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Please check all relevant authorities before fishing - www.ifs.tas.gov.au and dpipwe.tas.gov.au . Don't forget issuu.com/stevenspublishing for years of back issues !

whitebait photo On Friday 22nd January 2021 David George McDERMOTT appeared in Devonport Magistrates Court on 34 charges relating to the illegal taking of whitebait.

Mr McDERMOTT pleaded guilty and was convicted on all charges. He was fined $13260.

The charges related to the taking of whitebait from the Mersey River in October 2019. The Mersey River was closed to the taking of whitebait at the time. Mr McDERMOTT was found by our Officers taking whitebait on several days.

Magistrate Jackie Harnett acknowledged the fragility of the whitebait fishery in her sentencing submission.

Whitebait regulations are in place for a reason. The fishery is fragile because of over fishing between the 1940’s and 1960’s. Illegal fishing for whitebait puts the species and recreational fishery at risk.

If you witness illegal fishing, or anything suspicious at our inland waters please let us know. You can call 0438 338 530 or 1300 INFISH (1300 463 474). You can email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Source: Whitebait poacher gets big fine (ifs.tas.gov.au)

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: IFS, DPIPWE, MAST and Peak Bodies; Published: 03 February 2021; Hits: 1172

IFS, DPIPWE, MAST and Peak Bodies

Trout from gill net at Four Springs Lake On Monday 25th January an angler found a gill net set in Four Springs Lake. He immediately reported it to IFS officers.

Officers responded quickly and removed the net. It was found to contain 6 trout. Thankfully the net had not captured any platypus.

We thank the angler that quickly passing the information on.

If you notice any illegal fishing activity in our inland waters please report it to us on either 0438 338 530 (Compliance phone number) or 1300 INFISH (1300 463 474). Our Officers can’t be everywhere so your help to protect our valuable inland fisheries is greatly appreciated!

Source: Illegal gill net kills trout at Four Springs Lake (ifs.tas.gov.au)

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: IFS, DPIPWE, MAST and Peak Bodies; Published: 03 February 2021; Hits: 1136

2021 01 27 Brown trout taken on gold Black Fury Perfect weather was forecast and with the Meander River running at 60cms it was time for another fast water spin session today. I was in the river by 7:20am and the conditions were perfect as forecast, the river was running cool and clear it couldn't have been better, all I needed now was to find the trout. This morning I decided to give the Black Fury a go, the Black Fury inline spinner is the first lure I caught a trout on some 55 years ago and it's the lure that got me into trout fishing. It's been a while since I used one and with the water being at the right height today I thought it was well worth giving it a go using the cast and drift method in the fast waters. With the water running at 60cms there's a lot of flat waters on both sides of the river and I'm hoping most will be holding trout.

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: Meander River; Published: 03 February 2021; Hits: 1623

From the CEO

Right now, recreational fishers are out in their tens of thousands around Tasmania, supporting small communities and businesses with their purchases. Our ability to have a positive impact on regional and remote communities that have been doing in tough in 2020 should not be underestimated. Someone recently said to me that recreational fishers don’t generate “new money” into Tasmania like the commercial sector does when it exports fish. That is largely true but it’s not the full picture. Each fishing sector plays an important economic role in Tasmania. As recreational fishers, our role is to circulate money throughout Tasmania. By fishing in coastal and regional communities, we are like veins – we pump money from the city centres of Tasmania out into the regions. Of Tasmania’s 29 Local Council Areas, 20 touch Tasmania’s coast line and with over 100,000 Tasmanians fishing every year our ability to support those communities through the simple act of going fishing is real.

As the Government continues to develop it’s 10-Year Recreational Fishing Strategy, TARFish continues to advocate for you with particular focus on: protected access arrangements to key species, infrastructure investment that makes it easier for people to go fishing, and funding for the long-term. We are seeking fair and protected outcomes for recreational fishers and to be fully recognised for the role we play in supporting Tasmania’s economy and its place in Tasmania’s way of life.

The strength of that advocacy comes from you, our members and I warmly welcome the hundreds of new members that have joined us in recent weeks. As the Government-recognised peak body, the Government will listen to our views but how hard they listen and how they respond is up to all of us. The more members we have, the harder we are to ignore. A single and united voice is a compelling one for Governments. As we approach both a state and federal election in the coming months it is important that we work together and throughout February TARFish will be visiting communities around Tasmania to meet with recreational fishers. Dates and locations will be available from our website by the end of the week and we’ll promote them on our Facebook page. I encourage all recreational fishers to come along and share their views on what a positive recreational fishing future looks like and how we can get there. Your views will shape the ongoing development of TARFish’s position on the things that matter most to recreational fishers and how we can work for you to deliver results.

Thanks,
Jane Gallichan

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: IFS, DPIPWE, MAST and Peak Bodies; Published: 02 February 2021; Hits: 1230

2021 01 20 The best trout of the morning Another top day here in Sheffield today with a maximum temperature of 22 degrees followed up with a gusty South Westerly later in the day, a good day to hit one of the larger rivers again. This time it was the upper reaches of the Mersey River at Weegena that I headed to for the second time this season. My last trip here was quite a while ago, that trip was a real fizzer with just the one brown trout caught and released. I arrived at 7:50am and was in the river by 7:56am, the water was running very clear so I started the session off with a Mepps #0 Stone Fly Bug spinner.

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: Mersey River; Published: 23 January 2021; Hits: 1368

2021 01 17 Small brown No 150 for the season After a forty five minute drive to the Meander River this morning (6:45am) only to find the river bottom full of green cotton like algae, it wasn't worth putting the gear on to fish the area so headed back to chase the Mersey River trout. By the time I reached my entry point in the Mersey River it was 8:55 am, not the early start I had originally planned. I started the spin session off in the same area that I've fished on my last couple of trips here, mainly because it's been giving up a few trout on those trips, so while the iron's hot stick with it. The river level was down marginally since my last spin session which was good, the river bottom was still it's usual slimy, slippery self though. The first stretch of fast water I fished with the #1 Aglia Furia was the one that's given up several rainbows, today it didn't give a yelp, not a single touch from a trout.

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: Mersey River; Published: 18 January 2021; Hits: 1228

When is the new standard effective from?

From 1 January 2021, all life jackets in Tasmania on recreational boats will need to be approved to AS4758.

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: IFS, DPIPWE, MAST and Peak Bodies; Published: 16 January 2021; Hits: 1289

IFS, DPIPWE, MAST and Peak Bodies

2021 01 08 Another beautiful rainbows in the net

The weather forecast wasn't all that flash for today with rain and gusty 30 kph NNW winds, that forecast kept me home for the most of the day, we did have a very light shower of rain and the wind was gusting at 30kph on and off throughout the day. At 4:00pm I'd had enough of sitting around the house and decided to shoot off for a quick spin session in a stretch of river I haven't fished for a very long time. By the time I put the wading gear in the car and hit the river it was 4:20pm and with daylight saving I had a good few hours up my sleeve to catch a trout or two. The river was actually running a little higher than expected but still safe enough to cross over and head to my starting point a few hundred meters downstream.

: Written by Stephen Smith - Rubicon Web and Technology Training; Category: Trout Fishing; Published: 16 January 2021; Hits: 1561

2020 11 22 The third trout is about to be released Mild weather conditions again today had me heading off to the sheltered tannin water in the bush, the same little stream I was in a few days ago. This time I started fishing the stream close to where I ended the spin session last time when I managed to catch and release five wild browns. It was 3:15 pm when I hit the light tannin coloured water that had filtered sunlight on it, the lure of choice was a Mepps gold #00 Aglia. This time it's not the old well used one like I normally use, this one has only been used a couple of times. It took me twenty minutes before I had my first hit from a trout in a small pocket of water, it was hooked for a short time, it tossed the lure on the first leap from the stream. A little further upstream I had a hit and miss from another brown, not long after that it was trout on.