The Sub-Antarctic Management Advisory Committee (SouthMAC) is the principal forum where issues relating to the Heard Island and McDonald Islands Fishery and the Macquarie Island Toothfish Fishery are discussed, problems identified and possible solutions developed.
It also provides an avenue for consultation between industry, managers, researchers, environment and conservation groups, and government officers. The committee continues to be AFMA’s main source of advice on the management of the sub-Antarctic fisheries. The committee holds an annual public meeting each year.
Recent discussion topics
- Lost longline gear in the Heard Island and McDonald islands Fishery (HIMIF).
- Extension of Macquarie Island Toothfish longline season.
- 25.5% minimum quota holding for trawl access in HIMIF.
Download the SouthMAC 36 minutes – March 2018 (PDF, 277KB)
Next meeting
The next meeting is scheduled for November 2018.
Current research priorities
- Stock assessment and management strategy evaluation for sub-Antarctic fisheries
- Development of robust assessment methods and harvest strategies for spatially complex, multi-jurisdictional toothfish fisheries in the Southern Ocean
- Heard Island and McDonald Islands Fishery Random Stratified Trawl Survey
- Development of management strategy evaluation for the Heard Island and McDonald Islands Fishery.
Past meetings
Past decisions and outcomes can be found on the Sub-Antarctic Management Advisory Committee past meetings page.
Members
Members are appointed for the period 1 July 2015 until 30 June 2018.
- Mr Peter Neville, Chair
- Ms Jo Fisher, AFMA member
- Dr Malcolm Haddon, research member
- Mr Jon Bryan, environment/conservation member
- Mr Martin Exel, industry member
- Mr Malcolm McNeil, industry member
- Ms Lihini Weragoda, government member
Contact
Sarah Kirkcaldie
Executive Officer
Tel: 02 6225 5555
Email: sarah.kirkcaldie@afma.gov.au