Habitat enhancement of boating infrastructure to promote fish recruitment

Project Member(s): Booth, D.

Funding or Partner Organisation: NSW Transport (Transport NSW PF)

Start year: 2014

Summary: Pontoons in NSW provide an opportunity for habitat enhancement to make them more attractive to fish and other marine life. In the last 10 years, more than 110 pontoon facilities were completed in NSW under the BBP, and this is on top of the large number of existing pontoons. The amount of pontoon habitat in NSW is therefore considerable, and enhancements could potentially provide substantial benefits to local fish populations. Most of these facilities are within estuaries, in areas suitable for colonisation by a wide variety of fish and other marine life. Given the considerable resources invested by NSW Department of Primary Industries for development of new estuarine artificial reefs (EARs, http://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/fisheries/recreational/saltwater/artificial-reefs), with over 20 EARs placed in over 8 estuaries at a cost of over $3 million, enhancement of pontoon habitat may offer a cost-effective supplement using existing infrastructure.

Keywords: fish habitat enhancement

FOR Codes: Fisheries Management, Fisheries - Wild Caught not elsewhere classified