Commonwealth Fisheries Harvest Strategy Policy.

The Commonwealth Fisheries Harvest Strategy Policy 2018 (Harvest Strategy Policy) sets out a decision framework necessary to achieve defined biological and economic objectives for commercial fish stocks in a given fishery. It outlines: processes for monitoring and assessing the biological and economic conditions of commercial fish species within fisheries against fishery-specific reference levels (a reference point or points); pre-determined rules that control fishing activity according to the biological and economic conditions of the fishery (as defined by monitoring or assessment) these rules are referred to as harvest control rules or decision rules. The Harvest Strategy Policy applies to management of Commercial species (key commercial and byproduct) in Commonwealth fisheries managed by Australian Fisheries Management Authority (AFMA). Non-commercial bycatch species (general bycatch and the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act)-listed species) are managed under the Bycatch Policy and the EPBC Act.
The objective of the Harvest Strategy Policy is the ecologically sustainable and profitable use of Australia’s Commonwealth commercial fisheries resources (where ecological sustainability takes priority) through implementation of harvest strategies. To pursue this objective the Australian Government will implement harvest strategies that: 1) ensure exploitation of fisheries resources and related activities are conducted in a manner consistent with the principles of ecologically sustainable development, including the exercise of the precautionary principle; 2) maximise net economic returns to the Australian community from management of Australian fisheries; 3) maintain key commercial fish stocks; 4) maintain all commercial fish stocks, including byproduct; 5) ensure fishing is conducted in a manner that does not lead to overfishing; 6) minimise discarding of commercial species as much as possible; 7) are consistent with the EPBC Act and Guidelines.