Recreational
abalone fishing in the West Coast Zone takes place over one-hour sessions
on four Saturday mornings between December and February.
This summer, licensed fishers
can fish for abalone between 7am and 8am on:
- Saturday 10 December 2022
- Saturday 14 January 2023
- Saturday 4 February 2023
- Saturday 18 February 2023
Abalone fishing is an extremely
popular recreational activity and the safety of fishers and Surf Life Saving WA
(SLSWA) volunteer lifeguards must always be put first.
Given this, DPIRD is
provided advice from SLSWA on the predicted sea conditions for each
recreational fishing session. If unsafe conditions are forecast an abalone
fishing session may be cancelled. This is completed in consultation with
Recfishwest.
If a fishing session is
cancelled, a replacement session may be added to the end of the season if
catches will not exceed the total allowable recreational catch. This session is
scheduled for 11 March 2023.
Local sea conditions can vary
between fishing locations and fishers must take responsibility for their own
safety – at no time should fishers enter the water unless they are confident in
their ability to handle the sea conditions.
Safety
tips for abalone fishing are available on the SLSWA website.
The total allowable recreational
catch is currently between 21 and 25 tonnes in the West Coast Zone. This has been
reduced from last season due to increased summer sea surface temperatures (SST)
in recent years (Summer SST in 2022 was classified as a moderate marine heatwave).
The number of fishing sessions in
the West Coast Zone may also be reduced or extended following in-season
monitoring to ensure the recreational catch is consistent with the allowable
catch and managed in a sustainable way.
The West Coast Zone extends from
Busselton Jetty to the Greenough River mouth and incorporates all islands
within the zone including Rottnest, Carnac, Garden and Penguin islands.
Rules relating to abalone
fishing including size and bag limits are available on the recreational fishing rules website and
published in the Abalone
recreational fishing guide.