Use of market mechanisms for the allocation of commercial fishing access entitlements in Western Australia

There are fish resources off the coast of Western Australia which, as yet, have not been exploited. Even once these resources are discovered and the idea of exploitation is raised, there remains the question of how access to these resources will be allocated - both initially (under the soon to be released Department of Fisheries Developing Fisheries Policy) and (if any differently) in the longer term.

To date, the Government has used a range of methods for allocating such resources in the past, but each method has raised questions such as the equity of the allocation mechanism, the return to the State, and so forth.

There are also a number of fisheries where arrangements to access the total available catch have not yet been finalised or where the management rules allow for the cancellation of units of entitlement upon conviction of a fisheries offence. In cases such as these, the options for allocating these units or re-introducing them into the fishery need further exploration.

Because of these and other emerging allocation issues, the Department of Fisheries engaged Economics Consulting Services Pty Ltd to prepare a report on the use of market mechanisms for the allocation of commercial fishing access entitlements in Western Australia. The result is this document, "Use of Market Mechanisms for the Allocation of Commercial Fishing Access Entitlements in Western Australia".

The purpose of the report is to assist in any future debates about the various methods of allocation available, and it is intended as an information document. The views in this report do not represent current Government policy. Moreover, it is unlikely that market mechanisms are to be used in allocating access in existing fisheries.

P P Rogers
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
12 February 1998