education and research opportunities. Species that urgently need protection in the Hawkesbury Shelf Bioregion include the grey nurse shark, estuary cod and the woody sea dragon.

I share widespread community concern that without fully protected marine sanctuaries, Sydney 's marine biodiversity could disappear. I have asked the Minister for Climate Change and the Environment to work with the National Parks Association and the community to urgently establish a marine park within the Hawkesbury Shelf Bioregion.

I encourage you top also contact the Minister to lend your support: write to The Hon Carmel Tebbutt, dp.office@tebbutt.minister.nsw.gov.au.

Information

www.marine.org.au/campaignshawkesbury.htm



2c



And James Woodforde from the SMH of Wednesday 3rd December 2008



http://www.smh.com.au/news/environment/ ... 39085.html