Fishers for Fish Habitat Forum 2023: Fishing community to converge on Mildura to Learn, Collaborate and Act
The highly anticipated Fishers for Fish Habitat Forum 2023 in Mildura on the 3rd and 4th of November is set to put Mildura on the map as the leading base of freshwater fish habitat conservation in Australia.
Community members are invited to converge on the picturesque town on the Murray River for the two-day conference.
The annual conference is made available to the community through the NSW Recreational Fishing Trusts and is presented by the NSW Government, Fish Habitat Network and OzFish Unlimited, Australia’s recreational fishing charity.
And the best part of the conference for anyone interested in coming along is that it’s free to attend with meals provided on both days for those who register.
Anyone interested in attending is encouraged to sign up online with OzFish at ozfish.org.au/events by Tuesday, October 24 to guarantee a spot.
This year’s theme is for everyone to learn, collaborate and act on initiatives which will further improvements on Australia’s waterways, both on land and under the surface.
The conference is a chance for experts in the industry to share their knowledge and ideas directly to community members about the latest developments in freshwater fish management and fish habitat.
Day one includes a boat trip and bus tour to see first-hand the habitat restoration works along the Murray River while day two features presentations from a range of speakers from fisheries research and the recreational fishing community, followed by a gala dinner.
Braeden Lampard, OzFish’s Murray-Darling Basin Program Manager, said it was a privilege to host the event in Mildura and this year’s event was on track to be the biggest and best ever.
“We want people to come together and discuss what’s next for their local fishery in the Murray-Darling Basin,” he said.
“We’ve got a whole range of speakers to cover a wide variety of topics to kick-start that discussion.
“We’ve spent a long time considering a whole new line-up of speakers and it’s going to be the biggest one we’ve had yet. We’ve scaled it up so that even if you’ve attended one of these types of forums before, you’ll be hearing new topics and ideas.”
Caitlin Berecry from the Women in Recreational Fishing and Boating will speak for the first time at the conference about how education and community building has created the largest initiative for female anglers and boaters in Australia.
Ms Berecry is part of the Saturday line-up of experts which also includes:
Barkindji Elder Arthur Kirby and Barkindji Maraura Elders Environment Team Senior Ranger Malcolm King,
OzFish Director – Habitat Programs Cassie Price,
Victorian Fisheries Authority CEO Travis Dowling,
NSW DPI Fisheries Senior Fisheries Manager – Habitat & Threatened Species Unit Luke Pearce,
The Full Scale Fishing Adventures host Lubin Pfeiffer,
Edward-Wakool Angling Association representative Dr John Collanin,
Senior Environmental Water Management Officer Paul Childs,
Senior Environmental Water Manager, Murray Darling Wetlands Working Group Sascha Healy,
General Manager for Screens at AWMA Water Control Solutions Peter Ebenwaldner.
The conference gets underway on Friday, November 3 where participants will be split into two groups to tour the surrounding region to visit sites of restoration projects by OzFish and other environmental agencies.
On day two of the conference, the expert speakers will conduct their presentations at the Midway Community Centre from 9am through until 4pm with morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea provided.
The conference will reach its conclusion with a gala dinner at the scenic Cafe 1909 overlooking the Murray River.
This event is also a Yabby Trap Drop Spot. Bring any old and unwanted opera house yabby traps to the Midway Centre, on the Saturday between 8:30am to 9:20am and 4:00pm to 4:45pm, and swap it for an Oar-Gee Plow lure to support sustainable fishing practices.
These old traps will be broken down and recycled into new fishing gear by OzFish and their partners.
Expert speakers
Cassie Price (Director – Habitat Programs, OzFish Unlimited): Think Like a Fish. Cass Price is OzFish’s Director of Habitat Programs and she probably thinks more about fish than most! Cass is a lifetime fisher and her speaking topic is one that she lives and breathes; how thinking LIKE a fish makes you a better fisho. Cass will show you how understanding the way fish utilise habitats, how they feed, move and shelter during different times of the year, or under different conditions, will give you the EDGE the next time you’re out on the water.
Arthur Kirby (Barkindji Elder) and Malcolm King (Barkindji Maraura Elders Environment Team Senior Ranger): They will be talking about the importance of our waterways and how best to preserve cultural knowledge and western science methods.
Travis Dowling (CEO – Victorian Fisheries Authority): Cracking the Code on Maccas – the partnership approach underway to save Macquarie perch from extinction and re-establish an iconic native fish species.
Caitlin Berecry (Women in Recreational Fishing and Boating): Caitlin will discuss how education and community building has created the largest initiative for female anglers and boaters in Australia and share the relevant insights for the wider fishing community.
Braeden Lampard (Program Manager Murray Darling Basin – OzFish Unlimited): He will outline the successes of The River Repair Bus program and its multi-layered community benefit in terms of engagement with local recreational fishers, educational demonstrations and displays at appropriate events, development, coordination, and participation in restoration programs, and building a community of volunteers who are accelerating the progress of fish habitat restoration.
Luke Pearce (Senior Fisheries Manager – Habitat & Threatened Species Unit, NSW DPI Fisheries): Luke will talk about how the Central Acclimatisation Society supported NSW DPI Fisheries in recovery actions for the endangered Macquarie Perch by identifying a refuge site, ceasing trout stocking, trout relocation, providing funding and assisting with annual monitoring.
Lubin Pfeiffer (Freelance fishing journalist, host of The Full Scale Fishing Adventures): He will discuss how to select the right water, lure selection and why, what retrieves work best, and the best way to catch a big Murray cod for yourself.
Dr John Collanin (Representing Edward-Wakool Angling Association): John is a locally based scientist who has been working on threatened fish species here and internationally for over two decades and is focussing on threatened recreational based species such as the eel-tailed catfish and golden perch initiatives in the Edward-Wakool system, as well as small-bodied fish such as pygmy perch and purple spotted gudgeon.
Paul Childs (Senior Environmental Water Management Officer (Murray Millewa Dunggula Lower Darling Baaka): Opportunities of building native fish populations in the mid-Murray River region with environmental water delivery, along with complementary works, and supported by long-term monitoring and communications programs.
Sascha Healy (Senior Environmental Water Manager, Murray Darling Wetlands Working Group): Benefits of wetlands to fish, vegetation, frogs and waterbirds. The value of wetlands as nursery habitat for small native bodied fish and juvenile native large bodied fish and the important role wetlands play in a functioning river.
Peter Ebenwaldner (General Manager – Screens, AWMA Water Control Solutions): Modern screens provide real benefits for water users, native fish and recreational anglers and regional economies. Peter travels extensively to promote best practice screening solutions; often meeting with project partners, attending site meetings, conducting group training sessions, presenting at conferences and exhibiting at international events.
Schedule
Site visits: Friday 3rd November, 12.30pm – 5.00pm
Meet at the Mildura Riverfront, Hugh King Dr, Mildura VIC (paddle streamer departure carpark)
Conference: Saturday 4th November, 8.30am – 4.10pm
Venue: Midway Community Centre, 6 Midway Drive, Buronga NSW
Gala Dinner: Saturday 4th November, 6.30pm – 9.00pm
Venue: Café 1909, 143 Hugh King Dr, Mildura VIC
*The last day to secure your spot to the free Gala dinner is by 5:00pm Tuesday the 24th of October (for catering purposes)
This event is also a Yabby Trap Drop Spot. Bring down any old and unwanted opera house yabby traps, on the Saturday between 8:30am to 9:20am and 4:00pm to 4:45pm, and swap it for an Oar-Gee Plow lure to support sustainable fishing practices. Opera house nets are now illegal in NSW and those collected will be recycled into useful products for anglers, with the proceeds being used to support habitat restoration.
The forum is funded through the NSW Recreational Fishing Trusts and is presented by the Fish Habitat Network.
The event is supported by the NSW Government, the Australian Government through the CRC Program, Murray Darling Basin Authority, Edward-Wakool Angling Association, Murray Darling Wetlands Working Group, the Murray Darling Healthy Rivers program, Victorian fisheries Authority, Women in Recreational Fishing and Boating, Barkindji Maraura Elders Environment Team and BCF – Boating, Camping in partnership with OzFish.
