

Harvest strategies are a best-practice approach to fisheries management decision making, balancing ecological, social and economic considerations/outcomes to develop appropriate management frameworks. Each harvest strategy includes key elements, which progressively build the management framework designed to achieve the objectives defined in each harvest strategy.
NSW DPIRD has developed a short animated video series on harvest strategies, including how they are developed, the core elements of a harvest strategy and key terms and concepts used in harvest strategies and fisheries management. The videos provide information on the role of harvest strategies and scientific assessments, and how they assist in building a robust management framework for a particular species or fishery.
| Harvest strategies | Components of harvest strategies | Fishery data and quota management |
|---|---|---|
Why is monitoring and assessment important for a successful harvest strategy? | ||
Harvest strategies support best practices for fisheries management by enabling transparent and evidence-based decisions on changing harvest levels.
Harvest strategies are developed collaboratively with key stakeholders through harvest strategy working groups, which include fishery experts, stakeholder representatives, and departmental staff.
Harvest strategies contain core elements designed around scientific evidence and transparent monitoring and management rules to maintain healthy and sustainable fish stocks to provide ongoing social, cultural and economic benefits long into the future.
Ecologically Sustainable Development (ESD) is a core principle ensuring fisheries will be managed in a way that is ecologically sustainable.
Core structural elements of a harvest strategy underpin the operation of the harvest strategy and include harvest strategy objectives, a monitoring and assessment strategy based around fishery indicators and reference points, and evidence based decision rules for managing harvest to meet the strategy objectives.
Harvest strategy objectives define the agreed management outcomes a harvest strategy is designed to achieve.
Fishery indicators are used to track the performance of a fishery against the operational objectives of a harvest strategy.
Monitoring and assessment components of a harvest strategy define how fishery performance will be monitored against scientific evidence to support effective management decisions.
Reference points are benchmarks to assess stock health and performance. They help define desirable and undesirable performance levels, and guide management decisions to ensure the objectives of the harvest strategy will be achieved.
Decision rules provide pre-agreed management actions to be undertaken, focused on managing levels of harvest or effort applied to a fishery.
Commercial catch and effort data is important, and a key data source used in scientific stock assessments and management decisions.
Recreational catch and effort data is important, and a data source used in scientific stock assessments and management decisions.
Stock assessments play a key role in monitoring and assessing the health and abundance of fish populations.
Catch Per Unit of Effort (CPUE) measures catch relative to fishing effort and is a key data source used in scientific stock assessments and management decisions.
Fishery biomass is a measure of the abundance of fish stocks, and is estimated by analysing data from catch reports, fishery surveys and stock research.
Fishing mortality is a measure of fishing pressure, which is assessed as an impact on stock recruitment and health.
Total Allowable Catch (TAC) is the maximum amount of fish that can be caught in a specific time period.