DESCRIPTION

The South Australian Abalone Fishery covers the state’s entire coast but is divided into three zones separated by two north-to-south lines; one running southward down the western side of Kangaroo Island and the other southward from the mouth of the River Murray. Abalone are hand collected by divers usually from trailerable vessels, that often do not require a boat ramp. This allows fishers to spread catch along the entire South Australian coastline. Catches include Greenlip Abalone, Blacklip Abalone and Roe’s Abalone are taken in the western zone. The combined catches across all three zones are ~ 500 tonnes, with fishery reports estimating a gross value of ~ $20m (beach price). The contribution to the economy is valued at over 300 full time employees (direct and flow-on). The South Australian fishery is Australia’s second largest abalone fishery.

Markets

Most abalone are frozen or canned, with some live and exported to Asia. Hong Kong and China are the most important export markets.

The COVID-19 pandemic caused reduced demand in the marketplace, which is slowly recovering.

Stock status

Greenlip Abalone are distributed across southern Australia and northern Tasmania. Blacklip Abalone are also found across southern Australia, including southern Tasmania while Roe’s Abalone are found from western Victoria to Shark Bay, on the Western Australian coastline.

Both Greenlip and Blacklip abalone have numerous independent biological stocks across their distribution making individual stock assessments not feasible. Roe’s Abalone have three sub-populations across their distribution, with the stock in South Australia (SA) being from one sub-population (Albany WA to Spencer Gulf SA).

Greenlip Abalone are classified as depleting in central and sustainable western zones, and undefined in the southern zone due to limited catches (SAFS, 2023).  Blacklip Abalone are classified as sustainable in the western and southern zones, and is classified as depleted in the central zone (SAFS, 2020).  Roe’s Abalone is classified as undefined because there is inadequate data to assess the stock (SAFS, 2020) South Australia (fish.gov.au).

Management

The SA Abalone Fishery is regulated by the Department of Primary Industries and Regions SA (PIRSA).

The management includes allocating the resource between the commercial, recreational, and aboriginal traditional sectors.

Input controls include a limited number of licenses allowed in each zone, and size limits on abalone in the different zones.

Output control of total allowable commercial catch limits, or quotas, are used to limit how much abalone can be caught.

The harvest strategy for the fishery monitors catch and catch rates in fine-scale spatial areas to assist in understanding the productivity of abalone stocks. These factors are scored and used to determine the total allowable commercial catch for the different zones.

The Australian Government’s export approval (Wildlife Trade Operation) is important due to the importance of exporting to this fishery. Current approval was provided in 2015 and is valid until July 2025. During the assessment period it was noted there are no by-catch or protected species concerns with this fishery but questioned the harvest strategy’s articulation of what constituted ‘overfishing’.

Gear Type

Hand collection using an ab Iron and surface supplied air, or a Hookah or SCUBA.

Environment, Social & Governance

  • Due to the hand collection nature of the fishery by-catch and interactions with TEPS are limited. There are however, regular encounters with White Sharks, which have led to some human fatalities.

Pressures, Risks & Opportunities

  1. Fishing grounds are restricted by marine parks in the Commonwealth’s South-west Marine Park Network and South Australian marine parks sanctuary zone.
  2. There is a strong reliance on Asian export markets.
  3. In 2024, abalone viral ganglioneuritis (AVG) was confirmed in wild abalone in waters south of Port MacDonnell, the first time the disease has been found in South Australia. AVG has no known effects on human health.