Chapter 4A forward management plan
4.1Earlier chapters have set out the challenges posed by the range expansion of the long-spined sea urchin Centrostephanus rodgersii (Centro) that are currently being faced by governments of all levels, industry and communities along the GreatSouthern Reef. Also set out are the concomitant opportunities accompanying the range expansion of Centro for industry to harvest urchins, and in doing so not only develop existing and build new businesses, but also to play a crucial part in environmental management.
4.2In both cases, stakeholders strongly agree that the forward management of Centro requires a coordinated management plan, which balances the concerns of various stakeholders, while developing the necessary strategy, policy, and implementation to address challenges while maximising opportunities.
4.3This chapter first sets out evidence supporting the adoption of a national leadership approach, to engage a diverse and complex group of stakeholders.
4.4It then considers the work of the Centro Task Force set up in early 2023, which presented a forward-looking strategy for Centro management in September2023, Longspined Sea Urchin: Towards a national five year business plan (Centro Business Plan or the Plan).
The need for a national approach to Centro management
4.5A consistent theme of evidence to this inquiry advocated for a national management plan, to foster co-operation between stakeholders and to oversee the development and implementation of collaborative strategies. This position was shared by a broad range of stakeholders from government, research and policy development, and business.
4.6Representatives of state governments spoke of the need to take a collaborative approach. For example, Dr Ian Dutton, the General Manager of Marine Resources, for the Department of Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania, stated:
The Tasmanian government believes that it is timely and appropriate that this inquiry considers arrangements for a more integrated approach to management of the Great Southern Reef. There is an immediate need and opportunity to establish a comprehensive regional control program involving all key stakeholders to reduce the threats to the health of the Great Southern Reef, and to the livelihoods of those dependent on that reef, that are posed by the range‑extended pest species of centro.
4.7Mr Travis Dowling, the Chief Executive Officer of the Victorian Fisheries Authority (VFA), spoke positively about cross-jurisdictional harvest strategies, as well as the opportunities for the Commonwealth to play a central role in Centro management:
The key messages we want to give today are we see there is a role for the Commonwealth, whether it's business support or whether it's environmental support in terms of the culling...
4.8Noting that there is a different approach taken by New South Wales (NSW) to other states, as Centro is a local species, Dr Rachel Przeslawski, the Research Leader for Marine Ecosystems, NSW Department of Primary Industries (Fisheries) (NSWDPI), noted several areas that NSW is keen to progress collaboratively. These include contributing to 'jurisdiction-specific and cross jurisdictional regional management' and 'a national approach to supply chains and selling a product'.
4.9Dr Thor Saunders, Director Fisheries Research for the NSWDPI, outlined several areas where the Commonwealth could lead collaboration and reform—expressing a hope that:
… the federal government could facilitate any cross-jurisdictional management frameworks that are being proposed ... it's primarily that ability to jointly do things [for example determine research priorities] where it's a bit problematic for jurisdictions individually to try to come up with some co-legislation to do that sort of stuff … It would … enable it [management frameworks] to be jointly administered across those jurisdictions.
4.10A number of stakeholders supported Commonwealth investment in a national approach and coordination. For example, Dr Fiona Valesini, the Director of the Oceans Program (Australia) for the Nature Conservancy Australia, spoke of the need for a common approach across levels of government:
All levels of government … need to pull together in the same direction. Whoever is best placed to do that, I think the thing that is clear is that it needs a leader, a lead organisation that has a clear strategy, a coordination, a direction and a good business plan. Those are the key ingredients. That was one of the things that we learned from Reef Builder as well. It may not necessarily be federal government that is the leader; it may be federal government working in partnership with the lead agency to provide that oversight and coordination. It needs somebody that has the experience and the opportunity to bring those partnerships together. They will be complicated. A top-down approach here is probably not the best one. It really does need to build from that groundswell of momentum that's coming up locally through the states, and have that opportunity for co-design. And it really needs a lead agency that can get across the complexity of that partnership.
4.11There was also support from industry. Ms Helen Burvill, the Executive Officer of the Eastern Zone Abalone Industry Association (EZAIA), stated that:
If the urchin issue was above water, like feral pigs or feral deer, people could see it and then there would be lots of money thrown at it, and support. But we're effectively dealing with the crown of thorns starfish in the shape of the urchins. EZAIA supports the key actions identified in the [February2023] national centro workshop in Launceston [including] an immediate need for a nationally coordinated and funded regional control program to reduce the threat to the Great Southern Reef and to protect the livelihoods of those dependent on the reef.
4.12Mr Dale Winward, a member of the Mallacoota Sea Urchin Divers Association, explained that it was 'imperative' for the future health of industry that the Commonwealth consider funding a national plan to coordinate Centro management:
Basically, if it doesn't happen, the bottom [of the ocean floor] is going to get wiped out. There will still be a sea urchin industry, but the yields will be very low because they'll have nothing left to eat. There won't be an abalone industry and there won't be fish.
4.13Mr Tom Chadwick, President of the Tasmanian Commercial Divers Association, advocated for a national approach to also support industry:
… we would definitely support lobbying for funding either way to nationalise a management plan for Centrostephanus. And with the action coming, we would obviously like to see it be heavily dependent on supporting fishing industries get underway, and processing and marketing and the like that have proven they can actually do the job. So, yes, we're definitely supportive of it. We will lobby for it and support it where we're needed.
4.14Professor Maria Byrne, a member of the Australian Marine Sciences Association, outlined the important role the Commonwealth could play in a forward management plan for Centro:
I think there's a huge role for the Commonwealth in this, with all the states that are involved that have the Centrostephanus challenge. Centrostephanus challenges are slightly different in the different states, but until the different states are talking together they can't actually explain their challenges to each other. For instance, if the Commonwealth was to provide funding to address the Centrostephanus challenge, how that funding would play out in a place like Tasmania might be quite different to how that funding plays out in New South Wales. As the fishers are saying, one of the biggest issues is that you've got the subsidy in Tasmania, and now Victoria and New South Wales can't talk to each other, because the processing plants are on either side of the border. So, there needs to be some leadership within the Commonwealth so that the states can all benefit from a sea urchin fishery.
4.15Mr Ben Cleveland,Senior Program Manager, Victoria and Tasmania, OzFishUnlimited, outlined the constraints posed by state frameworks to removal and restoration programs:
Coordinating a national approach is critical to this. Whether you are talking about the removal of the urchins or the restoration we do post that, the challenges are around permitting and process and getting people in the water to undertake this kind of work; they are the key blockers for us of restoration around the country, a lot of the legislation and framework isn't built to make that happen.
4.16Professor Peter Steinberg, who appearred in a private capacity, suggested the Commonwealth was necessary for the success of Centro management, not only in a leadership role, but also as a source of funding:
I think the Commonwealth has a very important role to play in bringing the states together so we can take a regional approach to this. And to be completely practical about it, I think the kinds of resources and support that are required to get the outcomes we want across south-east Australia probably come only from Commonwealth pockets. So, there's the coordinating bit and there's the resource bit.
4.17Mr Dowling of the VFA noted his organisation's partnership with the TaskForce, and spoke positively on both its future work and the opportunities for the Commonwealth to assist:
We're really optimistic about where the partnership is going to go. We do believe there is a role for the Commonwealth in terms of…the opportunities that urchins raise as well as the challenges… The key messages we want to give today are we see there is a role for the Commonwealth, whether it's business support or whether it's environmental support in terms of the culling, but getting industry on board with assisting them taking that next step now in terms of getting as many fish [Centro] out of the water and then having them processed and then having them sold.
4.18On the need for reform of existing frameworks, Dr John Keane, an Institute of Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS) Research Fellow, suggested that the TaskForce would be a:
… fantastic way to try to capitalise on all these opportunities. When you talk about fishing, predators and marine parks, there are many different rules and it's very complex. We need to work through these issues over time using marine spatial planning. Some of the barriers …are paper barriers. We know enough about the science and the biology [of Centro], what works and what doesn't work in terms of fishing, predation, culling and other options. It's a matter of speaking to the [fisheries] managers … about whether we use permits or exemptions or we change some of the legislation to implement the solutions because we know about the solutions.
4.19Dr Dutton, noted the general agreement in the Centro Workshop in February2023, particularly:
… the very strong desire of the 140 participants in that meeting for a more coordinated and integrated approach to management of the Great Southern Reef generally and to control the management of long spined sea urchins specifically.
4.20Dr Patrick Hone, Managing Director of the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC), observed that stakeholders at these workshops overwhelmingly wanted an action plan that could start implementing practical approaches. Noting the FRDC's role in facilitating the workshop, he noted that participants:
… clearly they want an action plan. They weren't just talking to us as the people who were doing the science and the managing agencies; they were also talking to this inquiry and saying that the time for talk, the time for conversations has gone. They really wanted more of an action orientated step so that when we come next to meet we're actually ticking off what we have done and achieved, whether that's restoration work, whether that's work to better understand how to mitigate urchins, whether that's work to build better community linkages or work to actually connect the three states better in terms of the policy setting. Clearly they were pushing for that. As a result, we did form a task force.
Centro Task Force
4.21This section first considers the initial impetus of the Task Force, which emerged from a national workshop in February 2023, convened to align with and inform this Senate inquiry.
4.22It then considers the Task Force's Centro Business Plan as a potential way forward for the Commonwealth to work with a diverse range of stakeholders on the collaborative management of Centro.
National Centro Workshop, February 2023
4.23On 1 and 2 February 2023, the National Centrostephanus Workshop (Centro Workshop) was held in Launceston, Tasmania. It was convened by the Department of Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania (NRE Tas), with co-sponsorship from the FRDC. It brought together 140 representatives from industry, government, research, Aboriginal communities, and other community members. This Senate committee was invited to attend this workshop; its inquiry chair, Senator Peter Whish-Wilson, attended and participated in a discussion on the future management of Centro.
4.24The workshop followed and built on similar state-based workshops held in Victoria and New South Wales in 2022.
4.25According to the Final Workshop Report, it was convened as a response to this Senate inquiry, and to inform its work. Many of the participants at the workshop also participated in the inquiry, either by making written submissions or appearing at the hearings in Hobart on 3 February 2023, or in Melbourne or Sydney on 6 and 7 June 2023 respectively.
4.26The Workshop focussed on the key challenges posed by Centro, as well as the opportunity to discuss concerns that the range extensions of other native marine species could create environmental and economic challenges in the future. There was general support for more research, forecasting and modelling to understand the nature and extent of Centro, to develop a strategic approach to management, which could also provide models for future challenges.
4.27A significant area of agreement was that:
… the lack of national funding was a major factor limiting more effective control.[Participants] also declared a need for … investment in ecosystem recovery and maintenance for the Great Southern Reef, with coordination of activities to manage the impacts/expansion of urchins and the development of clear policy which gives direction on urchin control strategies. It is essential that this funding consider the unique needs of Centro control and management in Tasmania, Victoria and New South Wales, with consideration given to the various sectors and rights-holders.
4.28The Workshop also identified opportunities for industry, including the demand for urchin products as a luxury foodstuff, and other commercial prospects.
Establishment of the Centro Task Force
4.29A key outcome of the Workshop was the establishment of a Task Force comprising of the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), the FRDC, and representatives of three state fisheries agencies—the Victorian Fisheries Authority, Marine Resources within NRE Tas, and the Fisheries section within NSWDPI.
4.30The aim of the Task Force was to establish a business plan for collaborative management of Centro. In September 2023, the Task Force finalised a five-year plan, which it provided to the committee. The plan made three Priority Recommendations:
1)An immediate national investment of $55 million into Centro control, guided by this Plan's action areas and priorities.
2)Continuation of the national Task Force to govern the national investment delivery, and drive the coordination, implementation and reporting (via a small secretariat hosted by a Task Force member).
3)Establishment of a National Centro Advisory Group including representatives from Aboriginal community controlled organisations, industry, researchers, commercial dive, processing and the recreational dive sector, to provide guidance, codesign coordination and delivery of actions at a State and regional level.
4.31The Plan was the result of:
… consultation meetings with over 30 stakeholders in June, July and August[2023]. These meetings, coupled with findings from the National Centrostephanus Workshop in February 2023, have gleaned insights into the collective need for co-ordinated national management across all three States and adjacent Commonwealth waters, as a matter of urgency.
4.32The Task Force set out the purpose of the Plan as follows:
The Plan reflects the key aims, actions and priorities required to drive a unified national approach to tackling the varying challenges presented by Centro across its range.
4.33It includes a Mission statement that emphasises the need for collaborative action in both environmental management and commercial development:
Work collaboratively to deliver targeted longspined sea urchin management activities to protect and rehabilitate the ecological integrity and productivity of the Great Southern Reef, support the cultural heritage and traditional values of Sea Country, and create sustainable and prosperous commercial opportunities for industry and communities.
4.34The need for a shared strategy and appropriate funding was drawn out more fully in the Plan:
Effective management requires a coherent strategy and appropriate level of financial commitment to support both strategy development and "in the water" control efforts over a meaningful time frame. Well-targeted efforts can generate a significant economic return for fisheries, tourism and related marine industries and their dependent coastal communities, as well as promote the recovery of ecologically critical species such as kelp, and economically important species like abalone and rock lobster, whilst also improving the long-term resilience of marine habitats.
Stakeholders are committed to the development of a new nationally coordinated Centro strategy which respects the different cultural, ecological and economic factors that influence Centro management objectives across all jurisdictions. They stressed the need for improved political alignment, coordination, commitment, cross jurisdictional funding, and continuity of the investment …
4.35The Task Force recognised that the strategies developed from Centro management could benefit future management of other species that expand their ranges:
Such coordination will also inform future responses to other range-extending species that cause ecological shifts, as such extensions are only expected to increase with climate change.
4.36The Plan also noted that approaches would differ between jurisdictions, recognising that 'the starting point, values, and requirements for each region differ, and the approaches developed and employed through this program need to be flexible enough to accommodate these differences'. The overall approach, however, 'will be unified and strategic under one business framework'.
Business Plan Outcomes
4.37The expected outcomes of the Task Force's Plan are:
Reduced urchin barrens leading to thriving reef ecosystems.
Improved reef health, marine ecosystems and Sea Country which is valued and utilised by community.
Aboriginal people involved with management of sea country and benefit from urchin control. [and]
Successful and supported fisheries, with national and international markets.
4.38The Plan does provide more granular detail of what these outcomes entail under the following themes:
Centro Population Management;
Structured Fishing Effort;
Improved climate resilience;
Ecosystem Rehabilitation;
Productive Utilization of Urchin Waste;
Balancing Harvesting and Economic Opportunities;
Local Capacity Building;
Sea Country Protection;
Community Engagement; and
Consistency Across States.
Task Force Action Areas and underlying principles
4.39To realise these outcomes, the Task Force identified four 'Action Areas', which are each broken down into more defined 'Priority Actions'. The headline Action Areas are:
Reef Monitoring and Modelling
In-Water Centro Control and Rehabilitation Strategies
Support Harvesting and Processing [and]
Management of Sea Country
4.40In addition, the Task Force identified four 'Pillars', principles that should underpin all activities undertaken in the Action Areas.
4.41The following section provides an overview of these Action Areas and supporting Pillars, noting that the Plan is found at Appendix 3, and also available on the committee’s website.
Action Areas
4.42The Task Force report states that four key Action Areas were identified as 'core to the national management of Centro, and delivery against these will form the basis of the plan'.
4.43These were distilled from more than 90 suggestions put forward by stakeholders in consultation for the Plan. Final selection of the priorities was made based on what would be 'best value and highest impact' at the national level, as well as gaps in current investment.
Action Area 1: Reef monitoring and modelling
4.44The Task Force Plan notes that coastal water temperatures around south-eastern Australia have increased by two degrees Celsius over the past 100 years. Moreover, it suggests that adaptive and robust monitoring, modelling and control strategies will enable informed decision-making and proactive management as climate-related impacts continue.
4.45This priority Action Area includes determining historical reef baselines across the Centro distribution in order to:
define desired reef state;
developing standardised reference surveys, maps and models of Centro abundance to determine priority control areas;
developing sustainable fishing and density benchmarks and guidelines for reef reporting;
partnering with Aboriginal people to develop management strategies; and
review and utilise marine spatial planning and other tools to develop a national approach to management and guiding priority areas of investment.
Action Area 2: In-water Centro control and Rehabilitation strategies
4.46The Plan highlights that a key aspect of Centro control should be 'targeted in-water diver control and mitigation strategies' to protect habitat and restore reef ecosystems, as well as rebuild natural predator populations, given that extensive barrens are very difficult to rehabilitate once formed.
4.47The Plan notes that this could take the form of developing strategic harvest strategies that utilise commercial divers, volunteers and recreational divers undertaking removal and harvesting in priority control areas, or Sea Country Rangers undertaking Centro control as part of Sea Country Stewardship.
4.48It is suggested that activities in this Action Area could also include a review of policy and practice in relation to protected areas, catch targets, stock rebuilding practices (of Centro predators), and the development of a Tri-State incentivised fishing strategy.
Action Area 3: Support harvesting and processing
4.49As noted earlier, unlike many other over-abundant marine species (such as the crown-of-thorns starfish), Centro presents an economic opportunity as an emerging fishery for the Australian and International premium seafood market.
4.50Stakeholders consulted in the development of the Plan suggested that support is needed to ensure that processing facilities are commercially competitive and innovative. Specifically, support is needed to:
… adhere to eco-friendly principles, minimize waste, adopt innovative processing techniques, staff recruitment, training and retention, establish value-added products, value-added food products, use of waste (the potential of synthetic biology etc), and encourage / enable more innovative use of all of the components of the urchin.
4.51The Plan also suggests that this be accompanied by a strategic communication campaign that positions Centro as a luxury food while also considering the negative impacts of its southern range expansion, and its status as native species in NSW.
4.52Additionally, it notes that this industry needs a strategy to support research, development and investment in circular economy activities, including into value-added Centro products beyond traditional seafood, for example potential use in cosmetics, pharmaceuticals and aquaculture feed.
Action Area 4: Management of Sea Country
4.53The Plan states that:
Sea Country in the Great Southern Reef region holds immense significance for Aboriginal people, encompassing not only the physical waters but also the spiritual and cultural connections woven through generations. The waters of the Great Southern Reef are repositories of knowledge, identity, and tradition, intertwined with culture and way of life.
4.54In the Task Force's consultation and engagement with Aboriginal people, the immense impact of Centro's range expansion on Sea Country was apparent. The Plan emphasised that this could only be addressed through a nationally coordinated management approach that is 'inclusive, recognises the stewardship rights of Aboriginal people and works to Close the Gap by providing employment opportunities'.
4.55As part of this Action Area, the Plan highlights the need to ensure that Aboriginal organisation are effectively represented in the Southern Centro Advisory Group that the Plan proposes. Moreover, it suggests that Sea Country Restoration projects will need to be developed and supported, as will Aboriginal community-controlled post-harvest production opportunities.
4.56The Plan also notes that culturally led training programs, and study and career pathways will be a component of this Action Area to ensure opportunities for Aboriginal entry into the commercial fishery and management of the resource outside of traditional fisheries.
4.57The plan also sets out four 'pillars for success' that would underpin the Action Areas, namely:
Research and Development: Knowledge to underpin a national management approach.
Communication and Community Engagement: Strategic communication and engagement to ensure stakeholders are supportive of Centro management approaches, the product and opportunities for engagement in stewardship of the GSR [Great Southern Reef].
Collaborative National Approach: Robust partnerships with state fisheries agencies, local, State and federal government departments, research institutions, industry stakeholders, Traditional Owners, and coastal communities to drive the implementation of national management.
Policy:Development / review of cross jurisdiction policies that promote cross sector collaboration and efficient Centro control.
Funding and indicative budget
4.58The Task Force costed the implementation of its Plan at $55 million over fiveyears. The most significant component of this is $30 million over five years for in-water Centro control and rehabilitation. Importantly, this Action Area funding component will be leveraged by State and private investment. The Plan's overall budget is broken down in Table 4.1.
Table 4.1: Indicative budget of the five-year Centro management plan
Source: Centro Task Force, Longspined Sea Urchin: Towards a national five-year business plan for collaborative management, September 2023, p. 24.
Committee view and recommendations
4.59This report has examined the shift in range of the long-spined sea urchin, Centro, from its native NSW marine environment, down the east coast of Australia through Victoria and Tasmania. As well as the substantial challenges this poses to the health of ocean ecosystems, and species that fisheries depend upon, it has also considered opportunities to develop new markets and industries for urchins, particularly as a premium foodstuff.
4.60The scale of the damage caused by this invasive marine pest is unprecedented, and an important and timely sign of future range shifting invasive species. Changing environmental conditions are predicted to translate to more marine species moving into new habitats, and altering the fundamental balance of many marine ecosystems and the communities and businesses that depend on them.
4.61Compelling evidence suggested that Tasmania has already lost 30 percent of its productive east coast reefs to the spread of invasive long-spined sea urchins, with swathes of critical habitat laid barren of the biodiversity critical to our marine life and fisheries.Scientific modelling projects that by 2050, half of Tasmania's reefs will be depleted if immediate action is not taken on managing Centro populations.
4.62In New South Wales and to a lesser extent Victoria, the presence of long-spined sea urchins has long been considered a natural facet of marine ecology. But things are changing. Range extension and urchin population explosion brings the very real risk that Centro will become a damaging presence, rather than simply a natural part of the east coast marine ecosystem. It is clear that proactive management will be needed to mitigate the risk to coastal communities of NSW, Victoria and Tasmania.
4.63However, it is clear from evidence that there are also significant opportunities from Centro's expansion. Most significantly, as a premium foodstuff. Centro harvesting could run alongside and supplement environmental restoration programs, to create a new fishery industry, larger domestic and export markets for urchins, and more regional employment.
4.64As outlined in earlier chapters of this report, there is considerable evidence that an investment in a new Centro fishery would create many new jobs in the communities along the south-eastern seaboard of Australia. This includes additional jobs in processing and harvesting, in environmental management, including for regional and First Nations communities. The committee has made a recommendation regarding this, in chapter 3 of this report.
4.65This is a rare win-win situation for the environment and industry.
4.66This report has also built on the work of the Centro Task Force, which outlined a potential model for the Commonwealth to work collaboratively with states and other stakeholders, to effectively address these challenges, while also making the best of the opportunities.
4.67Alongside the Task Force's work, evidence to this inquiry more broadly also showed strong support for the adoption of a collaborative model for Centro management. This would bring in the Commonwealth and state governments together to work proactively with stakeholders from industry, environmental, First Nations and community groups.
4.68The findings of this inquiry open a window on the very tangible and real ways that climate change is impacting our unique marine ecosystems. It also reveals solutions, offering methods of mitigation that are both manageable and sustainable.
4.69The committee recommends that the government consider making an immediate national investment into Centro control, guided by the Centro Task Force Plan's action areas and goals.
4.70The committee recommends that the government consider the continuation of the Centro Task Force to govern the national investment delivery, and drive coordination, implementation, and reporting.
4.71The committee recommends that the government consider the establishment of a Centro Advisory Group led by the Commonwealth, to include representatives from Aboriginal community-controlled organisations, industry, researchers, commercial dive, processing and the recreational dive sector, to provide guidance, co-design, coordination and delivery of actions at a state and regional level.
Senator Peter Whish-Wilson
Chair