Grievance Debate - Port MacDonnell Harbour

Tuesday March 02, 2021

Mr BELL (Mount Gambier) (16:05): I rise to make a brief contribution on an issue that has been ongoing for quite some time down in my electorate, that is, the Port MacDonnell harbour and the urgent need for dredging in that area. I have given, two or three speeches in parliament on this and I have asked questions of the minister. Unfortunately, still no action has occurred. It is getting to a point where, in a season when our rock lobster industry are doing it pretty tough, this added issue is a safety concern now. It is certainly having a major impact on an industry that you would deem a safe workplace needs to be ensured.

Just to put it in perspective, I know that some people may not have much sympathy for the lobster industry but, when you get to know the industry and the individuals involved, the normal beach price for crayfish is anywhere between $90 and $110 a kilo. At the moment, the fishermen are getting about $35 to $40. The problem is that there are a number of people who have leased pots at $55 a kilo, and the tonnage that is associated with that pot, so regardless of what they get in a beach price they have to make up the shortfall.

We now have people remortgaging houses, selling their house, and it is only a matter of time before a number of them go under and these licences will end up in corporate hands, and there will be fewer and fewer. If you compare that to the New Zealand rock lobster fishermen, they are getting about $125 a kilo because China is taking their product and certainly not taking our product.

Port MacDonnell harbour is home to the largest fleets in the Southern Hemisphere of rock lobster boats. The season commenced on 1 October and, as I have noted, China and the COVID-19 conditions have meant that this has been one of the most difficult seasons that many can remember. Added to that, battling conditions and going out into open water, the build-up of sand and weed in that harbour is causing major problems for boats in terms of inlet filters being clogged up, boats hitting the bottom, and dangerous conditions, particularly when it comes to refuelling—getting in to where the refuelling is.

The fees that these guys pay to the government are in excess of $100,000 a year, and we have had promises of rectification down there of some dredging. At the moment, they have only been short-term measures where they will try to take some seaweed out essentially by dragging their cage behind a boat, but it does not address the sand build-up, and a dredging operation needs to occur. Unfortunately, I did have a minister commit to me verbally that this was planned for. With a change of circumstances, we need to make sure that the new minister is on top of that commitment.

Quite honestly, it has been 15 years since the harbour was last dredged. If you look at about $1 million to dredge the harbour, the fees that are paid that the state government has received are well over $1.5 million in income and they have not spent anything back there to address this issue. So once again I bring this to the house's attention. I will start asking some questions of the minister in question time. It is something that needs to be taken seriously and addressed by the state government.

Speeches